Big Five – FeedJust how many of the same island or river cruises can you sell, or plane tickets can you generate before it all becomes so routine that you need your own escape? Or, maybe you think it’s getting harder and harder to distinguish yourself from the crowd; or, as one agent commented recently “There just isn’t enough really new and different product in the marketplace.”
If you’re bored and restless, what about your clients who may also be looking for new challenges?
Doug Gollan, writing in Forbes Online, talks about consumers returning to travel advisors like you. He cited a recent report from American Express that “revealed an 110% increase in intent by consumers to use retail travel agents for this upcoming holiday season and 79% growth in actual usage year over year from 2015 to 2016.”
And when they come back to you, what will you have to offer them?
Many of our partners turn to us precisely for this reason – we don’t think outside-the-box – we say “what box?” We jump ahead of the crowd and seek extraordinary locations and unique experiences that others miss or simply do not see. And, always with an eye to sustainable travel.
Just take a walk through our President’s Picks to see for yourself why we are the next generation company for the next generation of travelers.
In Northern Peru Warriors of the Clouds, discover Kuelap, the most important pre-Inca Chachapoya site and one of the largest ancient stone complexes in the western hemisphere. Astonishingly few travelers have yet made their way to this remarkable site, which includes more than 400 hundred interior buildings and massive exterior stone walls. This unexpected city has been called the Machu Picchu of the north.
Sri Lanka A Natural Adventure takes you into obscure small towns and villages and into the private homes and kitchens of everyday Sri Lankans to see how they live and to share a meal with the family. Travel north by train to Jaffna and northern Sri Lanka that until recently were cut off from the rest of the world for some three decades. This journey into the central cultural triangle and beyond offers a variety of opportunities for genuine encounters.
In Botswana & South Africa, you have the unusual chance to participate in the Facial Recognition Research Project that uses innovative technology for animal conservation. All photographers can participate in gathering data in the field. You are supplied a camera with GPS capability, and the images you shoot are collected and sent for scanning. The software can recognize the individual species, principally the big cats, and a movement map using the GPS data embedded in the image is created.
We also seek out the most interesting and satisfying accommodations. In Cambodia’s Unique Treasures, you go glamping in a safari-style tent at Banteay Chhmar, an exquisite 12th century Temple complex that UNESCO has listed as one of the ‘four most threatened sites in the world.’ Adventure Guatemala & Panama presents you with a different kind of room outside Guatemala’s Antigua, where you overnight in an Airstream trailer, equipped with all the comforts of home, from a kitchenette, to cable TV to a terrace and outdoor Jacuzzi. Then there is Pretty Beach House, which is just about as far removed from a safari tent as you can get. In our Australia Unbound journey, you stay in this stunning luxurious retreat just north of Sydney, set amid ancient aboriginal sites, and nestled in lush landscapes of trees, lakes and rivers.
When your clients come back looking for something new and maybe just a bit different, remember we are here to help you.
