After an 85% increase in family travel bookings by U.S. and Canadian customers this year, Intrepid Travel is doubling the number of the family-oriented
tours it offers.
The company has created two travel styles geared towards
families traveling together, Comfort Family and Active Family trips, and has
grown its portfolio of family-friendly trips to 48 itineraries in 20 countries
starting next year.
Intrepid Travel also has reported growth in demand for its
teen trips, designed for families traveling with kids ages 11 and up, which
inspired the launch of teen trekking itineraries in Peru and Nepal among other
destinations.
"By significantly increasing our family tours for 2017,
we hope to be the go-to operator for family adventure travel," said Leigh
Barnes, North America director for Intrepid Travel.
Intrepid's family tours have an average group size of 12
people and include experiences such as using local transportation, eating at
family-run restaurants and overnighting with a family in homestay
accommodations. Families traveling together can include aunts, uncles,
grandmothers and grandfathers, as long as there is at least one person under
the age of 18 traveling with the group.
Depending on the trip, Intrepid's family tours have a
minimum age of between 5 and 11 years of age. Children often travel at a
discounted rate.
Some of Intrepid's new family travel itineraries include "Thailand
Family Holiday," which features a visit to Chiang Mai's Elephant Nature
Park, recognized by World Animal Protection for its elephant care; "Namibia
& Botswana Family Adventure," which includes traveling by canoe along
Botswana's Okavango Delta; and "Malta and Gozo Family Holiday,"
during which families will see what it's like to be a local shepherd for the
day, tending to animals, cutting corn, making cheese and preparing a meal with
a host family.