Making the Switch: Why Time-Pressed Advisors Are Now Recommending Guided Tours Over FIT
As traveler expectations continue to shift, some travel advisors are rethinking the traditional FIT (Flexible Independent Travel) model in favor of more seamless, guided touring options. Today’s clients—especially multigenerational families, first-time international travelers, and solo travelers—are increasingly drawn to curated journeys that manage all the logistics for them while delivering insider access to distinctive experiences, and inherently provide travel companions for their adventures.
Advisors say that these upleveled guided tour offerings not only meet heightened client demand for convenience and value, but also streamline their own planning process thereby saving them precious time while boosting profitability.
We spoke with advisors who have proven success with this strategy to learn how and why they are turning to guided tour options.
When Guided Tours Trump FIT
The first task for any travel advisor is to be able to keenly discern when a guided tour is a better option for their clients than a custom-built FIT itinerary.
Joy Crutchfield, chief joy officer and owner, The Joy of Travel, applies a straightforward technique to make the first cut: “For me, it’s easier to determine who isn’t right for an escorted tour. The first red flag would be a customer who says they do not want to be on a schedule. By their very nature, escorted tours are organized, with specific, prearranged sightseeing and experiences. The second red flag is people who do not want to travel with like-minded travelers. If they don’t like people, an escorted tour is not for them.”
She goes on to reveal the types of clients who are predisposed to the guided tour mode of vacationing. “Escorted tours are a great choice for the novice traveler. The one who is more than a little hesitant about being on their own. Escorted tours are also great for the opposite, those well-traveled customers who do not want the burden of arranging sightseeing, hotels, meals, and events. It’s all prearranged, so they just show up and enjoy the trip.”
In addition, Crutchfield points out that, “escorted tours are also an excellent choice for those customers who want to get the most bang for their buck. [This is because they] are usually substantially less expensive than the identical itinerary planned for independent travelers.”
Examples Please
To bring the idea home, our travel experts gave a few examples of bookings they made when guided tours were the better choice over custom FIT options for their clients—and just what made it the right call in these situations.
“I recently sent clients on a small group escorted trip to Peru, which proved to be much easier not only for the client, but also for me, than a custom FIT,” explains Sara Purdy, owner, Purdy’s Journeys. “A tour operator has everything already lined up, such as the Inca Trail permits, internal flights, cultural visits to local communities, and all transportation. They have expertly planned these tours so that we don’t have to. It was my clients’ first escorted trip they have done, and they raved about how exceptional their guide was and how well they got along with the other travelers in the group.”
A key indicator in qualifying clients for Purdy is the destination itself. “I find that in more exotic destinations such as Morocco, Japan, Peru, etc., a tour with an expert guide and all transportation and activities set up is particularly important in order to navigate potential language and cultural barriers. If a client shares with me that they’re not comfortable renting a car or navigating a country on their own, then that is usually the first inkling I get to recommend an escorted tour to give them the local immersion experience but with the safety net of a group,” she says.
The inspiration behind recommending guided touring is often destination-driven for Crutchfield, as well. “After twenty years of booking escorted tours, I have hundreds of examples of this,” she relays. “What comes to mind immediately are my bookings to Africa. Presenting the wonderful African options that are ‘small group’ experiences has been a fantastic option for my customers. They enjoy having just a few like-minded travelers with whom to share the magic of that trip of a lifetime. They would not have thrived on the experiences as much had they not shared it with other curious, interesting companions.”
Janet McLaughlin, travel advisor, Envoyage, offers another perspective for suggesting guided tours: “There have been many times where the availability of FIT components has been limited or hard to find, so knowing that an escorted tour already has those important inclusions makes it a much simpler process. Between the overall costs and availability, especially with Italy this year, escorted tours have been lifesavers compared to the FITs I’ve done.”
Supplier Flexibility is Fueling the Trend
One of the reasons that more travelers are being drawn to guided touring over FIT is the fact that tour operators have become more flexible with their offerings. Today’s tours are flexible, not formulaic. With built-in free time, multiple excursion options, and personalization opportunities, modern-day tours appeal to travelers who still want choice and autonomy.
“Many tour operators have listened to travelers and advisors (YAY!),” reports McLaughlin. “There is more free time and more on-tour options than ever before, plus small group departures. The old worries of being pushed around with 50 other people until you fall over are gone … having choices on what sightseeing you do gives some freedom and flexibility. Small groups give peace of mind to those concerned about traveling with a lot of people. Seasoned travelers can find great benefits with a tour, even if they’ve been to a destination before. Newer guests can learn a lot about how to travel. Presenting a tour in ways that highlight those things really helps.”
Purdy agrees, reinforcing that “escorted tours are more flexible than they used to be, offering more freedom with leisure time and add-on options where the client can choose to add on activities they are specifically interested in doing.”
Time as the New Luxury
Another benefit of guided touring is time, the new luxury, a commodity of growing importance for both clients and advisors. Guided touring offers a curated, efficient alternative to FIT, helping advisors deliver seamless experiences without spending hours assembling the custom components.
“A custom FIT takes hours to plan, or sometimes days of waiting to receive a proposal from a DMC,” says Purdy. “An escorted tour is an off-the-shelf product, with many guaranteed departures where you can see live availability. It takes much less time to offer this to a client and get them booked, and the clients have access to every detail of the curated trip right at their fingertips.”
What Clients Are Saying
The advisors we spoke to all said the feedback from clients who have chosen guided touring over independent travel has been very positive. “Travelers love having the logistics handled and always mention how stress-free their trip was,” says McLaughlin. “They don’t have to worry about how to get around, learning a language, figuring out getting tickets, etc. They’ve enjoyed their guides, and all of the things they have learned or may have missed otherwise. Also, making friends on tours is almost always mentioned!”
Similar sentiments track with Crutchfield’s customers: “Those who have experienced independent travel and then gone on an escorted tour have raved about it. They love that they do not have to take on the role of concierge, driver and/or navigator, event planner and more. They love that they are not continually having to spend money during the trip, as most of the necessities and even the sightseeing are included in the price point. The ease, the inclusions, all of it put together in a package that is wonderfully enjoyable, turns doubters into huge fans time after time after time.”
And happy clients tend to spread the word far and wide. “We are seeing a huge increase, year after year, in our escorted tour bookings,” reports Crutchfield. “These satisfied customers end up telling, I should say ‘testifying,’ to their friends about escorted touring, making believers out of their friends and family. I think that word of mouth is setting the trend, and we are certainly seeing more families book escorted tours than ever before.”
Mine Your Database
Any experienced travel advisor already has a myriad of prospects for guided tours in their customer database. For instance, Purdy illustrates the benefits of escorted over FIT to three large and increasing traveler segments:
“For multigenerational travelers, an escorted tour is a no-brainer for maximum quality time spent together. The family isn’t distracted by making plans or driving, so they can focus solely on creating memories to last a lifetime.
“For first-time international travelers, an escorted tour is perfect to get them used to traveling with the safety net of a pre-planned itinerary, guide, and group.
“For solo travelers, an escorted tour is perfect for a built-in social atmosphere with like-minded travelers on the trip. Solo travelers can also pay to have their own room on the trip if they would like their own space to unwind after a great day of exploring.”
McLaughlin reminds us that there is a tour for any kind of traveler, and knowing the differences between suppliers and tours is so important.
And Crutchfield leaves us with this parting thought to consider: “Escorted tours often throw in an ‘off-the-beaten-path’ or ‘hidden gem experience that even the most insightful travel planner might not know about. There are truly unique inclusions in an escorted tour that surpass what can be experienced independently.”
The key for advisors is to know their clients’ travel hopes, dreams, and wishes, because recommending the right guided tours builds trust and secures repeat business. When advisors pair clients with dependable tour operators who meet their needs, they can feel confident in the delivery, leading to stronger satisfaction and long-term loyalty.
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