US
Collette is rolling out more than 20 new tour programs for 2020, bringing its total number of offerings to more than 190 tours in five distinct travel styles in more than 50 countries on seven continents. This year’s crop of new products is about twice as large as in most years.
The expansion is the result of a year of concentrated work by the product development team following the promotion of Jaclyn Leibl-Cote from executive vice president of product development to president in June 2018. At the time of her promotion, Leibl-Cote told Travel Market Report that her main focus going forward would be to expand the Explorations line. And the expansion for 2020 reflects that objective.
“The focus here is primarily to grow Explorations, which is our small group brand,” Ana Rooney, Collette’s director of product design, told Travel Market Report. “We relaunched Explorations and have been focusing more on that brand and ensuring that we have a bigger wealth of product destination-wise for that brand. So, the majority of our new products are within that brand.”
Exploration and experience
Explorations is a small group tour product line the company introduced in 2008 to appeal to a growing demand for tours with smaller, more intimate groups and more independence than in Collette’s traditional Classic tours. The Explorations line is defined by smaller group size and a shift to fewer structured activities and more free time.
For 2019, the company relaunched Explorations and re-engineered the formula, intensifying the original product concept by making the groups even smaller — making itineraries more leisurely with a wider range of personal choices and options, more authentic and interactive experiences, and tighter focus on smaller regions.
Collette’s Classic tour line roughly targets a 55-75-year old clientele. The Explorations line stretches that demographic on the younger end by appealing to more adventurous and independent travelers. The targeted age range for Explorations is approximately 45-65.
But it’s less about age and more about preferred styles of travel. “They are not necessarily for a younger demographic, but for people who are interested in traveling with smaller groups and on experiences that tend to be a little longer,” said Rooney. “A lot of the Classic tours are about eight or nine days long, and the goal with Explorations is to allow enough time for you to really get to know and learn about the destination while there.” Read More.
