As a new agent, I was drowning in a sea of Host Agency and Consortium options! It was overwhelming. Yet, with determination and patience (not so much), and a lot of help from Host Agency Reviews (thank you, Steph, Bridget, Mary, and anyone else), I eventually narrowed it down to Travel Quest and Travel Leaders. (You should see my Google spreadsheet! Every little detail about a slew of Host Agencies! Ugh! Many of which were great second options, but only one was the best.) The combined offerings of Travel Quest and Travel Leaders were everything I wanted and more, and with each passing week, I learn about more and more powerful tools at my disposal. They both just keep on impressing! I had none of that at my previous Host Agency. What a sea change! I could list their offerings (AgentMate, Engagement, Agent Profiler, CruisePRO, an overabundance of learning materials, tons of opportunities to get involved with your fellow agents, supplier partner familiarization (FAM) offerings, etc. - all of which I use and love!), but you can read about all of that on their website. What you really need to know is that I finally feel like I have the foundation necessary to build my travel business. Do American Express, Virtuoso, Ensemble, etc. offer you tools for success? Yes. Might other Host Agencies help build your foundation? Yes. Yet, when I was doing my research as a newbie, only Travel Quest and Travel Leaders gave me everything I was looking for. So, I would wholeheartedly endorse Travel Quest as your host agency and Travel Leaders as your consortium. (Feel free to contact me with questions. I will do my best to get back to you in a timely manner.)