Benefits of a “perfect storm”

RAIL travel is getting a significant leg-up from the “perfect storm” of three synergistic characteristics of the today’s market, according to Journey Beyond Chief Commercial Officer Peter Eggleston.

Travelling on the Indian Pacific’s (IP’s) 50th anniversary commemorative coast-to-coast journey, Egglestone told Travel Daily that three market forces are combining to enhance the company’s position.

“Firstly, as unfortunate as it is, the coronavirus is making Australians reconsider travelling overseas and opting instead to discover the beauty and wonders of their own country more than ever before,” he said.

This trend is also being bolstered by Tourism Australia’s Holiday at Home campaign, urging domestic travel.

Thirdly, Eggleston said these two elements happen to align perfectly with a major print, television and marketing campaign the company has invested in, giving it a very high profile across broad segments of society, but especially the over 50s demographic.

Eggleston also said he attributes “roughly half” of the IP business to the trade, which he indicated was vital to the company’s ongoing success.

As such he is quick to highlight IPs commitment to supporting the trade, while at the same time being agnostic regarding the channel of business supply.

Looking to the future, Chief Operating Officer Luke Walker said the rail operator is focusing on its continuous improvement programs, exemplified by the leadership travelling on the special anniversary journey Perth to Adelaide in the entry-level Gold Class cabins to see the guest experience first hand.

Pictured is Journey Beyond’s GM Sales & Marketing Dave Atherton; Executive GM, Rail Expeditions David Donald; Executive GM Luke Walker, and Peter Eggleston.