ASPIRE ROUND-TABLE
Many kids have already been to far-flung places and their aspirations are even greater
THE KIDS HAVE POWER
John Sullivan talked about some of the research Advantage did in preparation for its conference, during which the consortium spoke to children to find out more about their holiday preferences. He said kids play a huge part in the holiday decision, and added: “Most surprising was which destinations they have been to and would like to go to. It’s actually mind-blowing as you think it’ll be everyday places, but they have already been to some far-flung places and their aspirations are even greater. And yet there is a misconception among some people that when you start talking about the family market it’s all about brands like Thomson and Thomas Cook.” Jeanne Lally agreed but believes things are changing: “I think it is only very recently that operators have started to focus on family as a segment. Previously, it was up to agents to find, but a few operators are now bringing
out dedicated family brochures. We have a portfolio of family properties that we have collated within the business. “A lot of families now want the
convenience of a hotel but also want that self-catering element. They don’t want to have to go to a supermarket and carry bags back – and that is starting to show from a hotel-build perspective.” Amanda Matthews said she had spotted this trend too: “The strategy of creating family space is growing. So many properties are creating apartments and villas within a hotel complex so that families can self-cater if they want to. But the big difference is that they are not crammed into two rooms trying to live a two-week holiday. People want the extra space and living areas. On a cruise ship you understand that space is limited but some of these hotels have so much space available and people are crammed into rooms.”
CRUISE COULD DO BETTER
The board agreed the cruise market had a way to go before agents fully understood the potential of the sector for families. Michael English said: “From a cruise perspective we are focused on educating the trade on couples and we don’t invest and communicate enough about the family market. There is an opportunity to own this space because we tick all the boxes: interconnecting rooms, multiple-berth cabins, two bathrooms, shore excursions, a culinary piece for kids. “We need to do more to educate agents so they are confident selling cruise to families. At the moment, the majority of staff have just enough confidence to sell a cruise to a couple – if you ask them to sell a cruise to a family as an alternative to Spain, it’s difficult.” Amanda Matthews added: “I’ve never seen any cruise line push forward a
40 — aspire june 2016
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