Recommend January 2014 - (Page 10)
tourtalk
SWAIN
DESTINATIONS
paloma villaverde de rico
Yes, you read right-the company you've come to know as Swain
Tours is kicking off 2014 by rebranding to Swain Destinations,
but don't worry, the ownership and culture of the organization will
remain unchanged and the core values of the family-run business
will remain steadfast, the tour operator stresses.
"When I started the company 27 years ago, it was Swain
Australia Tours, and then we branched into Asia and Africa, so we
had Swain Asia Tours and Swain Africa Tours. Then in 2003, we
combined them all to make Swain Tours so it would be less confusing. But what we found over the last 10 years is that it became
confusing to travel agents because due to the name they assumed
we did escorted touring," says Ian Swain, president and founder
of Swain Destinations. What the tour operator offers is exactly the
opposite, he points out. "Everything we do is customizing the travel
experience. We've been doing FIT since we started, so [this new
name] really defines what the brand should be. Our tagline, in fact,
is 'customizing the travel experience.'"
Swain Destinations focuses on Australia, New Zealand, the
South Pacific, Asia, India and Africa, and what makes them unique,
Swain says, is that they curate itineraries based on each individual's travel preferences. So whether your client wants a chef's table
dining extravaganza on Hayman Island in Australia, a night out in
Singapore's Chinatown, a river terrace dinner with Maiko dance in
Kyoto, or a safari journey across the East African Plains, they can
certainly get that.
"We try to do things that are out of the ordinary, but otherwise
we are very strong in the high-end market and I take great lengths
to meet with the owners and managers of the luxury lodges in
Australia and New Zealand, the safari camps in Africa and the
great hotels and resorts in Asia," explains Swain. "We know them
personally; we know which rooms we should be booking; we know
when they should be traveling there. When we have clients traveling there, we can send an e-mail or call the properties up and say,
'Hey, we have Mr. and Mrs. Smith traveling there, please look out
for them,' so our clients get a better experience."
10 january 2014
10-11 TOUR TALK.indd 10
Swain Destinations was founded in 1987,
offering Australia vacations.
But when we asked Swain what makes the company's offerings unique in the marketplace, he didn't immediately point to the
offerings travelers would be privy to while on their vacations, rather
he says, "One of the unique things we have is that the consultants
that we have on the team, apart from being with us for a long
time, they are basically from the destination they are selling. So
if an agent calls up for a trip to Australia, they are going to speak
with an Australian. We have that personal touch-the passion that
comes through when someone is from that destination."
Swain Destinations also makes it a point to build partnerships
with tourism boards and airlines. For example, they've partnered
with Air New Zealand to create packages that take you to New
Zealand to see the areas where "The Hobbit" was filmed. The
12-night A Journey to Treasure itinerary travels from Wellington to
Hobbiton and includes roundtrip international economy class airfare on Air New Zealand from Los Angeles to Auckland; roundtrip
airport transfers; 4-day Budget Rental Car (automatic); one night
in Auckland; two nights in Rotorua; Hobbiton movie set and farm
tour; Mitai Maori Cultural Experience; two nights in Wellington; and
other goodies. Of course, the best part is that this itinerary can be
fully customized to your client's interests and needs. Rates start at
$4,420.
And although Swain says it's tough to be unique in this era of
travel, these are the sort of unique experiences "travelers look for
and strive for." For example, on New Year's Eve, "we have been
for the last four years chartering motorboats on the Sydney Harbour so that our clients can see the fireworks on New Year's Eve.
Instead of having the cost of chartering their own boat, we'll charter a boat that can hold 60 people and we'll sell it to 30 people so
there's plenty of room and it becomes very inexpensive to have an
experience you can't have anywhere else."
travel agent intel
"Travel agents are our blood," Swain says, "and we are very committed to the travel agents via the various consortias." As part of
the rebrand, Swain Destinations will launch a new website with a
dedicated travel agent section. If travel agents log on to the website and register, they can download the logo and within a couple
of clicks travel agents can take any of the sample itineraries that
Swain has on its website, make it their own and e-mail it to their
clients in HTML or PDF format. Travel agents can access webinars
as well.
Swain says travel agents are crucial, especially when given
the complexity of creating a tour. "Our average trip has 40 to 45
components to it. For consumers to do that online on one's own is
pretty impossible-you have to spend a lot of time on it. We [and
travel agents] provide consumers with expertise." ●
contact information
Swain Destinations: (800) 847-9246; swaindestinations.com
recommend.com
12/20/13 11:57 AM
http://www.swaindestinations.com
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend January 2014
Editor's Notes
Hotel Desk: Aloft Hotels
Tour Talk: Swain Destinations
Uniworld's Queen Isabel
Disney Magic
Delta Air Lines Travel Guide 2014
Macau
Egypt Update
Scandinavia Exposed
B Hotels & Resorts
What's New in Las Vegas
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