Contiki launched its line-up of Europe Summer 2020 trips and experiences last night at its sixth annual Contiki Legends event. Celebrities and travel industry experts turned out including Jimmy Niggles, Josh Moss, Amelia Marni and Lincoln Lewis. Sydney’s Max Watt’s venue was given a makeover with Europe’s favourite cities brought to life. The 300 guests got a taste of some of the new and iconic Contiki experiences in different themed rooms throughout the venue, perfectly setting the vibe for Contiki’s announcement of new European product.
The evening extravaganza included a Munich beer garden with plenty of fresh brews and pretzels on offer, Sydney’s first tapas train where guests dined on some of Barcelona’s best dishes and finest traditional red wine, before entering into a Tuscan feast room where Nonnas, Ceila and Gina of MasterChef fame, served pasta from giant cheese wheels.
Guests were put through their paces with a bar that came to life when powered by another guest pedalling a bike. Flamenco dancers were on foot to keep guests entertained and Perth’s renowned DJ Shan got the dancefloor hotter than a Sevillan summer night.
The evening’s host, Managing Director for Contiki, Katrina Barry, offered insights into Contiki’s mission and how travellers are changing as Gen Z enters the market; “We exist to help travellers experience the world. We understand that social travel has changed, and we too have evolved our offering. Gen Zs are more likely to have travelled extensively by the age of 21, 50% belong to a minority race or ethnic group, they’re better informed and are therefore more open to new and adventurous experiences.”
Katrina also revealed the significance of the whopping 61 million Gen Z out there, saying they’ll have $44 billion spending power by 2020 and account for 40% off all 18-35 year old consumers. Continuing to reveal Contiki’s answer to this changing market, Katrina said; “Our approach has been to curate trips that are more streamlined, have the right size group for the experience and destination, new modes of transport and shorter itineraries for those that want it.”
A new way to travel was introduced with small group trains taking the spotlight. Contiki made a promise to get travellers to their dream destination whilst enjoying scenic views, with train trips taking travellers to hotspots such as Berlin, Barcelona and Budapest.
The series of exciting European experiences reflect the passions of young travellers meaning more localised experiences, such as whisky tasting and folk tales with a Scotsman in Edinburgh, gondolier lessons, dining with families in their homes in Seville and base flying in Germany. Also, new experiences such as a surf camp in Portugal and exploring the Croatian Islands and National Parks.
For the conscious traveller, more Contiki Cares experiences were also unveiled. These include walking tours of London with Unseen, a not for profit organisation that trains former homeless people to be guides; local community farmed and eco-friendly table dinners in Salzburg, Sarajevo, Split and Iceland; and e-docs which will see one tree planted every time a traveller says no to printing.
Contiki also announced their travel agent Contiki Cares Ambassador winners on the night, who will spread and support Contiki’s sustainability mission. The winners are; Kate Buchanan, STA Travel, Teagan Beauman, Flight Centre, Katie Alexander, Universal Traveller, and Bailee King, Helloworld Travel. The lucky winners receive an all-expenses-paid Contiki Cares trip of a lifetime, GoPro gear and training, and the chance to drive change as the voice of Contiki Cares.
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