Baby Boomers have been influencing our way of life since they began arriving en masse at the end of World War II. The people of this giant generation are now in their late 50s and early 60s, which means that many of them have set their sights on retirement. As they wind down their professional careers and enjoy a time with more personal freedom, they are beginning to plan more trips abroad.

Tour and activity operators should create products that target this age group in order to generate more revenue for their business. You should take note of these Baby Boomer travel trends:

Baby Boomers prefer luxury leisure vacations

Baby Boomers are in the perfect situation to take an extended vacation that is filled with life’s little — and big — luxuries. They are not considered budget travelers, so they likely won’t be booking your basic city tour that only takes a few hours. Rather, they prefer to relax while they travel, and they aren’t afraid to spend extra money in order to enhance the experience. For instance, you will be able to create customized tours for Boomers that include luxurious extras, such as a champagne toast or a spacious luxury vehicle. They are more apt to book this product than your run-of-the-mill tour that everyone else might select.

An increased number of Baby Boomers are traveling independently

Solo travel is on the rise amongst Baby Boomers. In fact, 71 percent of Baby Boomers choose to travel independently. Whether they have never married or they are divorced or widowed, they are finding freedom in the fact that the stigma surrounding solo travel is quickly being lifted. Solo travel is safe and it is also fun. To help solo travelers feel welcome, create tours that are for solo travelers only. These experiences should be social ones, allowing independent travelers to meet with and interact with other tourists in the same destination.

Baby Boomers seek out local flavor

One travel trend that is transcending all generational boundaries is the desire for a local experience. Baby Boomers, much like their Millennial children and grandchildren, want to experience the authenticity of the destination that they have chosen. This provides tour and activity operators with a unique opportunity to attract a wide range of travelers with a set of tour and activity products. Evaluate the products that you have available, and then consider how you could upgrade those products to better showcase the local culture. Make sure that you promote the fact that you are a local tour and activity company that will showcase the hidden gems of your region. This is an easy way to attract Baby Boomers to your tour and activity brand.

By creating niche products that will attract Baby Boomers, you will see an increase in both your bookings and your revenue. Tour and activity operators can easily customize their products to cater to specific market segments.

If you enjoyed this article – Travel Segment: Baby Boomers – then follow the Rezdy blog. There are a lot of marketing tools and resources designed with businesses like yours in mind.

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Wondering what customers look for before making a booking with you? Read the article here to learn more. 

Read our blog on ‘5 ways to attract tourists to your tour or experience business’ here.

Image credit: Harli Marten