Welcome to our new Website!
Our new website has just been completed, and now features details and photographs for over thirty of our tours!
We hope you enjoy reading about all Australian Wild Escapes has to offer, and we look forward to welcoming you on board for one of our fantastic tours!!
Tasmanian Launch
This was the speech delivered recently by Australian Wild Escapes’ Director of Sales & Marketing, Grant Charlesworth, at the launch of their new Tasmanian range of products.
2003 celebrates Australian Wild Escapes’ 15th year of operation. In that time, we have grown from operating multi day tours to Western NSW and Southern QLD for the domestic market to making the switch to the very challenging inbound market.
In 1991, after falling revenues and a decline in the domestic market, Dad packed his bags and headed to North America, pounding the pavement and knocking on doors paid off, and he was buoyed by good support from a couple of North American Wholesalers. The business soon grew from one vehicle to two, and then to three.
In 1996, Mum joined the team at AWE and doubled its workforce overnight. Rhonda quickly set up an Anzac biscuit production line. Mum’s Anzac biscuits and caramel slices have become legendary in the industry, not just for our guests, but also for the many agents and reservations staff that I present to each year.
In 1999, Bob and Rhonda took the plunge and moved the business out of the spare room at home and into its Thornleigh base where it is today.
The business continued to grow and in 2002, AWE purchased Otway Ocean Tours. A fledging Eco Tour Company based in Geelong.
We saw this as an opportunity to value add to our existing client base. True to form, that business now receives 90% of its bookings from North America. Previously, 90% of its bookings came from Continental Europe and the UK.
All of a sudden, we witnessed our guests travelling to Phillip Island on our Penguins, Koalas and Wildlife tour, that had travelled with us 2 days prior to the Blue Mountains.
We were creating a consistent national small group product that could be booked through our one Sydney Office.
In 2003, we changed our slogan to experience the lifestyle, scenery and wildlife of Australia and also created Australian Luxury Escapes.
Tonight marks the extension of that consistent product range.
AWE are delighted to announce our extension into Tasmania. Based in Hobart, we will initially be offering four core day tour products:
- The Hobart to Huon Explorer
- The Historic Richmond Ross Experience
- The Port Arthur Discovery Tour
and
- The Spectacular Coastal Nature
Tour
We will also be offering a range of tailor made day and multi day experiences under our Australian Luxury Escapes brand name.
Of course, the tours will include all of the normal AWE inclusions that our guests and clients have come to expect. Such things as home prepare morning teas, gourmet style lunches with wines, very knowledgeable guides and travel in small luxury vehicles with around 6 to 8 other guests. Of course, all of our bookings, quotations, accounts, sales and marketing will still be handled through our Sydney office.
Tasmania was always part of the strategic plan in offering a multi state luxury 4WD and small group eco-experience.
At AWE, we are passionate about Australia and passionate about small group touring. For those of you who know us well, you will know that we set the bar very high and we are continually looking at ways in which we can improve our products. And as we grow, we do not lose sight of where that growth came from. From treating each and every one of our guests as though this is their once in a lifetime visit to Australia.
We have plans to grow the company further and hope to be in Cairns some time in 2004.
So back to Dad knocking on doors in North America and Mum cooking Anzac biscuits.
AWE has grown steadily over the past 15 years. And now, in our 16th year of operation, we believe that we are one of the premier eco tour companies in Australia, now offering our guests wonderfully unique Australian experiences in three states.
However, we could not have achieved this without the wonderful support of our clients and particularly all of you.
So thank you so much for yor continued support througout this year and we look forward to working with you again in 2004.