Results tagged “Geographic Expeditions” from Intelligent Travel Blog

Senior editor Norie Quintos, who edits the annual Tours of a Lifetime special issue currently out on newsstands, talks to Jim Sano, president of San Francisco-based Geographic Expeditions, one of the oldest and most trusted guided tour operators in the country (NOTE: not associated with National Geographic Expeditions), about where the industry is headed and the role travel plays in making the world a better place.

How are current economic conditions changing guided travel?

I don't have a crystal ball, but I can say we have weathered many storms. This one may be more significant than 9/11, SARS, and the Gulf War because it is so global and pervasive up and down the economic ladder, affecting the highest end travelers as well as value travelers.

Are you making changes in your programs?

Yes. We're moving towards shorter and shorter holidays. This has actually been a trend over last few years, but for many people in the current climate, the degree of comfort to which they feel they can be away from home, as well as finding the time, has been foreshortened.

Where are people traveling?

We've seen our South American offerings, including the Galapagos, go up from last year.

I know you are planning programs several years out. What are the new destinations of the future?

Cuba is one of the countries on our radar screen. We have done educational trips to Cuba in the past, but there is a pent-up demand and we're doing legwork on that now and will be ready when conditions change. We're also looking at the west coast of Africa as an area yet to be explored; it is very rich culturally.

Your company's roots are in long adventure treks in Asia. But I've noticed your catalog has diversified and is offering fewer hard-core treks.

Whereas before 80 percent of what we offered in the '70s and '80s was trekking, now it's just under 20 percent. That's true for many other companies that started at the same time. The degree to which people want to do the harder treks has lessened dramatically. The people who used to trek now want to do something softer. They may want to hike during the day, but then they want a hot shower and glass of wine. We've adapted by offering both. There's an upcoming trip we're doing with Peter Hillary (son of Everest climber Edmund Hillary), going to South Georgia Island to retrace Shackleton's trek across the island. Part of group will be crossing with Peter; it's difficult glacier travel. But a majority of the group will stay on the vessel. Of the 80 to 100 passengers, we may get 20 who want to do the crossing. But the others still want the opportunity to rub shoulders and learn from Peter Hillary and top-notch mountaineers.