Although travel plans have considerably decreased over the past year and a half, our various partners and a few studies show that the pandemic has not eradicated the consumer’s desire to discover, learn and have fun while travelling, whether in or outside Quebec.

It’s true that tour operators and various tour companies are well aware of the fact that they can charge for their services, especially for international trips. However, the initiative taken by the Quebec government to market multi-attractions p assports has changed the way we travel in Quebec. Combining the activities and services of several companies, which typically aren’t in contact (or very seldom), was a stroke of genius by the government as we know that several dozen tourism draws (i.e., sites, resorts, activities, destinations) took part in the adventure.

Compared to the summer of 2020, the tendency of Quebecers to purchase a passport in the summer of 2021 has increased significantly! In fact, 209,000 attractions passports were sold last summer, compared to 120,000 in 2020, which is an increase of 75%!

At xPayrience, we had the opportunity to set up several multi-attractions passports on our ticketing module again this year, and we must admit that their popularity has far exceeded our expectations.

While some of this increase can be explained by the government’s ramped up marketing efforts, we nevertheless focused on the various trends in consumer buying behaviour to understand this spike in popularity. Why is the multi-attractions package model on the rise?

The need for personalization

The need to personalize one’s purchases is a trend that is no longer in doubt. Whether it’s customizing the colours of M&Ms or being able to receive personalized Starbucks coffee with tailored ingredients AND one’s name on the cup, the tourism industry is no exception to this growing trend.

The need to personalize one’s trip and/or vacation itinerary according to one’s tastes and desires is what the consumer aspires to. Painting all consumers with the same brush is definitely not the way to go as tour operators and travel agencies have often done since the early 2000s. Today, travellers are increasingly looking to create and personalize their experiences.

Why is this the case?

It is primarily the uniqueness we’re searching for that answers the model of an “ideal self” and fills a desire, more and more blatant, to be different from others and to assert our own personality.

Although multi-attractions passports are pre-established with different tourism partners, many of them offer several types of combined activities that can appeal to different types of vacationers.

At xPayrience, we leave it up to the consumer to build their own package according to their tastes and desires. Indeed, the consumer can go from module to module among our partners and choose their favorite activities and book these activities in a single transaction. To find out more about this feature, click here!

Discounts associated with the creation of a package

Businesses know it, consumers know it too that a discount is always more saleable than a full price item.

Many businesses, especially hotel operators, take advantage of this benefit that can be created by offering packages for sale.

In addition to the monetary benefit, as mentioned in a previous article, the creation of packages demonstrates the wealth of tourism a region has to offer.

Although the creation of packages takes time and an internal resource within each company must be dedicated to it, the benefits are numerous.

The good news is xPayrience. Our platform allows the application of discounts when certain activities are combined in the same shopping cart. Each company receives its share of the package in real time through its account. In addition, the xPayrience team is committed to facilitating the connection between attractions in the same region in order to make this aspect less restrictive for the different parties.

Reaching the local consumer

The vast majority of packages available on the Web often include an offer with accommodation. These offers are ideal for tourists coming from abroad or from another tourist region that is moderately or largely remote.

A package that includes tourist attractions that share a certain geographical proximity, without an accommodation offer, has made it possible to reach a part of the population from the same region. This type of local consumer is sometimes forgotten by the attractions offered. The pandemic as well as this initiative has definitely remedied this!

With networks  taking shape all over Quebec, xPayrience is proud to spread the word about the area and offer perfect itineraries to visit or revisit a region near you! Networks offer a quick and easy way to book nearby activities and give each attraction more visibility thanks to our “Suggestion” feature.

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With increasingly streamlined measures, the 2022 tourist season is likely to be promising for international travelers, but also for Quebecers! Will the local travel craze lose its momentum or will it continue to grow now that we know all the possibilities available here in Quebec?