Prosumers Forsake Hedonism for Volun-tourism

Sensing a shift in desires among consumers, resorts such as Miraval and high-end hotels like the Ritz-Carlton are touting activities that appeal to guests who seek meaningful life experiences while vacationing or traveling for business.Miraval, for example, offers personal challenge or "clue-in" programs such as learning how to care for a horse, while Ritz-Carlton puts individuals or corporate groups to work on local community service and nature projects. The group activities at Ritz-Carlton, the first of which launched in 2007, also help corporations justify the expense of junkets amid the recession.The trend away from hedonism and toward self-realization and enrichment in travel and tourism also is evident in the marketing of destinations, with fun-loving Louisiana, for example, using the theme, "The State of Culture," in ads. Collectively, the programs -- and their marketing -- illustrate what Euro RSCG describes as a "profound and even revolutionary shift" in travel, which has spawned categories such as cultural and educational tourism, geo-tourism and volun-tourism."For years, people have regarded travel as a way to splurge, an indulgence centered on escapism and fun," explained Marian Salzman, North American president of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR. "Now, we're looking to make our travel experiences more meaningful and better aligned with our personal values and goals."Euro RSCG describes such tourists as "prosumers," and an online survey of nearly 2,400 adults in the U.S., France and the U.K. revealed that two-thirds of this group consider themselves "citizens of the world" and "serious culture lovers." Also, 59 percent of prosumers agree, "Where and how I travel says a lot about who I am."Marketing behind Ritz-Carlton's do-good activities has been limited to microsites, word of mouth and a print spread in its house magazine, which is distributed in its rooms. The Tucson, Ariz.-based Miraval has gone further and featured its activities in a new corporate-image campaign from Ideocracy in New York. The effort, which broke last month and includes print ads, a Web site redesign and a revamp of collateral, seeks to reposition the resort as a place to connect to nature and, in turn, rediscover yourself. "You won't find you anywhere else" is the tagline."We're very much in this trend, absolutely, not only because we believe in it, but we also think that's what people want today," said Philippe Bourguignon, CEO of Miraval and former CEO of Club Med. "We're trying to understand what is happening in the world and what are the key trends. And then in those key trends, we have selected a few which we feel are very important for Miraval and what we want to identify with."Other clue-in offerings include group drumming, leaping from a pole -- while wearing a harness -- to "acknowledge something or someone you'd like to leave behind" and talking in groups as Native Americans did to resolve tribal issues. The resort also features an organic garden that supplies food for its restaurant. And although Miraval offers typical resort amenities like massages, they aren't central to the new campaign.Ideocracy photographed the men and women in the ads with non-digital film to create an earthier feel, said principal Ted D'Cruz-Young. And rather than pose them, the shop took a journalistic approach, shooting them while they participated in activities. "It's unscripted to reflect the reality of the thing," D'Cruz-Young explained.Ritz-Carlton's programs range from a summer camp for children known as Nature's Wonders to the community-service-orientated Give Back Getaways and A Vow to Help Others, in which newlyweds holding a reception at the hotel donate a percentage of what they pay for food to charities. Since first offering these outlets to guests three years ago, more than 2,000 have opted to participate, said Sue Stephenson, vice president of Community Footprints, the hotel's social responsibility unit. The guest outreach stemmed from the Ritz-Carlton's experience with doing charitable work on its own. Based on feedback from guests and a Gallup survey in 2008, the hotel concluded that guests would embrace such activities themselves."People really do say that it enriches the experience, that it does create a different type of memory," Stephenson said. "Whether it's helping conserve the blue iguana in Grand Cayman (Island) or working a food bank in California -- whatever it is -- people feel that their half day of volunteering has helped make a positive contribution."

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Prosumers Forsake Hedonism for Volun-tourism

Andrew McMains

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