Wonderful article on our industry and escorted tours. It is
perfect and covers the past, present and future. You'll find it interesting if
you work in our industry and or love travel and are looking for the perfect
tour. It's way I love my career!
The Next
Generation of Escorted Tours By Janeen Christoff Posted on: July 09, 2012
When people
thought of touring, it used to be that the first thing that came to mind was
the film “It’s Tuesday, It Must Be Belgium.” The movie became a stereotype of
the escorted tour industry. Over the last decade, however, tour operators have
gone to great lengths to dispel this idea, and the industry is enjoying some of
its most successful years ever, despite turmoil in Europe, clashes in the
Middle East and volatility with airfares. While the industry is transforming,
it isn’t headed in the direction travelers may think.
“Back in the
’70s, people told my dad that by the ’90s touring would be gone,” said Dan
Sullivan IV, director of sales at Collette Vacations. “Now, touring is bigger
than ever. I think that it will continue to change and evolve.”
Tour
operators have been working hard to replace words that are associated with
touring such as whirlwind and whistle-stop with a new vernacular that includes
phrases such as authentic experiences, in-depth sightseeing and hassle-free
vacations. While travelers used to complain about barely having enough time to
take a photo of momentous sites such as the Colosseum in Rome, they now rave
about how well-managed their time is in a destination while on a tour.
“Travelers
don’t want to be wasting their time,” said Steve Born, vice president of
marketing at the Globus Family of Brands. “The idea of not missing something is
a huge benefit for the escorted tour market.”
So, which
has changed more: today’s traveler or today’s tour?
“Escorted
group travel was built on the basic promise of providing a no-hassle vacation,”
said Born. “Hassle-free, easy and simple are the main drivers for clients
booking this type of travel.”
Research
conducted by Globus found that 17 million Americans were open to touring and
that the biggest driver was that the experience was hassle-free.
“This
section is bigger than all of the cruisers in a year,” said Born.
Sullivan
agrees that the industry is becoming more diverse.
“The tour
industry has transformed like television,” said Sullivan. “Now, when you ask
someone what their favorite channel is, there is a diverse range of answers.”
In the mid
to late ’90s, many people believed that touring was an antiquated way to travel
and that FIT was the best way to get an authentic experience. Over the years,
travelers have realized that it’s not as easy — or time effective — to go it on
their own.
“People
believe that they can get in a car and drive the Amalfi Coast,” said Marc
Kazlauskas, president of Insight Vacations. “The problem is that they don’t get
to see as much as they would on a tour.”
Evolution of
the Industry
“Clearly,
escorted tours have seen headwinds increase,” said Jeremy Palmer, vice
president of product development at Tauck. “Blame it on mother nature or
economic volatility or the popularity of cruising, but the industry has
responded with a more robust product.”
Longer stays
are one of the ways in which the industry has transformed for the next
generation of travelers.
“We’ve
adapted and changed for what the customers and agents have asked for,” said
Kazlauskas. “We went from doing multi-country tours to doing two- to
three-night stays in a destination. We now go in and spend two hours in the
Colosseum. Before, clients wanted to be sightseers. Now, they want to get under
the skin of a destination.”
While the
escorted tour industry is transforming, it’s focus is more on diversification.
“No one
trend seems to be taking over,” said Sullivan. “What’s happening is that the
industry is becoming more diverse.”
While the
bones of the escorted tour experience remain the same, many features have been
enhanced.
“We have
changed the pace, locations, inclusions, style and format of our product,” said
Paul Wiseman, president of Trafalgar. “We are completely focused on delivering
unique and exclusive insider experiences such as our Be My Guest dining. But we
have not changed the fundamental business model of carrying a group of people
together, and that group average remains 40 people. We have changed the product
to suit the modern traveler.”
One of the
most popular requests from travelers — and one of the biggest changes in the
industry — is more time in a destination.
“Baby
boomers don’t want the traditional escorted tour,” said Sullivan. “They want
single hotel stays. They want to go to Italy and stay in one city. ‘Hub and
spoke’ is a good model of what the modern escorted tour client wants today.”
One of the
ways in which tour operators have diversified the product to make it more
appealing is by adding new features and new experiences.
“The magic
is in the delivery of the moment,” said Born. “This will keep the experience
from being cliche. The secret ingredient is that the tour operators are
building and delivering the experience just for the group. To that group, you
are the only ones there. It has to about the uniqueness of the moment and
making clients feel special.”
According to
Palmer, Tauck frequently updates its itineraries to keep clients engaged.
“We have
turned over 40 percent of our product, and we go tour by tour and see what we
are ‘hitting’ and what we are not with feedback from directors, agents,
clients, etc.,” said Palmer. “The product managers travel and look for things
that are authentic and what we have unique access to. This ensures that clients
are interacting with the environment and the culture.”
Palmer noted
that in China, clients have the opportunity to hold a panda bear and visit an
Apple factory.
“It doesn’t
have to be a big splash from a monetary point of view,” said Palmer. “It needs
to fit with the narrative of the trip. That is what we are trying to do.”
Ultimately,
touring’s popularity comes down to time management and the delivery of unique
and authentic experiences.
“On an
escorted tour, you can do a comprehensive Rome tour in less than four hours
because of the way we manage the time,” said Born. “We bring you right into the
attractions, there is no line. Everything is structured efficiently. To the
traveler, it delivers perfect time management. Their time is gold, and they
don’t want to miss a thing.”
New Niches
and Exotic Destinations
One of the newest
trends in the escorted tour market is tours that focus on a distinct niche,
such as music, popular television personalities, books and more. The Harry
Potter franchise has inspired a spate of tours in England and Scotland and tour
operators are eager to cater to these clients with a range of targeted tours.
Tauck’s
partnership with filmmaker Ken Burns is an example of how the industry is
focused on new experiences.
Burns is
working with Tauck to tell the story of America’s Buffalo Soldiers as part of a
new itinerary that explores San Francisco and the National Parks of Northern
California, including Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon. The history of the
Buffalo Soldiers in the parks is one of several cultural narratives that Tauck
will highlight in its new, all-inclusive, eight-day guided journey, Yosemite
And Sequoia: John Muir’s California.
Insight is
also honing in on new clients with its new Rhythms and Flavors of America tour.
The itinerary starts in Chicago and encompasses bourbon tasting, a visit to the
Anheuser Busch Brewery, the Kentucky Derby Museum, the Grand Ole Opry and more.
Sullivan
sees potential in exotic markets such as Africa and Eastern Europe.
“One of the
biggest emerging destinations, is Africa, specifically Kenya and South Africa,”
he said. “South Africa has had a lot of demand.”
Additionally,
Sullivan noted that there was increased interest in South America.
“South
America is really emerging as a destination,” he said, “but it can become
challenging. There is an ebb and flow in the demand, which has a lot to do with
pricing. This is happening in Rio, where rates are going up. That is going to
slow down growth at which time the market will correct itself.”
Born also
sees interest rising in more exotic locales.
“We are
seeing a mix of destinations both tried and true and emerging,” he said.
“Germany and France are up, and Eastern Europe and Israel are emerging. On the
exotic side, South America, Africa and Asia are experiencing a lot of growth.”
The Next
Five Years
Over the
next five years, tour operators agree that the market will continue to
diversify and face challenges.
“I think
that there is going to be more specialization in the industry,” said Sullivan.
“Tour operators are going to want to do more limited tours with more focus on
individualization. The family segment is going to grow for those companies that
educate families and travel agents that these are really great bonding
experiences. We need to get the word out to consumers and agents that these
tours are feasible.”
While Born
would like to see less volatility in Europe, he said that Globus is bullish on
growth over the next five years.
“It is not
just fingers-crossed optimism,” he said. “We see more and more boomers coming
to tours when they are tired of doing it on their own. There is a new
60-year-old every few minutes in the U.S. They are ready to have people do
things for them — this is the market that escorted tours is squarely in.”
Palmer
believes that selling tours is going to become more of a digital experience and
that those companies who can capitalize on digital products will be ahead of
the game.
“Bringing
tours alive on video and using iPads as a selling tool to demonstrate and bring
the tour to life is going to be critical. As you move into the digital realm,
you will be able to conquer the ‘this is just a bus tour’ myth,” he said.
Sullivan summed
up the future of the industry by comparing it to saving for retirement.
“The tour
industry is like a mutual fund,” he said. “Humans have a tendency to want to
generalize things but, really, it’s about diversification.”
Palmer also
noted that the next five years will be focused on inbound travel. Indicating
that the “next generation” of tour clients may be visiting the U.S., rather
than leaving it.
“Inbound
travel is going to be a big trend,” said Palmer. “We have started to ramp that
up, targeting the English-speaking markets as well as China, Hong Kong, India,
Brazil and Argentina. We are examining all of our options right now.”
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