Country Walkers stays on track
While many travel and tourism based businesses are hurting due to the effects of the recession, Country Walkers in Waterbury stays healthy due to strong repeat business and a clientele that prefers an active vacation to one that is sedentary.
With 55 walking tour destinations in north America and all other continents except Antarctica, and nearly 10,000 customers this year, this 30 year old company has managed to avoid the pitfalls and bumps in the road other similar companies face.
“We walk the trails the locals walk and eat in restaurants the locals eat in,” said marketing director Carolyn Fox describing the company’s tour philosophy. Each tour is a small group of 18 or less with local guides who are on call 24-7.
“We have guaranteed departures, a significant asset in an age when tours are cancelled frequently,” she explained.
Fox claims her company is “the premier walking tour company internationally.” There are perhaps 40 competitors at this level of business worldwide. Tours run five to 11 days and the average cost for a domestic tour is $2500 and an international tour $3500. The price includes everything but airfare to the destination.
The average tour has 12-15 people. There are 12 tours in North America the rest across the globe. Tours are given year round and scheduled for peak walking seasons, which are not necessarily the heavily touristy times.
“Weather conditions have got to be the best,” said Fox.
Country Walkers did not always conduct walking tours. The company began in 1979 as Vermont Country Cyclers started by Bob and Cindy Maynard. In 1989 the company dropped cycling and started its walking business. Today TUI PLC a British company specializing in travel owns the company and New Zealander Timo Shaw runs the Vermont operation. Fifteen Vermonters work for the Pilgrim Park based business.
Fox said the company relies on a large repeat referral rate of 70 percent to keep going. The company’s demographics show a clientele that comes from major metropolitan areas mostly in North America. These people, Fox categorized as “healthy, age 45 and up, active travelers.” Many are retired, and those who are not are often professionals including a good number of teachers.
“The economy has not stopped people from walking,” she said of the business atmosphere, which has been flat this year. While not exceptional, Fox said this year’s business could be attributed “to a great reputation and our healthy and informative vacation concept.”
Country Cyclers does a lot of direct mail and has a strong web site presence. There is also a lot of word of mouth advertising. Many customers book as much as six months in advance because, said Fox, “planning is part of the fun.”
The company has adapted for this down economy. One change is to work very closely with its European providers to hold rates at 2009 levels for 2010. No tours are being cut either.
“We are well established which is how we are getting through this economy,” said Fox. “I wouldn’t want to be a new player in the industry with this economy,” she admitted. One competitor, Cross Country International has folded.
A new trend in the walking industry is the private tours. Fox said people want to take a tour with friends or family in a group. The company will arrange such a tour for a specific group by adding it to an already planned destination. Current popular trips are those involving cultural emersion. Walking tours in Peru, Panama, Morocco, Ireland, and Italy are popular as are tours in US National Parks with Yosemite getting a lot of attention.
The future looks good for this company. As the baby boomer generation ages it seems interested in taking what Fox called “authentic responsible travel.” This type of travel is gaining traction. “We are optimistic about the future, it’s growing every year,” she explained. “This coincides with the population getting healthier and wanting a healthier vacation.”
