and grandchildren has been around for some time. It became most popular
approximately 20 years ago when Grandtravel, the U.S. tour operator,
started catering exclusively to intergenerational tourists. Canada is
proud to announce that demographics and today's hectic family lifestyles
have increased intergenerational family travel to Ontario resorts.
In 2004, a special article was written in Globe and Mail, Canada's
national newspaper. Kira Vermond reported on the increasing trend toward
grandparents and grandchildren traveling together. This trend has also
influenced how some of the larger resorts such as the Delta Chelsea in
Toronto operate. In addition, the increase in business from
intergenerational tourism is now being felt by some of the smaller
properties. The article also mentioned a travel survey conducted in 2003
by Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown and Russell (YPB&R) that reported 1/3 of
grandparents had traveled with their grandchildren in the past 12
months, and that 21% of those that took part in intergenerational travel
did not include the children's parents. This shows that
intergenerational relationships are developing and becoming increasingly
important.
Bruce McClennan, owner of Ogopogo Resort (http://www.ogopogoresort.com),
a family and couples luxury cottage resort in the Ontario resort region
of Haliburton Highlands, has noticed a significant increase in travel
among grandparents and grandchildren over the past four years. As a
result of the increase in travel among intergenerational families,
Ogopogo Resort has expanded their service to meet the needs of both
generations.
The expansion of service at Ogopogo Resort has begun by focusing its
marketing attention on the grandparents that are beginning to enter the
travel market. According to Statistics Canada, "Canada has one of the
fastest aging populations in the developed world." It is estimated that
by 2015, seniors will make up a larger portion of the population than
children under the age of 15. For this reason, Ogopogo Resort has
stepped out to encourage intergenerational travel—creating a safe and
exciting experience that will enhance intergenerational relationships.
"Grandparents have particular needs in looking for a cottage vacation,"
says McClennan. Ogopogo is an Ontario vacation resort that focuses
"First and foremost on safety. We do this by ensuring a safe beach for
swimming. The same is true for the playground. Second, we focus on
incorporating fun things to do throughout the resort. Our children's
program also gives the grandparents a break in the action for their own
quiet time. In the afternoon, tubing and water-skiing is also available
to create some great memories to take home. In addition, evenings around
the campfire with marshmallows and camp songs are another great source
of memories."
What Ogopogo Resort offers today is vastly different than what was
offered several years ago. According to Bruce McClennan, "When we
started looking at this trend four years ago, we had one summer cottage
in one week filled with grandparents and their grandchildren. This year,
the number is four or five, or about 7% of our business. It is also
interesting that some of this is coming from Europe." This proves that
Ogopogo has been able to adapt to the changing tourism trends—making it
memorable Ontario Canada resort.
Because North American and European societal trends have been driven by
the baby boom generation for over 50 years, Ontario Canada's Ogopogo
Resort will continue to meet the needs of the changing market. In
addition to their own leisure travel, grandparents will continue to have
a significant impact on the Ontario resort market as they take their
grandkids away for an adventure.
To learn more about Ogopogo Resort and how they are catering to
intergenerational tourists, please visit their web site at
http://www.ogopogoresort.com or call 1-866-405-8938.
###
Press Contact: Bruce McClennan
Company Name: Ogopogo Resort
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 1-866-405-8938
Website: http://www.ogopogoresort.com
AndhraNews.net News for May 15, 2006