Selling Tours Through Guide Platforms: Advice, Trends, and Challenges

All we hear about is AI this, AI that. And yet trying to keep up with all the changes can be overwhelming. Many operators are simply rejecting it outright, or knowingly keeping their heads buried in the sand.So Mitch Bach sat down with Janette Roush, the "Chief AI Officer" for Brand USA, to ask a fundamental question: what are some practical ways a tour operator can get started using AI effectively for their tour business? This isn't a technical, advanced conversation, but rather a clear-eyed overview of the benefits of just getting started and a practical approach to do just that. It's a great first step for those wondering where to begin.Janette is a master communicator on this topic, and everyone should follow her on LinkedIn!🔥 Attend our next global conference, TourWeek!Registration is now open for TourWeek '25, in Charleston, South Carolina. A gathering of day tour operators, multi-day operators, DMCs, travel advisors, guides, tour leaders... all descending on the city to take tours, get inspired, book 1:1 partnership meetings, and of course make new friends. Learn more at tourweek.travel!Timestamps00:00 Introduction to AI in Tourism58:51 The Role of a Chief AI Officer01:00:19 AI's Impact on the Travel Industry01:03:58 The Future of AI in Travel01:07:08 AI and Pricing Strategies01:10:10 The Evolution of SaaS in Tourism01:14:16 Human Touch vs AI in Business Decisions01:17:53 Getting Started with AI for Businesses01:21:32 Mindset Shifts for Embracing AI01:24:18 The Future of Work and Strategy01:26:48 SEO in the Age of AI01:29:30 The Value of Human Connection in Travel01:33:06 Balancing Automation and Customer Service01:37:38 Future-Proofing Your Business with AI01:45:45 Common Pitfalls and Successes in AI Implementation

In this episode of the Tourpreneur podcast, Chris speaks with Jonathan Coleman from the Untours Foundation and Zakia Moulaoui Guery from Invisible Cities. They discuss the transformative power of tourism and how both organizations are making a significant impact in their communities.The Untours Foundation focuses on impact investing in social enterprises, while Invisible Cities trains individuals affected by homelessness to become tour guides, sharing their unique stories. Together, they explore the intersection of tourism, social change, and community empowerment.In this conversation, Zakia and Jonathan discuss the importance of networking, partnerships, and financial support, particularly for social enterprises like Invisible Cities. They highlight the significance of building trust and rapport with stakeholders, the milestones achieved by Invisible Cities, and the role of corporate partnerships in supporting their mission.The discussion also covers future plans for expansion and offers advice for other tourism businesses looking to partner with Untours.

Mitch Bach is joined by ToursByLocals CEO Lisa Chen and Sherif Abiza, Chief Community Officer of Withlocals. Together they discuss a recent incident of guide poaching amongst tour platforms, and talk about what trust and fairness looks like in our industry.Guide platforms operate differently than other OTAs like GetYourGuide, Viator or Klook, since they deal primarily in solo entrepreneurs who themselves are the face of the tour.In this episode of Tourpreneur the group discusses:what does the platform's commission get spent on?how a guide platform acquires a customerwhat goes into a great guide profilethe rise of video, and social commercewhat it takes to build trust between travelers, guides and a platformhow guides need to adopt a 'marketing mindset', beyond delivering a great tourwhat they think of Airbnb Experiences' new rebootDon't forget:Join Tourpreneur's 20,000 strong Facebook Group of tour professionals!Join us for TourWeek 2025, our annual conference for tour operators & guides!

Nicole Mahoney runs Travel Alliance Partnership, a small group of tour operators banding together to create more buying power with suppliers, resell each others' tours, and much much more. In this Tourpreneur episode Nicole talks with Mitch Bach about how powerful these kinds of B2B partnership models can be when it comes to growing your tour business.Watch the video, show notes, and more at tourpreneur.comAnd join us for our TourWeek 2025, our global conference in Charleston, SC November 10-13!

Benjamin Sann is the CEO of Tour Optima, a communications platform and white-labeled app solution that offers streamlined messaging between your business and your guests, guides, and internal team.Communication is everything. How are your guests receiving the itinerary and important updates? How are they being prompted to review and tip the guide at the end of the tour? How do you handle group communication blasts throughout a multi-day tour?In this episode we talk about how to streamline your communications flow throughout the entire customer journey, from pre-booking to on-tour to post-tour follow-up. Ben is filled with great advice for when and how you should be communicating with your customers, this is a must-listen!For more show notes, visit tourpreneur.comJoin our 20,000 member Facebook group!Our annual conference, TourWeek 2025 is open for registrations!Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Tour Optima01:37 Understanding Communication in Tourism03:05 Streamlining Operations for Multi-Day Tours05:54 Enhancing Guest Experience Through Communication09:10 The Balance of Communication and Engagement10:15 Simplifying the Customer Journey12:46 Real-World Communication Challenges16:54 Ideal Communication Map for Tours20:26 Integrating Technology in Tour Operations26:20 Optimizing Customer Communication in Tours30:31 Enhancing Pre-Booking Communication Strategies32:05 Balancing Customer and Operational Journeys34:19 Streamlining Vendor Communication for Tours35:35 Leveraging Data for Marketing and Customer Insights40:05 Understanding Customer Booking Behavior44:12 The Future of Technology in Tour Operations

Katalina Mayorga is the powerhouse founder of El Camino Travel, a multi-day tour company reimagining the group trip experience for a new generation.But she's also much more than a tour operator. To sell her trips she's leaned heavily into community, creating a membership that serves not only as a customer base, but a space for likeminded 'bold women' to share recommendations and advice. And to power this community, she's created a new tech platform that is re-imagining the travel booking flow in an age where we're all drowning in the mediocre recommendations of AI and endless clickbait blog posts.In this episode, Tourpreneur's Mitch Bach talks to Katalina about: what it takes to design and market the group travel experience to millennials.what makes a great DMC relationship, from both perspectives.what social responsibility really meansbuilding a community-driven brandHow to build a brand when you’re smallthe growing ‘nichification’ of travel...and so much more.For show notes and more info, visit tourpreneur.com. And be sure to join nearly 20,000 Tourpreneurs in our bustling Facebook group.Timestamps00:00 - Introduction to El Camino Travel01:50 - Katalina's Journey to Founding El Camino06:50 - Reinventing Group Travel Experiences11:39 - Building Unique Travel Experiences17:33 - Community Engagement and Co-Creation23:54 - The Importance of DMC Relationships32:12 - Defining Brand and Community in Travel35:40 - Defining Your Customer Avatar38:36 - Building a Strong Brand Identity40:59 - The Role of the Founder in Brand Success44:58 - Creating a Community Around Travel50:18 - The Future of Travel and Community57:43 - Navigating Conflict and Kindness in Travel

We all know good reviews are important, but what deeper insights can reviews give us about our tour businesses, and our industry?To answer that, Anna Cashman, Head of B2B Brand & Insights for GetYourGuide, led an effort to analyze 3.1 million reviews with comments. Her team parsed the data to understand trends and takeaways for tour operators. She joins Peter, Chris and Mitch on the podcast to talk through what this all means for tour operators.We were surprised by some of the report's insights: What countries leave the most reviews? Who are the most critical reviewers? How many reviews ensures a successful product? Why are attractions so popular but so poorly reviewed? What kinds of tours get the best reviews?Download the Review ReportGetYourGuide's Spring 2025 Unlocked Release for SuppliersJoin GetYourGuide as a supplierAnna Cashman on LinkedIn

Well, the new Airbnb 2025 Summer Release is upon us. The just hosted a big, splashy launch event for its reboot of Experiences, and also introduced Airbnb Services, featuring dozens of categories of new bookable offerings, from nail care to personal chefs. What does this mean for the future of Airbnb, for the tours & activities sector, and for Experience Hosts? Let's dive in!Mitch Bach and Peter Syme invited Ben Gollan to share his insights. Ben is one of Airbnb's most popular NYC hosts, and has been with the platform since the early days. He's hugely optimistic about the new direction and investment Experiences is taking, and it's nice to hear his positivity about the platform's potential. Given the launch of Airbnb Services, Mitch and Pete look at what all of this means in the bigger picture for Airbnb, for the tours & activities sector, and where Airbnb gets it right and where there's room for improvement.

Mitch Bach sat down with João Perre Viana, the founder of Walking Mentorship, to talk one thing we tour operators are all familiar with: walking.But not many of us design week-long trips where all you do is walk. Sometimes alone. Sometimes in a group. That's it. Beyond some shared meals and moments, there isn't much of a plan. Each group takes on a different spirit, but it's all guided by a mentor who along the way tries to facilitate and gently foster personal transformation. What that looks like is up to the individual guest.This conversation veered away from the nitty-gritty of business, and towards diving into the importance and magic of what we do as experience creators.For more show notes, visit tourpreneur.com. And be sure to join nearly 20,000 tour operators in our Facebook group!1. Introduction to Walking Mentorship [00:00:09]Joao’s background and origins in PortugalIs Walking Mentorship a tour company?2. Joao’s Personal Journey and Spark for Walking Mentorship [00:01:16]The first Camino de Santiago in 1993The impact of the walk and self-discoveryRealization of a calling to this work3. Founding and Early Development of Walking Mentorship [00:04:23]Corporate career delay and returning to the ideaEmail to “fools, friends, and family,” and pilot programsEarly feedback and attempts to give up on the idea4. The Nature of Walking Journeys as Transformational Experiences [00:07:14]Layers of experience: curiosity, physicality, purpose, self-understanding, spirituality, cultureDoors in a room analogy for guiding participant journeys5. Participant Freedom, Responsibility, and Structure [00:12:06]Emphasis on total freedom and responsibilityRare participant withdrawal and the ethos behind the program6. Difference Between Typical Travel and Mentorship Walking Journeys [00:13:10]Critique of traditional, structured, checklist-driven toursDeprogramming guests and creating space for transformation7. Risk, Challenge, and Your Personal “Everest” [00:17:26]Meaning of risk (internal vs. external threats)The “wolves” participants face within themselvesEnsuring physical and psychological safety8. Common Motivations and Unique Outcomes [00:19:55]The universal quest or search among participantsEvery individual’s unique journey and needs“There is no replay” principle9. The Mentorship Structure and Methodology [00:22:20]Mentor’s responsibilities and boundariesPreparing participants for returning homeStructured support with eventual independence10. Designing for Difficulty and Personal Growth [00:26:53]Backpack packing as a life metaphorBalancing physical challenge with adaptabilityReading the group and tailoring the journey11. Practical Aspects and Device Usage [00:32:22]Approach to phone/device use on programsFostering mindful interaction with technology12. Lessons for Day Tour Operators and Short-Form Experiences [00:35:16]Applying listening, eye contact, and personalization even to short toursOffering small but impactful experiences13. The Art of Listening and Asking Questions [00:40:04]Listening as a crucial guiding skillAsking questions through...

Kelly Tompkins is the Founder & CPO of ReserveX, building software infrastructure that connects the components of our whole industry: Multi-Day tours, Day tours, Travel Advisors, OTAs, Meta-Search, and more.He's also been in the industry for a long, long time.Together with Tourpreneur host Peter Syme, Kelly talks about where the industry has been, and where it's going. He specifically looks at the disconnects in selling multi-day tours, how API connectivity can open your company up to more sales channels, but also the challenges in creating digital multi-day inventory.Along the way he also talks to Peter about how AI will change tour booking flows, and much much more.As always, visit tourpreneur.com for more resources and join our nearly 20,000 member free Facebook community!