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| JOHN GOLICZ, CEO AND FOUNDER TRAVEL & ADVENTURE SHOWS |
My
Vintage Journeys is pleased to share this exclusive phone interview
with John Golicz on April 8, 2015:
Good
Morning, John. I'm glad to have this opportunity to visit with you. I
love going to travel shows, and a chance to interview the guru of the
trade is an honor.
Let's
start with how it all began—what originally lead you to create the
popular Travel and Adventure Shows?
I
was always an adventure traveler and enjoyed the boating and other
sport shows that were available. However, I couldn't find events
specifically for the consumer traveler. This was about 14 years ago,
and Europe already had a lot of them. I decided that there was
probably a market in the US as well and decided to test it.
Our
first show launched in January 2003 in New York City with attendance
of over 26,000. They have been growing ever since—booming in the
last few years.
How
much time do you spend traveling throughout the year?
We
do seven shows across the country in the first quarter of the year,
which means I am traveling 40 plus days during that time. The rest of
the year I travel throughout the world interfacing with ministers of
tourism, tourism officers, and travel directors.
I
just returned from a nine day multi-generational family vacation in
the Dominican Republic where we stayed at Casa De Campo. There was
something for everyone, including, beaches, golf, tennis, fishing,
horseback riding, scooters. It was wonderful.
What
changes do you foresee in the travel industry in the upcoming year?
Self-directed
travel is growing: a recent poll of our travel show attendees
indicated that 80% are not using a travel agent.
Europe
is red hot. The euro is at recent historic lows. Airfares are dropping, and
Europe is experiencing a recession so accommodations are more readily
available and rate-friendly.
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| JOHN GOLICZ |
What
are some of your favorite European destinations and tips for families
traveling together?
We've
traveled multiple times with our kids and we try to make the trips
kid-directed, as much as possible. For example, when we went on a
family trip to Paris and London about four years ago, we gave each of
them an opportunity to chose two things that they wanted to do in
each city. In Paris, my son wanted to see the catacombs and do the
sewer tour. My daughter wanted to go to a museum related to her
interests in medicine. They all found something, and we separated at
times if necessary.
We
also hired a guide for a private walking tour of Paris. We had a
three-hour introductory tour of the city, visiting the major sights
and neighborhoods and learning how to get around. Now we're
acclimated to where we want to go on our own. Later, we did a tour of
the Louvre, which was also very helpful.
We
are finding that a lot of families come to the travel and adventure
shows together in order to plan their next trip. It gives the kids a
chance to meet people from other countries, hear the local music, and
even taste some of the local food.
We
all love travel gadgets and apps. What are the top ones for 2015?
I
like the HeadDEFENDER which is a headrest cover for the airplane,
train or bus seat. Your head is resting on a clean fabric that feels
good and prevents germs from spreading. It comes in a nice carrying
pouch, and I always travel with it.
I
used the NapAnywhere on my last trip and I plan to use it again. It
is an ergonomically-stable neck support that is covered with a foam
padding that molds to you and allows for a good sleep while sitting
up. I tried it on my last trip, and it really worked—I plan to use
it again. .
Another
trend I'm seeing is “on demand travel.” I'm coining that term
right now because you're really set free on how you travel these
days. With apps like hoteltonight.com, for example, you can just
show up in a city and open your app and find a hotel that matches
your preferences at discounted prices, in just about any city in the
world. Now think about that: I don't have to preplan where I'm going
to go. Now there are apps. I can just show up and get a hotel room,
and I'm guaranteed it at a good price. I can make restaurant
reservations at opentable.com. I can use Uber to get my ride. I'm
kind of set free. I can also get train and airline tickets. RickSteves also has free on demand walking guides on his website for many
cities in Europe.
Do
you have a favorite travel gadget that you never leave home without?
I
always travel with an iPad and iPhone.
Do
you like to take photos when traveling? If so, what camera do you
use?
I
use my iPhone for photos rather than a camera. It's more convenient
and I can send them anywhere.
Another
tip is to copy important docs and credit card information onto your
iPhone in case of emergency—just make sure you have a security code
on it.
As
the founder and editor of 1000TravelTips.com, tell us about the
website?
It
was launched in February, and I'm really excited about it. We're
asking travel experts and others to contribute concise and simple
travel tips on a wide range of travel topics. There are a lot of
great ideas out there. Our goal is to provide our readers with the
most up-to-date travel advice available.
MyVintageJourneys
is a website for those of us who like to travel the vintage way,
often one month at a time, which leads to my final question: If you
could choose one place in the world to spend a month, where would it
be?
Italy,
I love Italy. We'd like to take a trip for a month where we will
spend a week in four different spots. We're thinking about Tuscany,
Venice, Sardinia, and Sicily.
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| RICK STEVES 2015 SAN DIEGO TRAVEL & ADVENTURE SHOW |
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