January 2004

Over-50s get on trail of adventure 

The trend for the over-50s to take more adventurous holidays is set to grow this year, according to a Leamington firm.  Experts at Travel Management Group, of Dormer Place, said there was a sharp increase in the number of older travellers wanting more exciting holidays abroad.  

Recent research has shown that, for the over 50s, "spending the kids' inheritance" on a holiday is almost as desirable as investing or saving it, with one in five likely to take at least three holidays over the next year.

Helen Ward, manager of TMG Leisure, said: "The long-haul destinations have been popular for many years among adventurous backpackers before going to university and more recently among 20-somethings taking career breaks but the increased interest among the over 50s could well spark a boom in business for 2004."

Destinations off the beaten track in areas such as Australasia, south east Asia and Africa are rapidly increasing, accounting for about 25 per cent of TMG's overseas leisure travel business.

Popular destinations for 2004 are the Mekong Heritage Trail of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, lodges in Africa and the chance to see threatened orang-utans in the rainforests of Borneo.

Ms Ward added: "More and more travellers in the over-50s age group are looking to get off the beaten track in a bid for more adventure in their holidays.  "We are increasingly finding they are being bitten by the travel bug and looking for something unique".

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