FAM-tastic start for local tourism

While everyone will look back to the start of the summer of 2013 as the summer of heat, the Mat-Su CVB sees it as a sizzling season for familiarization (or,FAM) tours, which introduce those in the industry to new products and tours.

FAM tours are vitally important because they lead to future business, or in the case of travel writers, future coverage of our area. This summer has been one of the busiest in years for these types of visits, as the Mat-Su CVB has been busy this summer organizing and hosting several groups, showing off the many great things that make our area unique.

International travel options are increasing to Alaska with the arrival of the Icelandair direct flights, which provide a quick and economical option for European travelers. As a result, tour operators from the UK, German-speaking Europe and representatives from Icelandair have visited the Mat-Su Valley several times over the last few weeks.

On these types of trips, local conventions and visitors bureaus organize and host a day or two-day itinerary for these operators, as part of a larger statewide trip, based on what types of tours they sell. It’s a way of introducing these operators to the area and giving them information so they can ultimately build a tour package to sell in the future. If a tour operator specializes in backcountry adventures, for example, it makes sense to have them meet with local businesses that specialize in that type of tour.

By experiencing Alaska firsthand, they get a feel for what will work best for their clients. These trips don’t pay off in the very immediate future, but they have potentially big impacts years down the road, as it takes time to develop a new tour, figure out logistics, develop a marketing strategy and then ultimately sell it. Hosting a FAM trip for tour operators is like laying the all-important foundation for a house that will be built in a few years.

Hosting travel writers on FAM trips is also important, and so far this summer the Mat-Su CVB has hosted six writers — from Japan, Norway and the U.S. By getting editorial coverage in large magazines and newspapers, it gives our area more exposure to future travelers and excites them about the destination.

As busy as the start of the summer has been for hosting FAM trips, the rest of the summer looks just as busy. Two national food writers, a national photographer, a well-known travel blogger and several groups of tour operators are already scheduled to spend time in the Mat-Su during their Alaska tours. Each and every one of them is a valuable opportunity to not only showcase the area, but also to plant a seed that years down the road blossoms into another economic gain for the Valley.

Casey Ressler (casey@alaskavisit.com) is the marketing and communications manager at the Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau.