Asian tour operators change focus to satisfy experience-hungry new travellers

Tour operators at this year’s Arival Activate event in Bangkok are reporting that there’s truth in the predictions – travellers indeed are demanding more immersive, local and engaging experiences during their trips.  Craig Dodge from Phare Circus explained how the type of experiences they are now offering have had to shift to meet this new demographic – and urges other tour companies to act now.

From its humble beginnings as a small community school founded by returning Cambodian refugees, Phare Circus has grown into a world-renown entertainment venue wowing international visitors for years and while showcasing Cambodian culture and talent.

Craig, who is Senior Director of Sales & Marketing at Phare Circus, said: “Travellers want to enjoy engaging, authentic and local experiences, while also making a positive impact on the communities they visit.  We’re now shifting away from just offering tickets to shows as a result; we’re enabling guests to directly fund the development of local facilities such as schools through our Phare Performing Social Enterprise.  We urge other tour companies to rethink their offerings now – or risk being left behind.”

Phare, which specializes in offering local shows in Cambodia, shifted its focus to create more of an immersive experience than just seeing a show, with several key changes:

• • Its F&B service was changed from a sit-down restaurant setting to a Cambodian street food experience with stalls positioned around the venue to explore and engage.
  • Circus arts workshops are now being offered, giving visitors the chance to engage with the artists and learn some basic circus techniques.
  • A new offering called “Phare Insider” was developed to take visitors back-stage where they can learn more about the program and explore the artist, costume, and technician work areas.

Offering his advice to the industry, Dodge said: “Experience providers should do some careful self-examination to see how they can make their offering better for travellers and better for the local community. Both will become strong selling points.  They should take control of their brand and sales with a strong website that has instant booking capability, then balance with a diversified distribution network of OTAs, DMCs, agents and local partners – they should not depend too heavily on any one channel besides their own, or they risk losing control.”