Courtesy Tauck
NORWALK, Conn. — Small group travel business has been notably increasing for Tauck in recent years. The tour operator reports that the company has responded by expanding the number of Tauck trips on which small group departures are offered. Over 230 small group departures will run among 46 different Tauck 2012 itineraries.
On regular Tauck trips, an average of 38 to 40 people travel together. With the smaller groups, the average is closer to 20 to 24 guests.
“Over the past three years we’ve dramatically boosted the number of small group departures we’ve offered, and our guests have responded,” said Dan Mahar, CEO of Tauck. “On average, in each of the past three years we’ve seen our small group bookings increase by more than 40 percent over the prior year. Our small group bookings are growing faster than any destination or region, or any other segment of our business.”
These smaller group bookings have grown to the point that they are slightly ahead of Tauck’s regular itineraries. Another benefit is that the smaller groups are attracting first-time travelers to Tauck’s trips.
Guests are also consistently ranking the small group trips at or above Tauck’s regular departures with the same itineraries. Customers rank the trips on value, likelihood to travel with Tauck again and overall experience.
Tauck launched the Culturious brand in 2009 to serve smaller group sizes of 16 to 20 travelers. These itineraries focus on hands-on, active itineraries in one geographic area, such as Tuscany or Provence. Experiences range from cycling to hiking to cooking classes.
For more information, visit www.tauck.com.
