Kensington has partnered with Tourism Ireland to give North American travel advisors a new way to sell Ireland: through ancestry, heritage and cultural connection. The collaboration pairs advisor education with consumer marketing and builds on the company’s existing partnership with Ancestry and on current travel trends.
The potential audience is large. More than 70 million people worldwide claim Irish ancestry, including 37 million in North America. Kensington reports that bookings for its Personal Heritage Journeys in partnership with Ancestry are up significantly year over year.
“For someone with Irish heritage, a trip to Ireland can be much more than a vacation,” said Jacqueline Grossman, VP of Marketing Partnerships at Kensington, in a press statement. “It can be an opportunity to understand where their family came from and experience places that have personal meaning. Together with Tourism Ireland and Ancestry, we can give travel advisors a very different kind of Ireland experience to offer their clients, one that begins with the traveler’s own story.”
Kensington: Heritage Deep Dive
The process starts before departure. Genealogical research from AncestryProGenealogists informs each itinerary, which Kensington Destination Experts shape around the client’s family history. Those experts developed the enhanced Personal Heritage Journeys with input from Ancestry.
In Ireland, an on-site Ancestry genealogist guide leads travelers to the sites of their ancestors’ house, farm, church, school and graveyard. Clients may even meet living relatives or other local residents. When research identifies an ancestral home, the guide can accompany travelers there and explain its place in the family story and the local historical context. Because each journey is private and flexible, plans can shift around new discoveries.
Two itineraries illustrate the approach. Heritage Journey Across the Emerald North focuses on Northern Ireland, using family history to explore the region’s communities, culture and heritage. Tracing Irish Ancestry: A Heritage Journey pairs pre-trip genealogical research with a private journey through Ireland, bringing travelers to communities and places associated with previous generations.
Kensington and Tourism Ireland will provide advisors with education and marketing support on Ireland’s heritage travel opportunities and on introducing Personal Heritage Journeys to clients. Joint consumer marketing with Ancestry and Tourism Ireland will aim to build awareness of Ireland as a place where travelers can explore their own connection to its history, culture and landscapes.
Why This Matters:
High-net-worth travelers keep honing in on highly customized journeys, and these “personal heritage” trips are on the list with their luxury private transportation, expert genealogists and specialized tour guides. This dovetails with multigenerational and slow travel (in this case, mingling with the communities fits the bill), not to mention the allure of autumn shoulder-season travel: fewer crowds, less rush.
More information is available at kensingtontours.com.
