Generation Reinvention # 22: Active Boomer Women and the Future of Travel

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The future of travel is intrinsically connected to the Boomer generation. This is not to suggest that Boomers are the only segment of value to the travel industry, but Boomers will significantly shape travel products of the future. This is because of their relative wealth, their long-standing propensities to travel, increasing time in retirement, and a fundamental later-life yearning to learn about the wider world.

Although both Boomer men and women will be heading out on the highways or hopping the pond to Europe and points unknown, Boomer women constitute the most significant opportunity segment of this generation for the travel industry. This program explores why and how.

My guest is Kathy Dragon, who has more than two decades of experience in the Adventure and Experiential Travel industry including designing, marketing, selling, guiding and operating small group tours worldwide for active adults.

She started leading bike tours in 1987, and she’s since trained hundreds of guides and tour operators on the nuances of understanding the North American “Prime Time” Traveler (50-70 yr old) whose impact is substantial and whose needs and interests are unique within the global travel community. From Patagonia to Provence, Kilimanjaro to Komodo, Kathy has been there and personally escorted over 3000 guests (primarily Boomers) on life-changing adventures.

Kathy has helped large organizations including Whole Foods Market and Eons.com understand and incorporate travel into their offerings. She frequently consults and speaks to organizations interested in reaching the Boomer and beyond consumer and understanding how they interact with travel, social media and healthy living. She has been a consultant to Vermont Country Cyclers, Country Walkers and Whole Journeys.

Visit Kathy Dragon’s Website

http://www.thedragonspath.com/

http://traveldragon.com/

http://activewomen.com/