Opinion
- Here’s how to cash in on the gap year boom
  
  In this guest posting, Gapyear.com founder Tom Griffiths tells you how to cash in on disappointed UK students who miss out on a university place this year.
  
  UK media reports that 200,000 young people will miss out on university places this year may be overhyped – in truth about 100,000 don’t normally get in anyway – but it’s still a shocking statistic. And an opportunity for you guys Down Under to cash in. Read more »
- Lonely Planet – the gift that keeps on giving
  
  There’s nothing my kids hate more than hearing me start a telling off with the phrase “when I was a kid…” It usually follows them taking an ordinary household item – like the family computer – for granted. Read more »
- ATEC could do worse than appoint the next Matt Hingerty to replace the last one
  
  As a long-suffering England soccer fan, I’ve noticed a trend in the way the Football Association appoints the national team manager. That is, it tends to go for the polar opposite of the man who went before. If you don’t believe me, here’s the recent evidence… Read more »
- Another Wicked piece of marketing
  
  I’ve written about this before, but once again I have to confess to a sneaking admiration for the PR and marketing expertise of John Webb and Wicked Campers. Read more »
- Grounds for cautious optimism, but things could get worse before they get better
  
  Just got back from a couple of weeks in London – surely the world’s most depressed capital city at the moment, but more of that later – and everyone I speak to seems to be 20 per cent down. Read more »
- BOA successfully talks up the ‘Gong and south coast
  
  BOA president Katrina Greeves’ wrap-up on last week’s regional meeting in Wollongong.
  
  Over 10 local South Coast tourism operators joined BOA Committee representatives and members at the ‘BOA Talks South Coast’ event in Wollongong last Thursday to engage in lively debate regarding travel and tourism issues affecting the backpacker, student and youth market in the south coast region. Read more »
- What prison taught me about discounting
  
  Founder of Brokepacker.com Kevin Lippy explains there are three types of discounting ahead of the website’s launch tonight.
  
  A prison yard is a tough, volatile, dangerous, cut throat and an extremely unpredictable environment… Kind of like the Australian backpacking industry during low season. Read more »
- How many backpackers does it take to change a lightbulb?
  
  Thumbrella is conducting an exclusive industry survey this week, with just one question. How many of your customers are idiots? Read more »
- How’s business?
  
  So, how’s business? It’s a simple question, but it seems there’s no easy answer. Read more »
- Australian backpacking is the pulse we watch to gauge the health of the industry worldwide
  
  In this guest post, gapyear.com founder Tom Griffiths relects on the recent ATEC Backpacker and Youth Industry Conference and why Australia’s backpacking industry still leads the world.
  
  Like most of the delegates I spoke to, I found the recent ATEC Backpacker and Youth Industry Conference extremely interesting and useful. It’s very easy in these current times to set a safe agenda to cater for an industry licking its wounds, who want to hear good news stories and see rainbows ahead. Read more »
- McEvoy: ‘Put your tourism experiences on the map’
  
  Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy discusses the first stages of the There’s nothing like Australia campaign and urges the industry to get involved. Read more »
- The Cross needs backpackers to thrive
  
  In this guest post, a Kings Cross backpacker operator who wishes to remain anonymous outlines the benefits backpackers bring to the Cross.
  
  Lately there has been a concerted effort to push out the evil doing, backpacking “scum” from Potts Point together with various articles on your website and other media. Read more »

Hostels warned on luxury claims

A leading travel and tourism lawyer has warned backpacker operators they face a deluge of law suits from disgruntled customers if they fail to live up to the claims in their marketing material.

Anthony Cordato issued the warning after the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal of New South Wales ruled against mainstream tour operator Club Med in a case testing its website´s claim that the room provided in the St Moritz Roi Soleil resort offered “luxury of the highest standard”. Rejecting Club Med’s argument that luxury cannot be measured, the tribunal ruled the description misleading and ordered the operator to pay $4,000 in compensation.

Writing exclusively in this issue, Cordato urges the backpacker sector to exercise caution in its advertising.
“Luxury is overused to describe accommodation – from resorts to backpacker hostels. Be selective when using the word to describe accommodation, otherwise a law suit could be heading your way.”

An investigation by Backpacker Trade News found many hostel websites using the “L” word in their online marketing, but Cordato warned they are flirting with danger.
“Relative terms like ´premier´ or ´executive´ are okay as long as they are referencing to a basic standard. But words like ´luxury´ and ´deluxe´ are not relative, they have connotations of comfort which have to be justified – and that´s where the problem lies.”

Executive Officer of the Backpacker Operators Alliance Victoria (BOAV) Tom Stafford presented a different slant on the interpretation, citing the National Tourism Awards entry criteria in the industry’s defence. The NTAs equate ´standard´ with three-and-a-half stars under the AAA Tourism Star Rating Scheme, ´deluxe´ with four-and-a-half stars and ´luxury´ with five stars plus.
“So if a hostel has a five star AAA rating in the backpacker category, it should be able to claim luxury status.” said Stafford. “It might not be the Hyatt, but within the context of backpacking it offers a superior experience.”

By Martin Lane · April 3rd, 2008 at 3:42 pm