Find ways to add more to your client’s tour, writes Joanna Booth
Booking an escorted tour can seem wonderfully simple – one product and it’s all included. But don’t sign off just yet. A few little extras can go a long way, tweaking your client’s holiday and proving your value into the bargain.
On the way
When a client is jetting off on an actionpacked tour, getting them to their destination smoothly and restfully is even more important. Many operators offer upgrades to premium, business or first, or add on lounge passes.
Shearings also allows you to reserve specific coach seats at the time of booking – a great reason to encourage clients to book early for more choice – but you can also bag your clients the front-row vantage seats, for a £10 supplement on tours up to seven days, and £15 on longer itineraries.
On tour
Room upgrades are available on some tours. Operators with a large tailor-made side to the business, such as Rainbow Tours and Journey Latin America, are generally the most flexible. Cox & Kings can also offer upgraded cabins on tours featuring rail journeys.
Headwater reports a surge in popularity for electric bike upgrades, which for a small premium can take the strain out of hills and help less fit clients enjoy their cycling holiday.
Optional excursions give clients the chance to choose supplementary experiences. Some may add an extra thrill – Collette reports that ziplining in Costa Rica is popular – but others can enhance an active trip with relaxation, such as an ayurvedic massage on Newmarket Holidays’ India tours.
If they really want to kick back, tell them about Luxury Gold’s new Breakfast in Bed option, available free of charge every day from 2019.
Extensions
Extra days are the most palpable way to add a point of difference to your client’s itinerary, from pre-tour city stays to relaxing beach breaks at the end.
Operators are diversifying their range of extensions as a result, with Contiki adding a Mount Kilimanjaro climb and a Ugandan gorilla trek for 2019. Cosmos is adding stays in Mongolia or Hong Kong on its China tours. Festivals and events can provide an extra reason for extending a trip, for example, Saga offers Calgary Stampede extensions for three of its itineraries in the Rockies.
More: Travel Weekly’s Touring and Adventure supplement, October edition