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By Margarent Loftus

For that special trip – whether it's soaking up the sun in the Sychelles or crossing the Gobi Desert on horseback – you'll need more than your standard, surf-the-Internet sort of planning. This is a good time to call in an expert, someone who has traveled extensively in a region, nurtured local connections, and whose affinity for the place is infectious. The best ones plan a trip with you in mind, not themselves, and hold customer service above all, meaning they are reachable when the night attendant at the hotel in Bogota had no record of your reserveration.

Using these criteera, TRAVELER scoured the industry for top-of-the-line travel agents and tour operators (quick definition: travel agents typically book many types of flights, hotels and tours: operators run specific trips and work with select providers). We vetted candidates with industry insiders, sent them questionnaires, and conducted interviews to find the most knowledgeable regional experts, experts travelers can confidently rely on to plan trips anywhere in the world, including the places we've mentioned in this issue. The list ranges from experts who can stretch a buck to those who plan only luxe trips. Note that many agents do charge a fee – always ask first. As with any listing, it is impossible to be comprehensive; there are many worthy experts who were not included. Bring them to our attention at traveler@ngs.org

GUY RUBIN, Imperial Tours, Beijing, China 
Rubin has lived in China for the past seven years and can bridge the gap between on-the-ground providers and American expectations. Weather permitting, clients are even treated to a white linen banquet on a secluded section of the Great Wall amid strewn rose petals and flowing wine. (www.imperialtours.net; 888-888-1970) TOUR OPERATOR

 

© October 2004, National Geographic Traveler

Reported and edited by David Jefferys and Nathan Lump, Illustrated by Gelman

Who needs a travel agent? Who doesn't? Whether you're planning a honeymoon, a cruise around the world, or just a long weekend, a good agent can help you find the perfect place, the perfect rooms, and the perfect guides – all at the right price. For T+L's 2004 A-List, we conducted hundreds of interviews with top agents to find the ones whose knowledge, connections, and commitments to service make them the best of the best.On the following pages, you'll find these travel savants listed according to their area of expertise; you'll also learn about the dream trips they'd like to take, and the kinds of solutions they propose for a handful of travel dilemmas. And because our super-agents are on the front lines of travel every day, at the beginning of each section we've highlighted emerging trends they're noticing – a preview of where we'll all want to be going in the coming year. So take a closer look: the A-List could make your next trip the trip of a lifetime.

GUY RUBIN – CHINA Dream Trip: "A Himalayan odyssey in Lhasa, Tibet – golden monasteries rise from the rugged, arid landscape – with a personal chef to make up for the lack of local facilities." Years as agent: 5. 
Consulting Fee $150 Imperial Tours; (web_inquiry@imperialtours.net )

September 2004, TRAVEL & LEISURE

Unhygienic restaurants, surly service and endless stops at "tourist-designated" shops? Fear not, luxury-lovers, for China's top-end travel market is coming of age. 

by Guy Rubin, Managing Partner of Imperial Tours

Few luxury tourists landing at Beijing International Airport are prepared for what they will encounter in the Middle Kingdom. The critical tenor of western media typically filters out favorable perspectives of China's development in favor of sensationalist stories, often mistakenly taken as representative. As a result, too often western business and political leaders arriving in Beijing and Shanghai are surprised by the modernity of these urban centres.

To cite a few examples, architecturally the eighty-eight floor Jin Mao Tower serves as comparably contemporary a marker of Shanghai's financial district as the Swiss Re Tower for the City. Across the Huang Pu bay, "Three on the Bund", a lifestyle center accommodated in an Art Deco building, fields western chefs of the caliber of Jean-Georges Vongerichten and management from Claridges. And whereas, inside the Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai can claim to have the tallest five-star hotel in the world, Beijing's Peninsula Palace Hotel is soon to feature a spectacularly luxurious 660 square metre Presidential Suite. As well as representing a superior class of luxury facility, this sample of the best and latest also indicates an ever accelerating trend towards refreshing and improving the stock of restaurants and hotels. The staging of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing adds greater impetus to this growth.

As a tour operating company specializing in the luxury market, Imperial Tours is accustomed to dealing with visitors' culture shock. Some expect poverty, rotten food and dire accommodation, so pack their bags with cans of tuna and health bars "just in case". But these days, luxury visitors encounter world class hotels and gourmet restaurants. If visitors experience a culture shock, it is fuelled by their embarrassment at the gap between their expectations of China and its reality.

None of this would be quite so amazing if people took stock of the amount of money washing around China's inbound tourism industry. In 2002 (the last year for which there are international statistics) China's tourism receipts topped US$20 billion, beating Germany and the UK to fifth position in the destination rankings. Although this leaves it well behind fourth ranked Italy, China's inbound market has been growing at a compound annual rate of 17%. Higher ranked countries' will be looking over their shoulders as China helps itself to an ever increasing slice of the tourist market. Nay-sayers point to the US$3 billion dip in revenue during the SARS scare to highlight the political risk inherent to this destination. Yet they should also take into account the swell in numbers that typically follows such an event, prompted by pent-up demand.

Let's turn the clock back to 1978 and watch China's first unsteady steps into the international tourist market. At that time, China had practically no facilities bar a few run down guesthouses. Worse still, it had very little money to either invest in new facilities or to train and pay industry personnel, such as the guides, drivers and managers that would populate and operate the new industry. Given this set of circumstances and the centralized thinking of those days, the subsequent solution was pragmatic and intelligent. The National Tourism Administration introduced a range of "tourist-designated" shops and restaurants, which were made compulsory on all tourist routes for all tourist groups. In effect, overseas tour operators had no choice but to supply a product that was defined and enforced in the same way for all customers by a coalition of the central, provincial and local tourism administrations, each of which – to differing extents – had vested interests in these same tourist facilities.

This structure facilitated a low overall packaged tour price to China covering plane flight and accommodation expenses. Meanwhile, tourist spending within China was controlled and channeled so as to use commission-generated revenue to pay for guides, drivers, tour escorts and managers. Much of the resulting government income was invested in infrastructure projects in the low income areas in which many tourist destinations are located. In essence this structure remains in place to this day.

For mass market tourism, this formula was a great success: under the direction of the three nationalized tour operators, CITS (China International Travel Service), CTS (China Travel Service) and CYTS (China Youth Travel Service), which between them monopolized the inbound market, the Chinese tourism market grew from a total revenue base of under US$300 million in 1978 to over US$12 billion in 1998, a compound annual growth rate of 19%. Since the rationale of the industry was that one size fits all, there are no figures segmenting this market, but anecdotal evidence suggests that the picture was less rosy in the luxury travel segment.

While mass tourism continued to flourish from the early years, the total number of luxury tourists nose-dived at the end of the 1980's. Disillusioned customers had returned home in the early 1980's with news of characterless restaurants, insipid food, unhygienic accommodation, surly service and a frustratingly endless series of shopping stops interrupting each day's travels. Luxury travelers' perceptions hardened against China as a luxury destination and expectations of luxury facilities dropped to low levels.

The great flaw in the regulatory structure of the Chinese inbound tourist system is in terms of quality. Since sales at restaurants and souvenir-shops have been guaranteed by a combination of regulatory restrictions and the vested interests of tourist industry personnel, there has traditionally been little motivation to preserve or enhance product quality. Furthermore, the inflexibility of the overall structure, guaranteed but also restricted by red tape, means that it has failed to adapt the formulaic budget tour for various market segments. For example, at the end of the 1980's it notably failed to accommodate the greater expectations and comforts of the luxury tourist. In the past, the system was so restrictive that overseas luxury tour operators could only differentiate their high end product by using the better hotels. And as a result, the luxury segment shrank.

The top luxury brands in China today, some of which were mentioned earlier, are all in the private sector. Let us now compare them to the so-called luxury brands that have to date been provided by the state tourist industry. Most luxury tourists to China in the 1980's and to a certain extent today will be familiar with Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant and Fangshan Imperial Restaurant in Beijing, Defachang Steam Dumpling Restaurant in Xi'an and Louwailou Restaurant in Hangzhou. Though these tourist-designated restaurants admirably serve the purpose of feeding great numbers of people to a moderately good standard, not one of them can compare in food quality or ambiance to the aforementioned luxury brands in the private sector. Indeed, in terms of western sensibilities, it seems somewhat ludicrous to compare them. This is the point – for it demonstrates the inability of the heavily-regulated, top down, command control tourist state sector to cater to a segmented market, in this case the luxury segment. And as a result, overall, the country's tourist market is still losing potential business.

In the hotel sector, the story is similar. Whilst the St. Regis and Peninsula Palace Hotels currently vie for leadership amongst Beijing's plentiful luxury hotels, visiting dignitaries are often rather unsuccessfully accommodated by the local government in the state-owned Beijing Hotel. In an attempt to improve standards, Shanghai's state-owned Jinjiang Group has recently hired a "foreign expert" to upgrade management at Shanghai's historic Peace Hotel. If he succeeds, this will light a path for China's state-owned, luxury hotels to improve their position in China's highly competitive hotel market.

The perception of a sclerotic, and ineffective luxury tourist industry, still prevalent today, was the backdrop to Imperial Tours' inception in 1999. By that time, two important factors had enabled a new breed of overseas tour operator to develop. Firstly, the fragmentation of the CITS / CTS/ CYTS monopoly over ground-handling services in China had served to liberalize the supply side of the market. This introduced an element of competition, reduced the opportunities for graft and has increased the possibility for instituting better quality. Secondly, the increased disposable income of the burgeoning Chinese middle classes, as well as the affluence of the sizeable expatriate markets in Beijing and Shanghai, has encouraged entrepreneurs, both Chinese and western, into the hospitality industry.

Imperial Tours was able to differentiate itself by more than just booking the best hotel. It was able to turn the typical tourist itinerary on its head so that it responded to customer satisfaction rather than the supply-side's revenue structure. Commission-paying shops and restaurants were replaced with gourmet restaurants and visits to crafts studios. These have a higher cost but offer better quality, creating a win-win scenario: China imports more foreign currency whilst visiting luxury tourists receive a superior product. Reducing the time spent shopping, creates more time to visit off the beaten track tourist sites, or to tour well-known tourist sites in greater detail with expert lecturers. Using such innovations, Imperial Tours continues to tailor its product on private and regular departure group tours.

However, it would be misleading to create the impression that the Chinese tourist industry is developing uniformly well across the nation. For example, whilst there is a surfeit of luxury venues and facilities in cities like Beijing and Shanghai, destinations such as Xi'an and Guilin are still found wonting. It is a chicken and egg argument whether restrictive tourist regulations are siphoning off potential customers, or whether the entrepreneurial class is insufficiently funded to take the strain. Either way, until something is done such destinations will continue to deprive themselves of potential luxury tourist income.

Summer 2004, China Review
Reprinted May '05 by the British Chamber of Commerce In China in British Business in China.

Edited by Nathan Lump, Reported by David Jefferys and Shane Mitchell

125 Travel Super-Agents

They're the ultimate travel experts – the super-agents who can tell you the subtle differences between Amandari and Amankila, who know whether this is a better time to go on safari in Tanzania or Botswana, who can set up a private viewing of the Terracotta Army with a single phone call. For T+L's annual A-list, we've once again identified the country's top travel agents, and on the following pages listed them according to their area of expertise. This year we've also added a range of new specialities (From Ecuador to educational trips), exclusive survey results, and personal recommendations from each agent – including eight experiences of a lifetime you won't want to miss. So, whether you're looking for someone to help you plan an upcoming trip, or just ideas for where to go next, read on: it's all here.

GUY RUBIN – CHINA Years as agent: 4. Top tip: "Dunhuang, an oasis town along the Silk Road – see the ancient murals in the nearby Mogao Caves (one of China's least well known sites) and early portions of the Great Wall. Or, ride a camel in the Mingsha sand dunes." 
Consulting Fee $150 Imperial Tours; (web_inquiry@imperialtours.net )

 

September 2003, TRAVEL & LEISURE

by Shane Michell and Stephen Whitlock

Meet the SUPERAGENTS, 70 travel consultants who'll make your next vacation the trip of a lifetime. 

Travel & Leisure presents the A-list, a roster of the 70 top travel agents in various areas of expertise, who can help you experience the best that the world has to offer. So next time you'd like to have a 500-pound terra-cotta warrior shipped home, or need to find out the thread count of the linens in the hotels you're planning to visit – all actual requests – you'll know whom to call.

…

GUY RUBIN – CHINA Years as agent: 3. Years as specialist: 3. Top tip: The jagged, fog-shrouded Yellow Moutnains and their picturesque villages, where parts of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" were filmed. Rubin's clients are treated to a performance by a former National Opera star who owns a teahouse there. Imperial Tours Tel – (888) 888 1970; web_inquiry@imperialtours.net

 

September 2002, TRAVEL & LEISURE

Which Luxury Tour? 5 Critical Factors For Choosing A Luxury Tour

by Guy Rubin

You've paid top dollar for your "luxury tour" but find yourself continually eating in shabby restaurants, puzzled that tourist sites shut early each afternoon while souvenir stores seem permanently open. You are angered not only by your guide's increasingly obvious dishonesty but also by the waste of your valuable vacation time.

This disappointing but common experience springs from the confusion people often have in choosing among a plethora of luxury tours, each of which claims to offer much the same product. This brief article describes 5 critical factors to help travelers read between the lines of glossy brochures and help them better assess the relative merits of rival tour operators.

#1: Trustworthiness & Security – the first filter

Typically, tour operators will ask you to pay for your tour in advance, in which case you will want to be sure that the operator is trustworthy and that your funds are secure. Such security works on a number of levels. On the most basic level – if your intended tour operator is not registered in a country with a reliable legal system and does not offer some sort of financial guarantee in your home country (surety bond or trust account scheme), then your deposited funds are as liable to disappear as whisky on St. Patrick's Day.

On a secondary level, especially in an industry as susceptible to risk as the travel industry, you want to be sure that even if the operator goes bankrupt (the fate of many after September 11, 2001) your funds will nonetheless be returned to you. For this reason, look for companies which are adequately bonded or – for greater security – for companies running industry-approved trust account systems, where your funds are independently held, usually by a major bank, until after the end of your tour.

Conclusion: For your own peace of mind, it is advisable to only deal directly with tour operators from countries with reliable legal systems, and then only with those tour operators which advertise surety bonds or industry-approved trust account systems.

 

#2: "Boutique" tour operator" versus "The Jack Of All Trades" tour operator

The tour industry divides into innumerable countries and activities. Whereas one tour company might specialize in one niche area, such as walking tours in the Loire valley ("Boutique" tour operator), another might offer every sort of luxury vacation in every country ("Jack Of All Trades" operator), including several walking tours in France. In this scenario, it is unlikely that the generalist tour operator can deliver a better like-for-like product than the specialist. Certainly, the generalist should offer a lower price since they are a high volume player. In terms of quality and service however, the specialist will always have the upper hand.

Conclusion: Ask your friends and travel agent, research the internet – if service and quality is what you value, find a boutique tour operator focussing on your specific region or activity.

 

#3: Expert Status – the tour operator must be an expert on the destination

How well a tour operator knows their destination or activity will feed directly into your enjoyment of their product. If the operator simply sub-contracts all aspects of their tours to a local groundhandler, then you should expect abysmal service since the local groundhandler has a free hand to minimize costs at your expense. If the tour operator is simply decorating a local groundhandler's product with sophisticated features, the tour will share much in common with a tourist class tour apart from price. Instead, you should seek a tour operator, who is so familiar with the destination that they have a wide selection of hotels, restaurants and special events exclusive to that operator. You should aim to find the tour operator that specializes in your particular interest.

Conclusion: Test your tour operator with difficult questions. Find out if they really know their stuff.

 

#4: References – the best judge of a tour company is a past customer

Good PR is available to any company at a price. Advertising in its various forms is not necessarily indicative of the quality of a company's tours. The best source of such information is past customers. When interviewing such a referee, you need to bear two things in mind. Since no company is going to forward a dissatisfied customer as a reference, what you need to look for is a customer who reports services over and above their initial expectations. Secondly you should value a referee's response in relation to their background. The response of an experienced luxury traveler should be given greater weight.

Conclusion: Request references, interview them thoroughly and weigh their responses accordingly.

 

#5: Watch out for exclusions, particularly in tours to "difficult" countries

First, make sure you understand what is not included in your tour price. If the itinerary appears vague, contact the operator to find out exactly what the situation is. Areas where tour operators often scrimp are:

(i) Accompanying Tour Director – will they send your group with a tour director. If so, is the tour director local or Western? How much training have they received? 
( ii) Meals – count how many are included and find out what their quality is. 
(iii) Domestic Airfare – often this is presented as an add-on. 
(iv) Tips to guides and drivers – if excluded, find out how much you are expected to pay per person per day. 
(v) Optional Add-ons – find out the per person price of each optional add-on you are interested in.

When you understand your tour's exclusions, think about the distinction between visiting "easy" and "difficult" countries. Even without language skills, the savvy tourist can handle himself effectively in Europe or North America. The same person will most probably be at sea in such countries as Russia or China. It is in these countries that exclusions for meals, accompanying tour directors or else "optional" add-on tours can become sources of displeasure.

For example, in "difficult" countries not having an accompanying tour director creates two problems. The first is logistical. Typically, the travelers will fly from airport to airport meeting local guides at each one. Should something go wrong during the airport transit, for example a cancelled flight, the customers will be stranded with no one to turn to for help. Anyone who has passed through a Russian airport knows how how unsavoury this can be. The second problem is that in these cirumstances, the tour operator is trusting the local guide not to take advantage of their customers. They are hoping that the guides, usually supplied by the local groundhandler, will not abuse the customers time and enjoyment by taking them to commission-paying restaurants and souvenir shops . This is a common problem with even the most respected luxury tour operators. Therefore, those traveling to "difficult" countries should note whether or not they are going to be accompanied on the tour. A well-trained, accompanying tour director adds to the price of the tour, but so does wasting your money and time on a disappointing tour.

Conclusion – Avoid tours to "difficult" countries that exclude meals and an accompanying tour director.

 

Guy Rubin is Managing Partner of Imperial Tours , a boutique tour operator offering luxury tours to China.

© Imperial Tours July 2002