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@tripshurpa-blog
Samsung's Adventure Smartphone: Galaxy S5 Active
Samsung has released a new smartphone designed for the adventure lifestyle. Water-resistant, dust-proof, a light adaptive screen, advanced navigation tools, health tracking tools and other advanced features make this a must- have for any adventure seeker!
Win a new Galaxy S5 Active at Kevin Callan's Facebook page!
Arab Royalty Buy African Game Killing Field
Earlier this year The Guardian reported that the government of Tanzania struck a deal with a United Arab Emirates (UAE) based safari company to turn 1,500 km2 of Masai ancestral pastor grounds into big-game hunting grounds, forcing about 40,000 nomadic Masai people from their ancestral lands.
It appears the deal is back on with the Ortelo Business Corporation, the UAE safari company that has organized big-game hunting trips for Prince Andrew, Emirati royalty and other wealthy Europeans. An Avaaz petition has almost reached its goal of 2 million signatures.
Off-road monster: Polaris RZR XP 1000 Side-by-Side (SxS)
Alpine Ibexes climb nearly 90 degree rock slopes to lick salt deposits on mountain sides. These guys can climb!
British Columbia's Great Bear Rainforest in 4K. Absolutely stunning video. A must watch. Click on the gear icon (bottom left), select 4K resolution. Let it buffer for a few minutes. It is worth the wait!
PAWGI and Fraud in Canadian Adventure
The National Post recently uncovered sketchy details indicating fraud surrounding Amaruk Wilderness, alleging that the owner (Chris Fragassi) had created a fake adventure training body to hand out certs and started several fake adventure businesses.
Here are the highlights:
Fragassi created the Professional Association of Wilderness Guides and Instructors (PAWGI) to deliver “independent” training and certifications. All of their guides were required to have PAWGI certifications to work for them, costing $500+. Squeeze your guides before you hire them right? Read a forum discussion of guides uncovering the PAWGI scam a few years ago.
Amaruk claims to have a logistics division with access to Hercules C-30 military aircraft used to transport tanks and other heavy equipment, in addition to icebreakers, two Boeing 737s and dozens of land vehicles. Likely a total lie.
According to Industry Canada filings, Amaruk has tens of millions in revenue with 200+ employees worldwide. However, according to his former landlords, he rented a basement in a northern British Columbia town and had few belognings.
This story demonstrates the need to increase transparency and accountability in the adventure industry, particularly in training and certifications.
Source.
Every time a tourist stands on the edge of a cliff, steps into a harness or grabs a paddle they take a calculated risk.
In adventure tourism, risk is inherent and in the past unregulated activities arguably led to a series of fatal incidents. But those days could be over with the introduction of a new safety regime.
It is more than six years since one of the darkest chapters in the annals of Queenstown tourism. British backpacker Emily Jordan, who was 21, died when she was trapped by submerged boulders in the Kawarau River during a Mad Dog River Boarding trip on April 29, 2008.
Her death and other fatal incidents prompted a Government review of the adventure tourism sector, and new rules designed to enhance safety come into play in a matter of weeks.
Operators who "deliberately expose participants to a risk of serious harm" must be externally audited and registered with WorkSafe.
Queenstown Rafting general manager Tim Barke said the main whitewater rafting aspect of the business falls under a Maritime New Zealand rule, but another gentler product, Flow fun canoes, now falls under the new regulations.
Barke said the new legislation was drafted in consultation with the adventure activity sector and Maritime New Zealand's commercial rafting rule was used as a guide for new rules governing other water-based products.
He said there was no logical reason for the inclusion of inflatable canoes in the new regulations but the overall intent of the legislation benefited the sector.
"It's a bit of a painful process but there are some great benefits. Government came to the industry and said: "What's best practice? We need to define it".
"It makes it more difficult for somebody who doesn't know what they're doing to set up.
"What they have come up with is general best practice procedures. Your procedures and systems have to be flexible because you're affected by all kinds of different things.
"We're still part way through that [new] process. Quite a lot of rafting operations are in the same position as us. It's just a teething thing. Actually having the regulations is a good thing. There are lots of benefits for operators who didn't previously have a regulatory safety net to fall under.
"They could be doing the safety thing but unless there's a regulatory agreement on what is best practice the onus is on them. Whereas having something under an audited process you have a legal agreement of what is best practice.
"One of the really exciting things for New Zealand is, I believe, it's a world-leading process. The highest priority is to have operations as safe as possible."
Barke said he could understand frustration with paperwork and smaller operators having to pay several thousand dollars for an audit but the upshot was an improved perception of New Zealand adventure tourism.
Flying foxes and ziplines fall under the new regulations and Queenstown-based ZipTrek Ecotours have registered. Executive director Trent Yeo said the activity previously fell into the "we don't know basket" in terms of regulation. "I think this process has been some work; it's been a lot of paperwork tidy up for a lot of people. It's probably been a bit of work for some. It's a tighter net. It's good for New Zealand."
Yeo said the introduction of new legislation was not necessarily foremost in the public's mind.
"It's a great opportunity for New Zealand to express to the world that it does have a very thorough system throughout the whole industry. We were not under anything before; now we are squarely under the regulations."
Aspiring Guides chief guide and director Whitney Thurlow said the new system coincided with the alpine guiding firm's existing audit renewal and was similar to the previous regime, except auditing and registration now cost more.
Thurlow said the increased cost, usually around a few thousand dollars, could hinder solo operators and small firms.
"It's the same thing we've always done. So they come to the office and look around and make sure the paperwork you say you have is on the computer.
"It was needed to bring in other companies. The big change is they've brought in lots of other people. [But] they have increased the bureaucracy and the cost at very little change in terms of safety [to us]."
New Zealand Introduces new regulations to improve safety in the adventure sector.
Wind so strong it blows this waterfall backup! Kinder River, Hayfield (UK)
7 Free Marketing Tools for Adventure Operators
Run your digital media like you've hired a pricey ad agency!
1 // Canva Canva is drag and drop, web-based design app. Its strength is in pre-formatted design elements and pre-sized canvasses for specific purposes like Twitter backgrounds or social media posts (so your image fits nicely in user feeds). But you can design anything on it. Throw away Photoshop and Illustrator. They take too long.
Here’s an example of a Facebook/Twitter graphic I made for Paddle Canada:
2 // The Noun Project
Ever wondered where big brands get cool little graphic icons on their digital or print media? Probanly at the The Noun Project. For free. Yep, free. Just have to attribute the designer in the footnote. Stop spending hours on Google Images looking for low-resolution graphics.
3 // Brand Canada Library
This is where you get loads of great quality, free, photos and videos of adventure activities in Canada. The fine print: you can only use the content to promote Canadian travel and you can’t be selling the content (i.e., make a documentary using video clips and then sell the documentary). But you’re good to use the content for marketing / advertising your operation or destination.
4 // TripShurpa Your guides and instructors are your best marketing asset. TripShurpa leverages your awesome guides and instructors to grow your community, boost referrals and get more bookings! (Tip: see what we're doing here? Creating content you're interested in, then selling you on our product: TripShurpa. It's called content marketing. You can do it too!).
5 // Topsy.com
Want your audience to see the latest viral sky diving video from you first? (Hint: ya you do!) Then head over to Topsy frequently to find what’s trending on Twitter by searching keywords (e.g., kayak, scuba, fishing, etc.). It’s an easy, easy way to fill up your social media feeds with content your adventure audience wants.
6 // Buffer
Buffer is a smart social media scheduler for all your social media accounts. Buffer learns when your audience engages most with your content and auto-schedules any content you send to Buffer accordingly. Buffer saves you time and boosts your engagement rates.
7 // Buffer Chrome Extension
Quickly send any content your viewing online to Buffer to be auto-scheduled to post to your social media accounts. You need the Chrome browser for this.
Ten Negative Reviews of Magnificent US National Parks
If you've ever needed proof that adventurers are different than tourists, here it is: ten negative reviews of manigifcent US National Parks left on Yelp.
The Adventure Travel Trade Association produces excellent market research on adventure travel(lers). Here's a quick infographic of some powerful conclusions they've reached.
Viral Video: Danny Mac is back with remarkable video of a death-defying ride along the notorious Cuillin Ridgeline on the Isle of Skye in Scotland.
The uber awesome Adventure Travel Trade Association has released its 2014 bicycle tourism survey. If you're a bicycle tour operator, you should check this market research out to optimise your marketing and operations for the newest traveller trends!
With data from nearly 300 tour companies, the ATTA is releasing its first Bicycle Tourism Survey for the adventure travel industry. Companies that offer only cycling activities and companies that offer a mix of activities are included in the study,
Happy trails,
Adrian
Beautiful time-lapse video of Everest Basecamp, a majestic place.
Tell Your Stories Like a Cartographer With Odyssey.js
Imagine taking your friends along your route as you tell them about your journey. Odyssey.js is a simple, free online tool that lets anyone with basic computer skills create an interactive map with your stories of each point along your jounrey.
Odyssey.js is still a work in progress. However, for early adopters of very cool technology, you will love playing with this great new platform to share your adventures.
Pros: Super easy to use and looks beautiful! Cons: Doesn't appear like you can save your work. So you have to finish your project and keep the link somewhere safe! Also, you cannot directly upload videos or more than one photo.
If you're into new Odyssey.js, you'll definitely dig TripShurpa - a travel planning site designed for adventure. Get early access to TripShurpa when it launches in a few weeks!
Market Adventure like a Startup: Growth Hack Your Guides!
Your most valuable marketing asset is right in front of you. So stop wasting thousands of dollars on traditional marketing. Start growth hacking like a lean startup! Everyday your tour guides and instructors create positive personal relationships with dozens of your guests. A happy guest, with a good story and a positive relationship with one of your guides is the best marketing asset you could ever ask for. And no one is leveraging it. TripShurpa changes that. With pre-formatted Guide Cards, you can leverage that personal relationship between your guides and customers to boost sales and generate positive TripShurpa reviews for your business and guides. Guides can order Guide Cards individually or operators can order them for their guides directly from TripShurpa.
Guides/instructors can go here to Win 100 Free TripShurpa Guide Cards!
Let's break down the immediate benefits for operators and guides.
Operators:
Boost word-of-mouth sales by reminding your guests of their positive experience with a Guide Card that includes your company details that they can pass on to a future guest.
Increase positive TripShurpa reviews of your company. Let's face it. Your guests are more likely to leave a review for a person they've developed a connection with than a business. But if you get a guest to leave a review for your guide, they're more likely to also leave a review for your company.
Leverage the reputation of your guides. People go on guided trips for one reason. They want a guide! And they want a good one! So have guides that have the most positive TripShurpa reviews! You'll attract more customers and boost sales.
Guides/Instructors:
Build your rep. Convert your hard work into positive guest reviews on your TripShurpa profile. Those reviews will boost your reputation as a solid guide. Customers will request you. You'll get noticed and be in high demand. All very good things for your career.
Get more tips! You can collect tips online on your TripShurpa profile. Everytime someone leaves you a positive review, TripShurpa reminds them to give you a tip. That's more money in your pocket.
Guides/instructors can go here to Win 100 Free TripShurpa Guide Cards!
Travellers, operators and guides can get early access to TripShurpa HERE!
Six Travel Stats Adventure Operators Need to Know
1 // The adventure travel sector is the fastest growing travel sector, worth $263 billion in 2013 (compared to $89 billion in 2010).
2 // 54% of regular travellers intend to plan adventure travel for their next trip.
3 // 22% of adventure travellers use guides, 13% use instructors and 18% use tour operators.
4 // 68% of adventure travellers research and plan their trips 4 months or less in advance, and only 22% planned their trip less than a month in advance.
5 // 81% of adventure travellers are likely to share or recommend their trip with friends off and online.
6 // 18% of adventure travellers write online trip reviews, compared to 8% of non-adventure travellers. Source: Adventure Tourism Market Report, 2013 by the Adventure Travel Trade Association. Adrian Camara is a CoFounder of TripShurpa. Before managing a large canoe and kayak outfitter in Canada, I was a canoe and kayak guide. I am also involved with the executive of Paddle Canada, Canada’s national paddle training and certification body.