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A tour operator is a business that typically combines and organizes accommodations,
meal A meal is an eating occasion that takes place at a certain time and includes consumption of food. The names used for specific meals in English vary, depending on the speaker's culture, the time of day, or the size of the meal. Although they ca ...
s, sightseeing and
transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, ...
components, in order to create a
package tour A package tour, package vacation, or package holiday comprises transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided such as a rental car, activities or outings during the ho ...
. They advertise and produce brochures to promote their products, holidays and itineraries. Tour operators can sell directly to the public or sell through travel agents or a combination of both. The most common example of a tour operator's product would be a
flight Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...
on a
charter airline Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a airline ticket, ticket through a traditional airline). Regulation Charter – also called air taxi or ad h ...
, plus a transfer from the
airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
to a
hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...
and the services of a local representative, all for one price. Each tour operator may specialise in certain destinations, e.g.
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, activities and experiences, e.g.
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...
, or a combination thereof.


Operations

The original ''raison d'être'' of tour operating was the difficulty for ordinary folk of making arrangements in far-flung places, with problems of
language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...
,
currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general def ...
and communication. The advent of the
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
has led to a rapid increase in self-packaging of holidays. However, tour operators still have their competence in arranging tours for those who do not have time to do
DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and sem ...
holidays, and specialize in large group events and meetings such as conferences or seminars. Also, tour operators still exercise contracting power with suppliers (airlines, hotels, other land arrangements, cruise companies and so on) and influence over other entities (tourism boards and other government authorities) in order to create packages and special group departures for destinations that might otherwise be difficult and expensive to visit.


Trade associations

The three major tour operator associations in the U.S. are the National Tour Association (NTA), the
United States Tour Operators Association United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) is a 501(c) registered nonprofit professional association representing the tour operator A tour operator is a business that typically combines and organizes accommodations, meals, sightseeing a ...
(USTOA), and the
American Bus Association The American Bus Association (ABA) is a trade association for motorcoach operators and tour companies in the United States and Canada. Its membership consists of about 1,000 companies that operate buses or bus-based tours, about 2,800 organizati ...
(ABA). In Europe, there are the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA), and in the UK, the
ABTA – The Travel Association ABTA Ltd, operating as ABTA – The Travel Association and formerly known as the Association of British Travel Agents, is a trade association for tour operators and travel agents in the United Kingdom. History The organization was founded in 1 ...
and the
Association of Independent Tour Operators The Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO), operating as AITO – The Specialist Travel Association, is a British-based travel industry trade group established in 1976 that represents around 120 specialist and independent tour operator ...
(AITO). The primary association for receptive North American inbound tour operators is the
International Inbound Travel Association The International Inbound Travel Association, formerly known as the Receptive Services Association of America, is a 501(c)6 trade association of major North American–based receptive tour operator companies and suppliers (hotels, restaurants, attra ...
.


See also

*
S.J. Mathes Samuel Jay Mathes (1849?–1927), known as S. J. Mathes, was a pioneer printer and newspaperman in Los Angeles, California, who in 1881 and 1882 directed the editorial policies of the newly established ''Los Angeles Daily Times,'' which late ...
(1849–1927) *
Apple Leisure Group Apple Leisure Group (ALG) is an American travel and hospitality conglomerate focused on packaged travel and resort/brand management in Mexico, the Caribbean, Hispanic America, Europe, and the Middle East. It is the parent corporation of resor ...
*
Artisans of Leisure Artisans of Leisure is a luxury travel company offering private cultural tours in international destinations. The company offers tours in 70 countries on six continents. History Artisans of Leisure was founded in 2003 by Ashley Isaacs Ganz. '' ...
*
Cox & Kings Cox & Kings Ltd. is an Indian travel company. It was established in 1758 and is one of the longest established travel companies. Headquartered in Mumbai, the holiday and education travel group has subsidiaries in the United States, Canada, th ...
*
Road Scholar Road Scholar is an American not-for-profit organization that provides educational travel programs primarily geared to older adults. The organization is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. From its founding in 1975 until 2010, Road Scholar ...
*
Tauck Tauck () is an operator of guided tours and cruises. The company is owned and operated by the Tauck family and is based in Wilton, Connecticut. Tauck offers more than 150 guided land journeys, small-ship ocean cruises, European river cruises, s ...
*
Thomas Cook Group Thomas Cook Group plc was a global travel group, headquartered in the United Kingdom and listed on the London Stock Exchange from its formation on 19 June 2007 by the merger of Thomas Cook AG — successor to Thomas Cook & Son — an ...
*
Topdeck Topdeck Travel is a tour operator providing trips for people aged 18 to 39 throughout Europe, North America, Africa, Egypt and the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, and Asia. Topdeck offers 330 different tours in 65 countries. History Early ...
*
TourRadar TourRadar is a privately held global company headquartered in Vienna, Austria that operates an online marketplace and internet booking engine, specializing in multi-day tours. Product overview TourRadar's global inventory includes over 40,00 ...
*
TUI Group TUI Group is a German leisure, travel and tourism company. TUI is an acronym for ''Touristik Union International'' ("Tourism Union International"). TUI AG was known as Preussag AG until 1997 when the company changed its activities from mining to ...


References

{{Authority control Tourism Tourism companies