SPECIAL REPORT However, one barrier to growth highlighted by the Passport


to Adventure was the lack of product awareness among agents. Admittedly, this situation improved towards the end of the noughties thanks to the support offered by brands such as Exodus. Intrepid Group’s regional director Michael Edwards says trade sales currently form 40% of the group’s sales and he has recently doubled the field sales team to six. He’s also dramatically increased the size of Intrepid’s fam trip and agent events programme for 2015, with a key focus on targeting new faces, primarily mainstream agents. Explore, meanwhile, has a new trade sales manager, while G Adventures has also bolstered its field sales support team and ramped up its own fam trip programme, with an online training facility launching in 2015. Another operator prioritising agents is Tucan Travel. “We


offer excellent commission and we also put on annual Agent Adventures excursions, where agents only need to pay a small amount towards the trip and can do exactly what their clients do,” explains spokesperson Jess Millett. For agents prepared to brush up their product knowledge, the


benefits are clear. Adventure operators feature a wide range of product and durations and offer generous commission structures and sales support. Agents can earn even more through pushing optional activities and pre- and post-tour add-ons such as Intrepid’s popular Urban Adventures. As tours are often outside traditional holiday seasons, they offer year-round selling options. Plus, adventure travellers are extremely loyal, meaning there is great potential for repeat business. Some of Explore’s customers have travelled with the company more than 50 times.


WHAT’S HOT When it comes to trends, cycling tours have boomed, while all parties point to heightened demand for tailor-made options. Family multi-activity holidays are big for both Explore and On Te Go, which has split its offering into adult tours, family adventures and tours for teens. Meanwhile, to better target its audience, G Adventures is offering eight styles of adventure


FIVE OF THE BEST


The jungly one Why follow maps when you can forge your own path? Epic Tomato’s World Firsts programme includes a 20-day trek through unexplored jungle in Papua New Guinea, after being dropped off on a remote jungle airstrip. epictomato.com


The remote one Hike and jeep up dunes, explore remote settlements and stay in a desert camp on a tailored tour of Namibia’s Skeleton Coast, getting up close to the scattered wildlife and the rusting hulks of wrecked ships. originaltravel.co.uk


The rafting one Madagascar won’t be everyone’s first choice, but this bio-diverse gem exudes adventure. Accessible


options include a rafting tour down the Mangoky River, with its gentle Class II rapids and jaw-dropping scenery. holidaysplease.co.uk


The historic one Follow in the wake of explorer John Franklin on a quest for the mythical Northwest Passage, marvelling at sights such as Greenland’s Ilulissat Icefjord as you cross the Bering Sea from western Greenland to Alaska. exodus.co.uk


The 4x4 one Safaris and 4x4s are inseparable and Botswana’s biodiverse watery wonderland, the Okavango Delta, adds a delicious twist as you hurtle through it behind the wheel of your own Land Rover Discovery. abercrombiekent.co.uk


Crossing a river in Botswana


travel, from Yolo trips aimed at the 18-39 market to luxurious yacht journeys in the Galapagos. Beyond this, the proliferation of cash rich, time poor


consumers prepared to pay for creature comforts has fuelled the rise of the ‘soft’ adventure market and led a lurch towards shorter durations. Tis is best exemplified by Black Tomato’s Epic Weekends programme, with its three-day adventures to destinations such as Western Mongolia and Rwanda. As clients’ expectations have risen, there’s no shortage of people willing to pay for something out of the ordinary or ‘a bit special’. In this sense, the sector dovetails with luxury travel, although conditions aren’t necessarily luxurious. “People are looking to see as much as possible in a short time,”


says Millett. “As they become busier but the desire to travel remains, we expect this trend to grow more and more.” Average tour lengths include 12-15 days for G Adventures, 11 days for Explore and 9-10 days for Intrepid, while On Te Go’s Goudie says: “We’ve always been a nine-day tour kind of company, although the tailor-made tours are longer, typically two weeks.” Explore’s Crane says customers are booking higher value


tours and further in advance, suggesting a return of confidence. “We’ve also noticed that shorter, cheaper and more flexible trips are proving popular with first-time adventure travellers,” he says. Another growth area for Explore is solo bookings, an area Intrepid is trying to get in on, having introduced two separate independent tours programmes last month. A final key to growth for all adventure operators seems to be


in forging a reputation as a force for good. Encouraging visits to remote, pristine wilderness areas is not without its risks. However, in the right hands, given a strong focus on sustainable growth, conversation and education, adventure travel can do much to benefit remote communities, creating new income streams and livelihoods and giving locals a reason to stay in and preserve their homelands. Adventure travel can also generate a powerful feelgood factor for operators, agents and consumers. As secretary general Taleb Rifai noted in the foreword to


UNWTO’s Global Report on Adventure Tourism: ‘From a global perspective, adventure tourism incorporates and promotes the values of the tourism that we want — a tourism that respects cultural and natural assets and protects the most vulnerable.’ And therein lies a golden opportunity.


countrybycountry.com February 2015 ABTA Magazine 35


IMAGE: GETTY


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