Irresistible Itineraries - Experts Spill Their Secrets On Cooking Up Successful Itineraries

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Experts Spill Their Secrets On Cooking Up

I

rresistible

tineraries

CONCOCTING A TOUR ITINERARY requires just the right blend of special ingredients. Whether you’re introducing a new destination or putting a novel twist on an old favorite, you want your recipe to be chockful of memorable moments that will have your clients hungering for more the next time around.

Leisure Group Travel went to some of the industry’s most creative tour companies to ask how they spice up itineraries. Hands-on activities and behind-the-scenes tours, according to their comments, certainly seem to be gathering steam. Following are some fresh ideas on itinerary planning and marketing, hot off the griddle:

Melissa Famiglietti Snape Vice President of Product Collette Vacations Pawtucket, RI

18 June 2009

Travelers today are looking to spend their discretionary dollars on vacations that they feel are engaging and authentic. When my team and I are planning a new tour or spicing up an existing one, we focus on developing activities and experiences within a destination that are interactive versus passive for our passengers, that let them experience, not just see, and learn about a destination, not just look at it. Collette’s product managers strive to include opportunities and attractions worldwide that provide access and experiences for our clients that they would not necessarily be able to replicate on their own. This way, the value proposition of touring with Collette is clear.

Collette’s tour managers, who are Collette employees, are also heavily involved in the process to ensure that each itinerary is a blend of specialized, educational and leisure experiences that allow travelers to maximize their time in each destination. We look to include local experts from the region whenever possible—people who can provide insight on a topic or a sight that our passengers can only get from people “in the know.”

Collette’s focus on more interactive experiences translates into offering a wider variety of types of tours such as train travel, tours with heavy culinary and wine components, and the development of Explorations by Collette, our small group tours brand, and conLeisureGroupTravel.com

tinued expansion of the Smithsonian Journeys Travel Adventures brand.

The “secret� ingredients that have made Explorations by Collette develop from a market trend and into a robust, popular new brand include sightseeing off the beaten path—to places that often aren’t easily done with 40 passengers, unique dining that often incorporates chef-led demonstrations, and overnight stays in boutique hotels. Together, these ingredients truly capture the flavor of a destination.

cance of the Kachina doll and make their own. This is a great stop to explore Native American culture. They offer many educational programs you can set up depending on the interests of your group. This is one of many examples of new places that can be added to a traditional tour.

I suggest my staff read trade pub-

lications and talk with DMOs to find out what is new and what could be included on our existing tours. I also encourage them to think out of the box and research behind-the-scenes stops at some of the locations. With the right “garnish and seasoning,� a tried-and-true tour can become a new tour with “zest.�

Michele Michalewicz, CTP President Western Leisure, Inc. Midvale, UT Western Leisure, Inc. is celebrating 30 years of group tour expertise.

We specialize in customized group tour packages providing an authentic, personalized experience. Just yesterday, I sat down with my staff and said it’s time to “spice up� the “menu� for our itineraries. We are always adding new “ingredients� to our tour programs.

One of our most popular tours is through the Canyonlands region of Utah. In 2001 outside of Zion National Park, a non-profit Native American Cultural Center opened.

The Utah Trails Resort – Village of Many Nations offers activities and entertainment centered around the 1800s. Passengers can participate in tomahawk throwing contests, learn the mysteries of the medicine wheel, and learn about the signifiLeisureGroupTravel.com

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%JTDPWFS POF PG /FX &OHMBOE¾T GBWPSJUF HSPVQ USBWFM BUUSBDUJPOT Explore a wonderland of fun ... visit with Santa ‌ catch snowflakes year ’round in the Black Forest ‌stroll through our authentic Bavarian Christmas Village ‌ learn how candles are made in our Candlemaking Museum ‌ create your own special souvenirs – multi-scented jar candles, wax hands and custom dipped candles at WaxWorks™‌ and so much more!

Shop for a wide range of home furnishings, seasonal decorations, collectibles, gourmet foods, unique toys, and distinctive gifts for every occasion.

Plus, satisfy every food craving with dinner at our award-winning Chandler’s Restaurant, sandwiches and more at Mrs. Claus Bakery & CafÊ or the sweet taste of our famous fudge.

Contact our Group Tour Department today to learn more! grouptour@yankeecandle.com

* &YJU Â… (SFFOGJFME 3PBE Â… 4PVUI %FFSGJFME ." Â… XXX ZBOLFFDBOEMF DPN

June 2009 19

then make their own blend, which is corked and labeled to take home as a memento. Adventurers in Costa Rica can choose to take a horseback ride into the tropical forest, zipline from tree to tree in the canopy, ride down from the canopy on a 1,300-foot waterslide, and finally relax in the thermal hot springs—all in the same day!

Kim Vincent Product Manager Globus Littleton, CO As a product manager for the Globus family of brands, I find that the recipe for a perfect tour has many ingredients and rarely can be done from a desk. Attending trade shows and participating in familiarization trips, meeting with tourism boards and local vendors, soliciting feedback from past travelers and our seasoned tour directors, and keeping on top of trends and new destinations through newspapers and magazines are just a few ways we look to develop new itineraries.

We are always on the lookout for the next hot trend, whether it's a new destination or a new way of experiencing a destination. Of course, we ensure that our passengers get the most from their journey by balancing the must-see highlights with unique experiences set at a reasonable pace.

Further, an initiative we are currently focused on to enhance our vacations is creating a wide range of hands-on activities and excursions that appeal to different interests like family travel, food & wine and adventure themes.

For instance, in Venice on our Family Travel vacations, we bring our families to one of the oldest Venetian mask making studios, where they learn about the social importance of the mask in Venice and its use in everyday life and during Carnival. Then, they get to create their own Venetian mask and wear it to dinner that evening! On our Food & Wine vacations, travelers have the opportunity to learn about blending different wine varietals and 20 June 2009

3. Is the local guide droning on about another ruin? Join the archaeology team and help dig up artifacts.

4. So you think you can dance?

Swoon with your partner at a tango lesson or jive the night away at a samba school.

5. Ever wonder what is in that bottle? Stroll through the vines with the vintner and experience the winemaking process from grape to glass.

6. Want to help but do not know how? Volunteer for the day in a local village, school or orphanage.

The goal with any group itinerary is to make sure it is sellable in the marketplace. The “wow” in every Goway itinerary ensures the group gets filled every time.

Barbara Norton Group Sales Manager Goway Travel Vancouver, BC Goway Travel’s GroupsOnly Department are experts at customizing unique, innovative and interactive itineraries for 10 or more passengers traveling together to the South Pacific, Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and the Middle East. Our Group Coordinators are destination specialists who begin from the ground up to develop the best itinerary.

We are committed to taking out of our itineraries as much of the old-style wording as possible—verbage such as “drive by,” “view from coach” and “on a tour we will see….” Our goal is to get the group out of the coach. Rather than just watch life go by from behind the coach windows, our passengers get out and experience with all senses. A few examples on what we can include: 1. Tired of the hotel’s buffet breakfasts? How about letting your group sleep in and include a room service breakfast one morning.

2. Another dinner, another set menu. Why not meet the chef at the local market and help buy and prepare the evening’s dinner.

Clayton Whitehead CTP, CITM Vice President Sports Leisure Vacations Sacramento, CA A wise sage once told me to “give ’em what you know.” We all know more than we think we do. But just because we know it—because it’s familiar to us—doesn’t mean a traveler finds it familiar. They may find the greatest interest and enjoyment in what we as tour planners think of as commonplace.

My two favorite extracurricular activities are volunteering at the local public television station and at my church. My learning the inner workings of a television station has opened numerous avenues to my travelers. I’ll often seek out stations that offer some sort of behind-the-scenes activities, from studio tours to being a part LeisureGroupTravel.com

of a studio audience. I’ve even sold local daytrips that feature a tour of our station. Best of all, most of these things are free. Stations are happy to have groups visit as it supports one of their primary missions (public outreach).

I’m a religious person and make no apologies about it. I usually leave Sunday mornings as free time on the itinerary so I can go to church. My travelers know this and can join me if they wish. As more and more travelers are asking to join me, I’ve begun to position Sunday services as an optional activity. I usually select a historic building with a story to tell. I contact the minister and tell him or her we are coming, then ask if they can do anything special for us. This often results in a greeting from the pulpit, a church or graveyard tour after the service, or being invited to coffee and doughnuts.

One of the greatest bonuses of visiting a church during a service is that you get to hear the choir and often a wonderful organ.

Bob Cline President U.S. Tours Parkersburg, WV Making Tours is like making pizza.

The dough and sauce are as common to every dinner as a motorcoach and hotel are to every tour. The secret to selling both is: Fresh Ingredients, OnTime Delivery and Unique Marketing.

If you top a tour with the same ingredients year after year, you are going to see sales decline. Watch the pizza

company advertisements and you'll hear about fresh toppings, with exciting words and mouth-watering phrases. It's always the same pizza, but successful companies make it sound different and better. Are you selling another Nashville trip? If it sounds like last year’s, you would be naive to expect better results.

You've also got to deliver in "30 minutes or less." Every year I see several of my customers deliver their annual catalogs in the spring. You can't deliver last night's pizza in the morning if you expect continued sales.

For small companies I suggest you retool for speed and prepare for the races you can win. Do you really need an annual catalog? Is your business plan as well organized as Globus and Collette? Or are most of your sales made 3-6 months in advance?

You should print smaller seasonal booklets. If you want to increase tours for the fall, you should feature them in the summer when your customer is thinking about a break from the heat.

You simply have to advertise the benefits of your products in the season in which your customer is buying.

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