Intrepid Travel has just recorded a record-breaking sales month with January 2015 resulting in the company’s biggest bookings month ever.
Sales in Australia in January increased by 33% year on year, with the majority of travellers booking trips in Central and South America, Turkey and Europe.
Central America
“Central America has been a growing hotspot over the last couple of years and this is the best result we have seen so far – the region has experienced a 51% increase in sales year on year. We expect this growth to continue, particularly with a renewed interest in Cuba following the US announcement on easing travel restrictions to the country,” says James Thornton, Managing Director.
“Turkey has experienced a surge in bookings in Australia – it is 37% up year on year – which can be attributed to Australians making the journey over to Gallipoli to mark the 100 year anniversary on ANZAC Day.”
James Thornton
Intrepid themed trips are also performing well, with Food Adventures achieving a 47% growth and Marine trips, including Galapagos and Sailing Adventures – with two new trips hitting the waters in Cuba and Cote d’Azur – seeing a 28% growth.
Africa
Africa is one region that has seen a downturn in numbers, as a result of concerns around Ebola in some West African countries.
“We are approaching the peak Africa booking season for Australians, and we’d ask agents to encourage their customers to make 2015 the year of the safari.“
James Thornton
“Africa is a continent, not a country, and the whole region has suffered as a result of misinformation about the threat of Ebola. Tourism is vital to local economies, and when travellers stay away this has a real impact on local communities, as well as on wildlife and conservation.”
“We are also eight weeks in to our new Intrepid Group BDM approach, where all 20 of our BDMs are now representing all Intrepid Group brands rather than just one or two,” adds James. “Prior to this we had six dedicated.
