In these times of uncertainty, the Globus Family of Brands plans to continue to work closely with Kiwi agents to highlight the safety of group travel as it keeps a close eye on changing travel patterns.
GFOB md Asia Pacific Chris Hall has been in the role for just over a year, and with three brands, and a huge portfolio of 600-plus different itineraries, he says the team has refocused and realigned the business which has translated into growing trade sales.
Addressing the current situation, Hall said GFOB has paused any tours in destinations directly affected by the Israel/US-Iran war.
“But everything else is operating globally, we’re operating full steam ahead…and there’s the good old pivot. The beauty of our broad portfolio is that we can switch [destinations],” he adds.
Kiwi demand for Canada was already up and that growth is expected to continue, ‘especially now’, says Hall. “It’s a hidden gem within our portfolio, and when you look at the range we have in Canada, there’s just so much choice.”
In Asia, Hall says Japan (pictured) in particular has been a hot spot with Kiwi travellers. “And in South America and Africa—we’ll be ramping up our focus on those a bit.”
. . . Agents
Pre-conflict Hall says some travellers were already overwhelmed by all the information and choice in the market, with some developing ‘research fatigue’.
“And I think that’s part of what I call the renaissance of travel agents, because people are wanting that reassurance with their decision-making, and especially now they really see the value of what [travel agents do] which is perfect for us,” says Hall.
In the current global climate GFOB’s strong relationship with the trade is paying dividends, he adds.
. . . 2027
Hall says a focus on training, such as its recent successful Avalon charter cruise, as well as popular product developments like its small groups discovery portfolio, and the increased demand for its Cosmos product, had seen 2026 off to a strong start.
However, ‘the conflict has really clouded the current market trends’, he adds.
But taking a pragmatic view, Hall says the upside is that 2027 travel is now in the spotlight much earlier than anticipated.
As a broad trend Hall said a number of Kiwi travellers that were on the fringe of making decisions for 2026 were pushing back to 2027 instead. “What it shows is the typical resilience of Kiwis, that something’s going on, we’re still travelling— we’ll just push it out a bit.”
