Hot off the press…literally today!
Our seniors travel research that is in field right now is showing explosive results already. Expect it to shatter all of your preconceived notions of the way seniors plan their travel and experience places.
I wanted to share with you one of the responses when asked on our online bulletin board about planning travel.
The Latest Seniors Travel Research
The sophistication of travel planning is beyond any segment I have researched before.
The marketing implications of this is ground-breaking.
I will be touching on findings like these and what they mean for travel marketers alike. One of many insights I will be consolidating at the Seniors Travel Workshop in Sydney on the 20th of November.
There are insights in here whether you are marketing domestic, international or destinations.
“I spend 100s and 1000s of hours (searching)! I’m afraid I am a frustrated travel agent with a penchant for finding the best authentic deal.
E.g. we did the trans Manchurian rail trip from Moscow to Beijing. In Mongolia the tours were expensive despite the country being so cheap.
So, I found their equivalent to Airbnb experiences and got a great deal on an authentic-ish(sic) tour, which was 1/3 price of easy to find tours. Also booked train tickets on line with the hope that they would meet me at the station, they did!
As for search terms (I use) I don’t think there’s any regular term that I use. I use aggregators such as kayak and sky scanner to book flights and Hotels com booking.com HomeAway and Airbnb to book accom(sic).
For on the ground activities I’ve started using Airbnb experiences and perhaps I would do a search for *things to do in ….*
In Destination (same respondent)
I’ve gone from Lonely planet guide books in the 80s to now with mobile data. It’s become easier to access more affordable data so I’m on the mobile all the time. Mostly it’s Google maps as I’ve usually researched everything before I’ve left.
I’ve also used Google translate a little. If it’s a city I usually pop onto the time our website to see what’s happening, e.g. exhibitions, smaller theatres, local events. I use lots of apps for getting around on public transport, taxis and Uber or the countries equivalent of uber also to find share bike racks, and often my hotel!
And finally use the mobile to find people in my group and to meet independent tour guides.
The other thing I tend to do is in an A5 book full of clear sleeves, put the days itinerary per sleeve, with all the relevant printouts of tickets, maps etc.
This was really useful in the trans-Siberian trip as there were a lot of logistics in lots of different languages. The book fitted in my travel handbag and everything was at my finger tips. It saves valuable time mucking around if you’re travelling independently and not organised, and as my trips are only a few weeks at a time, every moment is precious! I’m doing the plastic sleeve book again for an upcoming trip in December with my partner and his two kids….”
If you want to explore what is happening in this sector further – generate more visitors and revenue, you can’t afford to miss out on our seniors travel workshop. It is selling out fast. DON’T GET FOMO, Get your tickets here.
Bronwyn White, is the CEO of New Young Consulting a market intelligence and strategic marketing agency that specialises in the seniors travel market.
She brings with her an unrivaled understanding of how the travel industry works including the nuanced complexities and a complete, well rounded understanding of the travellers it serves.
She has been watching and researching the baby boomer generation for the last 15 years, in particular travel planning and booking habits.
Bronwyn is a globally recognised market researcher with a travel sales and marketing background. Over 30 years she has worked in a wide range of travel industry verticals including:
Airline (Qantas)
Sales reservations
Wholesale, Retail sales, Corporate sales
Sales representation – groups
Marketing
Market research and consumer insights
Destination marketing manager (Destination NSW)
Travel research specialist at a large research agency (TNS)
Co-Founder of Domesticate, an annual syndicated study into the Australian travel market
CEO /Co-founder at boutique research firm MyTravelResearch.com
Author of the book Seniors Travel Tips
Owner and founder of New Young Travel, a travel blog for +55’s established 2006
We will never see another business sector like the over+50s economy. Increase your relevance, connect with the 3rd largest global economy (behind USA and China), create loyalty, raving fans and increase your revenue.
Wow. This person is so organised. Seniors seem to need/want to have ‘all their ducks lined up’ to make the most of their time and money’
Hi Viktoria. This respondent is really typical. And FYI, often food and wine is a big part of the trip. The implications of them being so organised is that marketers really have the opportunity to connect through content. Bron