Gen Z and Millennials are very selective when researching holiday ideas. Instead of lying on the beach and sipping cocktails, younger generations are increasingly looking for custom-made holiday experiences. Read on to learn more about popular travel niches and how you can hop on the growing trend in the tourism industry.
What is Niche Tourism?
Niche tourists are looking for products, services, or interests for a small group of people that offer a more unique experience. In the travel industry, a niche refers to bespoke tour packages. According to Novelli, we can divide niche tourism into cultural, environmental, rural, urban, and emerging tourism, but it gets much more specific.
There are plenty of examples of niche tourism activities, such as stargazing, wine, gambling, and ancestry tourism, where people travel to different countries to learn more about their ancestors.
In this article, we have highlighted the top 3 most popular tourism niches you can include in your travel offer.
1. Ecotourism, Environmental and Sustainable Tourism
The most popular niche is ecotourism, which is often called environmental or sustainable tourism. Between 2018 and 2021, ecotourism grew by 5%. Ecotourism means tourism that has minimal environmental impact while contributing to the local community and culture.
For a travel agent, ecotourism encompasses tour packages such as traveling by foot, bike, bus, ferry, and train instead of driving or flying for minimal pollution. Since environmental tourism promotes contributing to the local community, trip offers should include collaboration with local businesses – for instance, accommodation at a local bed and breakfast, eating in a local restaurant, or going to the local farmer’s market.
Discover how to design your first environmental tour package using The Complete Guide to Building a Tour Package.
2. Adventure Tourism
According to The Adventure Travel Trade Association, adventure tourism is a tourist activity that includes physical activity, cultural exchange, or activities in nature. There are two types of adventure tourism – soft and hard adventure.
While soft adventure trips are usually safe and don’t require any previous experience, hard adventure travel is more on the wild side, and the client has to possess specific skills. Soft adventure travel includes activities like canoeing, birdwatching, fishing, safari, and horse riding, whereas hard adventures refer to riskier activities like rock climbing, ice climbing, caving, skydiving, and extreme biking.
If you want adventure tourism to be your travel agency niche, research thoroughly and provide insurance options for clients.
3. Wine and Gastronomy Tourism
The wine and gastronomy tourism niche is not that new. Destinations such as Italy, Spain, and France have long attracted tourists with their high-quality wine tasting and unique cuisine. Besides eating local specialties and tasting wine, there are more activities to add to a tour package.
Collaborating with wineries, farms, and restaurants is a perfect way to expand your offerings. With TripMatrix Software, you can easily find and connect with a local experience provider and add their products to the itinerary.
Many wineries provide educational experiences for tourists where they can learn more about managing a vineyard and the process of producing wine. Similarly to wineries, the gastro experience starts from growing fresh ingredients, possibly with a visit to a local farm.
Add private cooking classes to your tour package. Learning how to prepare authentic specialties from scratch with a chef’s assistance can be a unique experience. Not only will your clients gain knowledge, but they will have fun and create memories they want to share with everyone.
Why Become a Niche Travel Agent?
After learning about the top 3 popular tourism niches, one might ask why go through all this work to make a tour package aimed at a small group of people? Here are the most important reasons why you should become a niche travel agent:
- A younger generation of tourists is ready to pay extra money for a tour package designed based on their specific needs and interests. Explore other ways to boost your sales in Tips for Increasing Sales in a Travel Agency.
- It’s easier to brand yourself as an expert, gain reputation and build trust with clients if you focus on a specific field. Learn how to brand your agency by creating quality content for your website in How to Digitally Transform your Travel Agency.
- A unique trip offer makes your travel business stand out from the competition and attracts more clients. Learn how to create unique trip offers with Trip Planner for Travel Agencies.
- Designing the same kinds of travel itineraries can become a dull and repetitive task. Tapping into niche tourism can spark your creativity and provide more space for experimenting and researching, which will help you grow as a travel agent and make your job more enjoyable.
How to Start Your Niche Travel Agency Business
Not sure how to start your niche travel agency business? If you are already in the travel business, you don’t have to discard everything you have built. Use your industry knowledge and connections to adapt your tour packages for a tourism niche. Learn about your destination and start creating tour packages utilizing TripMatrix Software.
Conclusion:
Niche tourism is the opposite of mass tourism and is gaining popularity in the travel industry. Even though niche tourism may seem like more work, Gen Z and Millennials are keen to invest extra money to get a tour package customized for their needs and interests.
Focusing on a tourism niche opens up a new market for your travel agency. It helps your travel business to stand out from the competition and offers unique experiences for modern travelers.
Want to start building your niche tour packages? Contact us and learn how TripMatrix can support your travel business.
