We all know good reviews are important, but what deeper insights can reviews give us about our tour businesses, and our industry?

To answer that, Anna Cashman, Head of B2B Brand & Insights for GetYourGuide, led an effort to analyze 3.1 million reviews with comments. Her team parsed the data to understand trends and takeaways for tour operators. She joins Peter, Chris and Mitch on the podcast to talk through what this all means for tour operators.

We were surprised by some of the report's insights: What countries leave the most reviews? Who are the most critical reviewers? How many reviews ensures a successful product? Why are attractions so popular but so poorly reviewed? What kinds of tours get the best reviews?

• Download the Review Report
• GetYourGuide's Spring 2025 Unlocked Release for Suppliers
• Join GetYourGuide as a supplier
• Anna Cashman on LinkedIn

Well, the new Airbnb 2025 Summer Release is upon us. The just hosted a big, splashy launch event for its reboot of Experiences, and also introduced Airbnb Services, featuring dozens of categories of new bookable offerings, from nail care to personal chefs. What does this mean for the future of Airbnb, for the tours & activities sector, and for Experience Hosts? Let's dive in!

Mitch Bach and Peter Syme invited Ben Gollan to share his insights. Ben is one of Airbnb's most popular NYC hosts, and has been with the platform since the early days. He's hugely optimistic about the new direction and investment Experiences is taking, and it's nice to hear his positivity about the platform's potential. Given the launch of Airbnb Services, Mitch and Pete look at what all of this means in the bigger picture for Airbnb, for the tours & activities sector, and where Airbnb gets it right and where there's room for improvement.

Mitch Bach sat down with João Perre Viana, the founder of Walking Mentorship, to talk one thing we tour operators are all familiar with: walking.

But not many of us design week-long trips where all you do is walk. Sometimes alone. Sometimes in a group. That's it. Beyond some shared meals and moments, there isn't much of a plan. Each group takes on a different spirit, but it's all guided by a mentor who along the way tries to facilitate and gently foster personal transformation. What that looks like is up to the individual guest.

This conversation veered away from the nitty-gritty of business, and towards diving into the importance and magic of what we do as experience creators.

For more show notes, visit tourpreneur.com. And be sure to join nearly 20,000 tour operators in our Facebook group!

• Joao’s background and origins in Portugal
• Is Walking Mentorship a tour company?

• The first Camino de Santiago in 1993
• The impact of the walk and self-discovery
• Realization of a calling to this work

• Corporate career delay and returning to the idea
• Email to “fools, friends, and family,” and pilot programs
• Early feedback and attempts to give up on the idea

• Layers of experience: curiosity, physicality, purpose, self-understanding, spirituality, culture
• Doors in a room analogy for guiding participant journeys

• Emphasis on total freedom and responsibility
• Rare participant withdrawal and the ethos behind the program

• Critique of traditional, structured, checklist-driven tours
• Deprogramming guests and creating space for transformation

• Meaning of risk (internal vs. external threats)
• The “wolves” participants face within themselves
• Ensuring physical and psychological safety

• The universal quest or search among participants
• Every individual’s unique journey and needs
• “There is no replay” principle

• Mentor’s responsibilities and boundaries
• Preparing participants for returning home
• Structured support with eventual independence

• Backpack packing as a life metaphor
• Balancing physical challenge with adaptability
• Reading the group and tailoring the journey

• Approach to phone/device use on programs
• Fostering mindful interaction with technology

• Applying listening, eye contact, and personalization even to short tours
• Offering small but impactful experiences

• Listening as a crucial guiding skill
• Asking questions through...

Kelly Tompkins is the Founder & CPO of ReserveX, building software infrastructure that connects the components of our whole industry: Multi-Day tours, Day tours, Travel Advisors, OTAs, Meta-Search, and more.

He's also been in the industry for a long, long time.

Together with Tourpreneur host Peter Syme, Kelly talks about where the industry has been, and where it's going. He specifically looks at the disconnects in selling multi-day tours, how API connectivity can open your company up to more sales channels, but also the challenges in creating digital multi-day inventory.

Along the way he also talks to Peter about how AI will change tour booking flows, and much much more.

As always, visit tourpreneur.com for more resources and join our nearly 20,000 member free Facebook community!

TP team members Mitch Bach and Peter Syme talk to Chris Mark, Head of Connectivity for GetYourGuide.

As we continue our Connectivity Series, we're looking at the people building the plumbing that make our industry work. When you list your tour on GetYourGuide, you might not understand the way in which it gets shared on other platforms, and how it integrates with your booking software, to bring you more sales but also make the whole process seamless.

We sat down with Chris who is one of the architects making best-in-class connectivity. He comes from the tech industry, specifically Uber Eats, and learned a lot about what it takes to build the tech the makes sure everything works together nicely.

Listen to the end, because Chris shares his opinion on the value proposition about tour marketplaces.

More info & links at tourpreneur.com

In this episode, Mitch Bach and Pete Syme interview fellow Tourpreneur partner Chris Torres, a seasoned marketing expert, who shares insights from his extensive career in the industry.

Chris announces the sale of his business, discusses the evolving landscape of marketing, and emphasises the importance of storytelling and innovation in attracting customers.

The conversation covers the differences between marketing strategies for day tours and multi-day tours, the significance of print marketing, and what tour operators should look for in a marketing agency. Chris also reflects on his future plans and the changes in his professional journey.

Tourism Marketing Agency

Trikon Group

Read the full Press Release

Takeaways

• Chris Torres has been in marketing and design since he was 16.
• He sold his business after 17 years to focus on new opportunities.
• Marketing is more crucial than ever in today's cluttered landscape.
• Agencies must adapt to technological changes and customer needs.
• Tour operators should invest in long-term marketing strategies.
• Video content is a powerful tool for differentiation.
• Understanding your customer is key to effective marketing.
• Print marketing remains relevant and impactful.
• Agencies should be evaluated based on results over time.
• It's important for operators to know when to move on from an agency, and vice versa.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Chris Torres and His Journey

01:24 Chris Torres Announces Business Sale

03:48 The Importance of Marketing in Today's World

07:46 The Evolving Role of Marketing Agencies

11:06 What Tour Operators Should Look for in Agencies

13:30 When to Move On from an Agency

18:04 Day Tours vs. Multi-Day Tours Marketing Strategies

19:53 Standing Out in a Crowded Market

26:02 The Role of Print Marketing

27:34 Looking Ahead: Chris's Future Plans

As we continue our connectivity series, we look at the landscape of B2B sales for tour operators as it evolves thanks to new technology, connectivity, and companies changing how travel is sold.

Evan Frank has been the CEO of a tour company (Context Travel), founder of a short-term rental pioneer (onefinestay), and is no co-founder of Fora Travel, leading the charge at reimagining the role of the travel advisor, updating it with new technology and a brand that suits a new demographic of advisor today.

• How Evan's seen the evolution of B2C and B2B distribution as a tour operator
• The evolving landscape of travel advisors, especially post-COVID.
• Discussion on the importance of multichannel distribution.
• Building a modern, networked community of advisors.
• Tips for tour suppliers to connect with travel advisors.
• The importance of networking and being proactive.
• The importance of building a personal brand and relationships.

If you're interested in this potential sales channel for your business, this is a must-listen.

• Show notes on tourpreneur.com
• Join our 17,000-strong Facebook Community

This week we begin a mini-series on connectivity: interviews with people helping tour operators grow their B2B partnerships through tech tools that connect with other industry sectors.

We start the series off looking at short term rentals. This is often a desired B2B relationship for tour operators, but one that's hard to decipher and connect with.

Our guests are Karen Piscitelli, Founder of Explorabout and Annie Holcombe of the channel manager NextPax. Karen is building a platform to allow property managers to tap into inventory of unique bookable experiences, and Annie is an expert in the connectivity landscape for the short term rental market.

We look at:

• how to understand the short term rental space
• strategies tour operators can use to creatively connect with property managers
• tech challenges in connecting properties to tours & activities
• working with OTAs like Airbnb vs. direct relationships with properties
• how Explorabout and Nextpax are thinking about channel management and
• the opportunity for designing tours in partnership with property managers
• opportunities in remote workers

Show notes and more available at tourpreneur.com