Tour operators specializing in youngsters

A couple of hundreds French tour operators specialize in youngsters travel. Some cater to school trips or provide a la carte services to independent youngsters. They usually deal directly with hostels or through receptive operators and are open to proposals meeting their needs : cheap prices and high reliability when dealing with minors.

Most companies specialize in foreign language study programs. This is a very competitive market. Tour operators usually build long term business relations with language schools or foreign companies which provide them with the ground services they need : accommodation, classes, activities.

Tour operators often consider they are unfairly competed by non profit organizations which provide the same type of service as they do at a lower cost because they are not taxed as heavily. To get its share of the market, each company claims for the reliability of its programs.

How can you reach youngsters?

A paragraph in a guide book or a web site will be more efficient with youngsters than with most French people. Realize, though, they will only reach youngsters aged 18 and up who travel independently. The younger ones travel with chaperones.

Directly marketing high schools may sound appealing. This is not a good idea. If high schools and colleges prize exchanges with foreign schools and colleges, you should be aware they very rarely deal with foreign travel professionals. The reason is there has been a few bad experiences with kids being stranded abroad when a foreign supplier did not provide the service he was committed to.

On the opposite, clients traveling with a French tour operator are protected by the law : the tour operator is fully responsible for the services he sold, whether his suppliers provide them or not and he must find a solution. This drives clients to travel with a French tour operator rather than with a foreign company. See our page : tips to break into the French market.

Consequently, you will get better feed back if you establish relations with French tour operators.

Trade shows will generate a list of contacts with tour operators and, on the long run, you will start getting business from them. The drawback is the cost for your company. Besides, be aware that only a small percentage of French wholesalers do attend to trade shows and you only reach a handful of potential distributors.

Advertizing in the travel trade press is an option you could consider. The two leading magazines -l'Echo Touristique and Tour Hebdo are read by the most French travel professionals.

Direct marketing will give very decent feed back, especially when you reach the right companies. Our experience proves that many companies which don't attend to trade shows generate return on mailings. Ask for our mailing lists.

A sales representative for France is a good way for establishing and keeping business relations with French wholesalers. Knowledgeable about the French travel industry, the sales representative directly selects your potential distributors, approaches them and follows up on them for you. Hired full time or part time, he will save you time and money. We'll be happy to provide you with a mailing list of French tour operators or to approach them for you. Ask for more information.

General market information

• Who is concerned?
  An age group from 12 to 25 years old, usually divided by a turning point at 18 years old
  There are 8.5 million youngsters in France (15.8% of the population)
  disposable income : FFR 5 000 per year

• What is the rate of departure?
  12/25 years old : 71.1%
  12/19 years old : parents are often a part of the decision making regarding vacations.
  Youngsters have a lot of free time thanks to school vacations (5 months)

• Which activities are they looking for?
  Sports and activities in the open : adventure, hiking
  Themed stays focusing on cultural events
  Stays in a foreign country such as foreign language study vacations. See more.

• Why are French youngsters appealed by the U.S.?
  Movie industry (studios, towns, actors)
  Music : rap, hip-hop, hard rock, jazz, rnb
  Michael Jackson, Madonna, Nirvana
  Sports : basket ball (Jordan, Johnson)
  TV series like the X Files or Friends. Some fan clubs have been created around these themes.
  For the younger age group : Disney

• Which accommodation are they looking for?
  Youth hostels
  Sport and holiday centers for teenagers offering various activities
  Campgrounds

Various traveling styles

French youngsters travel a lot without their parents. Most trips apply to find the right compromise between education and fun.

School trips are a common thing. High schools take students to European countries and sometimes overseas to open them to foreign cultures, make them see the sites or speak the language. See our page : the leisure groups market in France.

Foreign language study programs are strongly recommended by high schools and colleges and a lot of French students spend a part of their vacation abroad to speak the language. The typical program includes homestay, classes in the morning and sport or sightseeing in the afternoon.

Independent traveling is common for youngsters aged 18 and up. They either want to explore a country or stay in a resort to practice sport. Flexibility and bottom prices are what they are looking for.

Many thanks to Marie-Aurore Jouvenaux, Francine Roudon, Amelie Pedrot for their contribution to this page.

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