Shoulder Season Travel Grows as Guests Seek Off-Season Trips to Popular Destinations with Fewer Crowds

Croatia, Iceland, Portugal and the United Kingdom – Along with Private and Custom Trips – Trending as 2018 Hot-Selling Backroads’ Active Travel Destinations

 

 

December 21st, 2017 – Backroads, the World’s Leading Active Travel company, today announced that as 2017 winds down and 2018 vacation-planning amps up, early booking trends show a significant uptick in interest in European offerings, including the ever-popular Croatia and Iceland departures. Destinations “across the pond” in Scotland and England have also seen an increase in sales, as have adventures in Portugal, and the company’s brand-new Iceland Northern Lights Multi-Adventure Tour. Overall, Backroads’ long-standing signature trips to European destinations with Premiere Hotels are also seeing continued growth with guests, as are active small-ship Ocean and River Cruise tours.

 

Backroads has reacted to surging sales during non-traditional travel periods as guests take advantage of lower airfare, smaller crowds and good weather. Offering even more departures during the off-season has led to steady sales throughout the year with less variance during summer and winter holiday travel periods. The new norm of consistent year-round travel opens up the possibility of delivering even more exciting adventures in busy destinations, an initiative that has been greatly received among guests who have increasingly flexible travel schedules.

 

Additionally, on the rise are guests looking to travel with their own private group by taking over an already established Backroads trip date, creating their own private departure, or designing a customized trip that is perfect for their individual travel interests. Backroads Private and Custom Trips are a great way to see the world at whatever pace, style and size fits each unique group. Flexibility is also key, whether the group is just 2 guests or more than 200. Backroads has a dedicated team of Custom Trip Consultants who work with guests to create their perfect trip with a personalized itinerary.

 

“2018 is looking to be a great year for adventure travel whether our guests want to maximize their dollars in Europe, or try out one of our popular active river cruises,” said Backroads Founder and President Tom Hale. “We’re happy to see the bell curve travel trend flatten out with more of our guests enjoying the historically less crowded months. We have the flexibility to offer additional departures during these periods and we will scale up to meet demand as needed.

 

Backroads Trending Top Trip Sellers in 2018

* Iceland Northern Lights Multi-Adventure Tour
* Portugal Bike Tour
* Scotland Walking & Hiking Tour
* Patagonia Walking & Hiking Tour

 

Other Early Backroads Booking Trends in 2018

* Family Walking & Hiking Trip segment
* Family Trips in Europe
* Canadian Rockies all trip types
* Active Ocean & River Cruise Trips

Backroads’ early booking trends indicate that guests are taking advantage of the company’s new offerings and planning their 2018 travel earlier to lock in the best pricing, dates and destinations

 

 

ABOUT BACKROADS

Backroads was founded in 1979 by Tom Hale and has been in business for more than 38 years. The company hosts thousands of guests each year, 75% of whom are repeat guests or referrals from past guests, in hundreds of locations across the globe. Backroads is a founding member of the Adventure Collection. For more information, please visit backroads.com or call 800-462-2848 daily, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Pacific time.