Face to face: Carl Cross, managing director, On The Go Tours
Contributors are not employed, compensated or governed by TD, opinions and statements are from the contributor directly
What makes On the Go Tours different to other adventure specialists?
We started from humble beginnings as a small family owned company selling trips to North Africa, with a purposeful local ethos. Over the years we have dramatically expanded and we are incredibly proud to now offer locally led group tours and tailor-made holidays to over 480 destinations, in 54 countries.
I personally know almost all our guides globally and we are selective about who we work with in the trade to ensure we get a great blend of ages and cultures on our trips. We work very closely with our ground operations and I review and action every piece of feedback – good and bad – to make sure we are continually improving the customer experience. We also strive to ensure that over 70% of our customers’ holiday funds remain in the local economies.
What has made the company so successful?
We stay true to our origins and ensure we retain customers by providing great value and an experience that is best suited to that destination. I want to know that our travellers are having a great time at a great price, whilst experiencing a country authentically. We need to make sure we stay profitable but we can only be successful if our people share in our achievements and strive to exceed them.
What demand are you seeing for adventure travel – what types of travellers and how is this evolving?
We are seeing demand for family adventure holidays dramatically increase, particularly to Vietnam, and we are experiencing a rise in bookings from solo travellers.
Destinations such as Vietnam and Iceland are constantly being requested and earlier this year we saw passenger numbers to Russia double.
What trends are you noticing in types of adventure travel in demand and the destinations clients are seeking?
Right now UK consumers are looking for tours and holidays that offer value for money, compared to US consumers who are focused on the experience. We monitor all travel adventure trends to ensure our products keep up with customers’ demands.
Everyone in the sector has experienced the Cuba boom but we have decided to walk away from the destination at the end of the year. We want to sell Cuba, but we won’t until we can guarantee our customers consistent experiences.
The Himalayas made a big comeback in the first quarter of 2016 and following our successful launch of new tours to Eastern Europe earlier this year, it has encouraged me to look at widening our European offering for our Australian, US and Canadian customers.
What role does the travel trade play in generating sales for you and how important are agents as a distribution channel?
Agents are our most important distribution channel and always will be. We do sell direct to the customer but we prefer to sell through agents who know our product and know the customers that will love travelling with us. We work closely with Flight Centre, Hays Travel, AITO Agents, Travel Counsellors, Global and Travel Managers. We have also just signed new agreements with Barrhead Travel and The Advantage Travel Partnership.
We are continuing to secure additional agent business via our Agents Rewards programme and our attractive front and back end commissions.
What’s next for On The Go Tours?
Throughout the remainder of 2016, and in 2017 and beyond, we will continue focusing on growing our customer numbers. This year we launched new product in Japan, Eastern Europe, Finland, Iceland, Greenland, Bhutan, Peru and Easter Island; and this autumn we will debut new tours to Antarctica and Norway.
We are investing in new experiences and ground transport options across Northern Europe, Russia, China, India and Vietnam. We plan to launch a range of discount and value added campaigns, along with educationals for the trade.
We will also be opening new reservations offices in Johannesburg and Toronto in the next year or so to keep up with the growth in these markets!
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