Tourism Review Online Magazine 4 / 2007

Kids come in all ages and with various talents. When the children are small, people tend to avoid trips. But travel with kids can be fun if you travel smart, prepare the trip well and avoid extreme challenges. When they get a bit older, everything is about challenges: after you survive a 200 meters descent into a copper mine, visiting a national soccer team backstage can be next on the list. Or teenagers might want to rock England on a music tour… On the other hand, I have a hunch that, looking back in 20 years time, one of their precious memories might be a heritage trip in search of family roots.

When I bought air tickets from a budget air company five years ago, I wondered if there was a pilot on the plane, so cheap was this option compared to some of the well-known giants. These days, small companies have become a big phenomenon in business, and they continue to expand. The new question concerns long-haul budget trips - do they have a future? Today we publish some contrasting opinions on the development of these airlines.

Thanks to the increased popularity of cruises, more than 10 million people travel by ship annually. The choice of ports, cruise lines, ships, itineraries, cabins, and prices can be confusing for the customers, but do professionals in the travel industry have enough understanding of what is going on in the sector? Are we able to give informed advice on itineraries or on suitable options for families with children? Are we capable of analyzing the queries of budget conscious travelers?

Surveys show that 90% of parents who attended summer camp as children have sent their own children to camp, whether it is a day camp or a residential camp - for a weekend, a week, or a month. The decision to choose this option for summer holidays lies with the parents, rather than the children. Therefore, parents represent the primary target for marketing and communications initiatives. How does the industry maximize its impact in this respect? What messages and services can the industry emphasize in order to succeed in an increasingly competitive environment?

This section demonstrates that educational tourism is moving to the top of the industry charts - first of all, because good schools, colleges and universities are keen to complement their “theoretical” courses with first-hand experiences at archaeological sites, nature reserves and in extreme conditions. There is also another trend – a “gap year for grown-ups”. People of different ages and social status are willing to learn through travelling, to expand their horizons by communicating, observing different lifestyles, getting new skills. And – what a surprise – a combination of travel and education can be more efficient in terms of personal finances than just travel or just education.