Collette Says it is Paving its Own Premium Product Path

In the guided vacation market, it’s often perceived that there are ultra-luxury products – think Tauck and A&K — then a fairly steep drop to ‘standard’ products. 

But Collette leaders Jaclyn (CEO) and Christian (EVP of Global Sales) Leibl-Cote say the company is paving its own premium product path, and inviting advisors to join on a profitable ride.

“It’s all about finding your niche. Luxury isn’t the only lucrative niche. There’s lots of money to be made in the premium experiences offered by Collette,” Christian said during a recent webinar.

He likened the distinction between Collette and luxury products to Macy’s versus Nordstrom – both major department stores. Nordstrom generally caters to a more upscale, high-end clientele, while Macy’s offers a broader range of products and price points — still at a high level of quality, but appealing to a wider demographic.

“Outside of 5 stars, everyone is looked at the same. That’s not the case,” added Jaclyn. “We’re moving away from standard more and more.” 

That means things like a slower pace, more longer stays, improved hotel selections and product pillars including door-to-door home to airport and airport to home sedan service.

Christian and Jaclyn used a late 2024 Collette family trip to Tanzania with three generations on board as an example. The itinerary is one of the highest rated among the hundreds offered by the privately owned company. “All of us let go of our phones for two weeks, and it was incredible,” Christian said. “My nephew came up to me every single day, saying ‘This is the best day of my life.’”

 “If you haven’t ever looked at Collette for a guided tour product, take a look. It’s hard to put into words how wonderful this trip was,” Jaclyn said. “We are 100% committed to be the best of guided travel throughout the entire customer journey.”

Collette doesn’t rely on DMCs, instead focusing on proprietary in-destination teams fully committed to customers. That can make a huge difference when things go wrong, as evidenced when the war in Gaza began in late 2023. 

“We had two groups in Israel and we got them out via Jordan within two days. We had no third-party intermediaries to depend on. We just got our people home,” Jaclyn said. “That is a premium tour. It makes the advisor look great when we can deliver a really good product and look after them in any situation.”

She points out that Collette paid out US$115 million in refunds when COVID brought the industry to a standstill in 2020. In the Israel situation, the company paid more than US$20 million to bring people home and refund future tours.

Today’s travellers, especially Boomers and GenXers, are redefining what they want from a guided vacation, Jaclyn said. 

“The world is changing every day. Travellers want expert insights and access to off the beaten path experiences. So we include things that no individual traveller can do on their own. They don’t want a whole lot of one-night stays. They don’t want cookie-cutter. They don’t want staged experiences.”

She said that during the purchase phase, travellers focus on the ‘musts’ of their vacation. But on return, what they remember are the things that they would not have had access to if they planned the trip themselves.

“It’s the unlocked experiences we pepper in that are really what people talk about when they get home. We are committed to staying relevant, staying ahead and continuing to be pioneers. Tours are so different than 10, five, even two years ago. And we evolve through feedback from our guests and our advisor partners.”

Collette doesn’t do traditional agent fam trips, because it wants advisors to experience the unadulterated product along with consumer travellers. For those who have completed Collette University, discounts of up to 85% are available on a wide range of tours. 

“We are continuously trying to improve, going 100 miles per hour,” Christian told advisors on the webinar. “Feedback from you has been great.”