Julia
  • (Member) (Topic Starter)
(Member) (Topic Starter)
Good morning all,

As you may know, the holiday creators and the wider Just You team listen to what the community have to say about your Just You experiences, your thoughts and your opinions. The Community has helped to create new holidays and improve existing ones and once again we turn to you for your feedback.

Last year we launched our travel categories of City, Tour, Explore, Escape and Festive. This September we even added a new Active range of holidays. Now, we’d like to hear your feedback on one category in particular….. Explore.

The destinations that travellers visit with the Explore range of holidays are what we consider to be your “once in a lifetime holidays” that not only take you to visit the iconic sites but also take you off the beaten track and they are proving to be very popular. But, do you think there is enough differentiation between the Explore and Tour categories?

The Just You team would love to hear your thoughts about the range.

What do you think of the holidays currently on offer in the Explore range?

Should we ‘merge’ the Tour and Explore holidays into one category?

Would you like to see us adding more destinations to the Explore range? If yes, where in the world would you want to visit?

Please share your thoughts with us by commenting below.

Many thanks

Julia

Holidays currently featured in the Explore category;

* Ultimate Polar Bear Adventure

* The Silk Road to Samarkand

* Land of the Dragon

* Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Adventure

* Experience South Africa

* Magic of Kenya

* Namibia - Tribes and Natural Wonders

* Highlights of Peru

* Chile, Argentina & Brazil

* Costa Rica & Nicaragua

* Mexico - Kingdom of the Maya

* Norway's Northern Lights and Huskies adventure

nixon
  • (Member)
(Member)
Julia



The only one I have done on that list is Magic of Kenya this was a few years ago now so might be different in the current brochure.

I LOVED!!!!!! The animals on safari my idea of heaven on earth to see them wild! I and most of the group would Of rather stayed there couple more days than going on to Mombasa town etc, I did also LOVE the add on lazing by the pool..

For me I would love a very good constructed safari tour, I love elephants (I hasten to say I don't want to ride one) but I would love to say feed a baby a milk bottle that kind of thing. So perhaps animal orphanage? I really liked the hotel on the safari, the open air of the place for eating and socialising, I know people do NOT like the idea of sharing, so perhaps look into single occupancy YES I KNOW it going to cost US, but perhaps we could have either or, to share or not to share.

So for me a great safari, NO CITY TOURS or tourist spots. Just animals and a bit a relaxing at the end optional or included.

Cindy

BGray
  • (Member)
(Member)
Hi Julia,

I think the Explore category is a fantastic aspect of the range of tours you currently offer. I've done several of them in different guises - South Africa (with the Victoria Falls add-on), which is still my favourite holiday ever, Chile, Argentina and Brazil (my second favourite - although I did it with Travelsphere as a single traveller, the JY itinerary is identical) and this year I did Costa Rica and Nicaragua, another brilliant holiday. I've Namibia booked for next May, somewhere I've really wanted to visit for a number of years and I am very excited about it!

I don't think it matters too much if the Explore and Tour categories are merged or not, once the same range of great holidays is offered! Although in some ways I do think it is helpful that they are in a separate category as it draws attention to them and I do hope the range will be added to in the years ahead. There are a number of Explore holidays I would like to do in the years ahead - Uzbekistan, Land of the Dragon, possibly Peru (although I'd probably do that with Travelsphere as I prefer their itinerary) and Mexico. However, there are a few other countries that are currently higher up my wish list - so I hope JY will still be offering these countries for a few years to come! Other off-the-beaten-track destinations I'd love JY to feature would be Ethiopia (Simien Mountains a must see!), Tanzania (Serengeti/Ngorongoro and Zanzibar), Borneo/Malaysia, Burma and Patagonia. Think that'll do for now! I also hope JY bring back Morocco and that Japan/Hong Kong remains on the books for a few more years. So many countries still to see on my bucket list!

Best wishes,

Bob

Avocet64
(Member)
Well Julia, I would really love to explore the Galapagos Islands.

The trouble with the list is that Will and the team keep altering things around and adding on new bits. I've done the Silk Road and Peru, did Costa Rica but not Nicaragua, did Vietnam/Cambodia but not Laos, have booked Land of the Dragon for next year, would like to do Namibia and the Polar Bear Adventure and maybe a few more some time in the future.

All in all I think its a good list with lots of variety and interesting things to see. And then there's all those other holidays to choose from as well, but there's only so many holidays you can do in a year and no doubt the team are already working on some new ideas to grab our attention, where does it all end?!

Avocet

Julie White
(Member)
Hello Julia,

I love the explore holidays they are usually the most interesting and exciting holidays you have on offer. I only hope that you keep some of the new tours going for a couple of years so I get a chance to fit them all in. I especially want to do Japan, Namibia and Norway's Northern lights.

New tours to consider would be Burma and Myanmar, the Galapagos Islands and the Philippines. I would also like to see the return of Borneo.

Regards Julie

PeterG
(Member)
Hi Julia

I have done three of the Explore list, Peru (which was my first long haul holiday), S Africa + Victoria Falls (although the itinerary is a lot different now), and most recently Chile, Argentina and Brazil which I returned from about 3 weeks ago.

I enjoyed them all although I think the S Africa trip is my favourite, especially the safari part. I'm on the Norway trip for the New Year hoping to see the Northern Lights (Iceland last N Year was a half hearted performance through the cloud).

I love mountain scenery, open country and seeing animals in their natural enviroment, so I would love to see Patagonia and the southern parts of Chile as a destination and safari holidays in other parts of Africa. Walking in Nepal is on my "to do" list but will have to wait until 2016 (hope it's not a one year appearance) as I have already booked next years trip.

I'm sure there are other places I would want to go to, but the current brochure has more than enough to keep me thinking "yes - I must go there".

Peter

Jaya
  • (Member)
(Member)
Although there are so many holidays on the current list of Explore holidays I want to do, I am interested in Burma, Borneo and Galapagos. No idea how I am going to fit all these holidays in, but am sure going to have fun trying!

Jaya

katy1717
(Member)
Hi Julia, I think it would probably be a good idea if the "explore" and "tour" categories were combined in the brochure. I do prefer how the brochure used to be, split by country, I found it much easier to follow. Now, when looking there are 5 different sections to scan down to find the holiday you're looking for.

I have a few of your "explore" holidays on my wishlist - the Silk Road and the Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam looking at for next year if possible. Like the look of a few of the other "explore" holidays, but they will have to wait until 2016 at least.

But the category a holiday is under is a bit irrelevant, I have found that the 2 holidays to Vietnam are in different sections of the brochure and I think they should be on following pages, its a bit irritating to have to search around for the details of the other holiday when you're trying to compare.

I just did the Jordan trip, which is categorised as a "tour" but I think could be described "explore", yet the Silk Road is "explore" not a "tour" - not sure where the demarcation line is, seems a bit arbitrary.

There are still a lot of your holidays that I would like to do in the future, done 6 so far, that any additions to the brochure just add to my confusion. However, I'd always be interested in trips round the more obscure bits of the US; I like the look of the longer Australia trip in the Travelsphere brochure; want to go to Alaska; etc. However, there are a few of your trips that are OK in parts but overall I wouldn't be interested.

Top of my wishlist for JY to do is skiing.

Kind regards

Katy

sjm533
(Member)
I agree with Katy. The brochure was much easier when it was by country, not "style". It is easier now to go on the website, find a country and look at that. However, JY, you will not please everyone whichever way you do it.

Sylvia