Arival

The first round of results are in for the fourth annual Arival Spotlight Awards, and it’s time to announce the incredible top finalists for each category. The Arival Spotlight Awards are designed to highlight the global in-destination experiences industry, celebrating innovation and excellence in tours, activities, attractions and experiences. Nominations were open to anyone until 11 September 2026.

Digital may come first for discovery, but human trust still has the final say for Latin American (LATAM) travelers. New Arival research shows that for travelers from Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, discovery and decision-making run on two different tracks: travelers move through a digital-heavy funnel to find their options, then lean on people, not platforms, to decide which one to book.

What is it that actually creates an experience travelers don’t forget once the moment ends? This is the question that brought Katrina Demers, VP of Brand at Pursuit, and her team to the science of memory — and a fresh approach to experience design. Pursuit is a Colorado-based hospitality and experience company with a growing portfolio of attractions including the Columbia Icefield Adventure in Jasper, Canada and the Sky Lagoon in Rejkyavik, Iceland.

Travelers are remarkably open to paying more for a better visit, from better food and beverage and faster entry to greater flexibility, access to something special or simply a better time slot. Across seven potential attraction upsells tested in Arival’s latest research of 2,550 U.S. and European travelers, nearly three in four travelers expressed interest in purchasing them. Even more importantly, many are willing to pay a meaningful premium. Of course, price matters.

It’s that time of year when bears are bulking up for the winter — and so are we. Each year at Arival, we conduct a global survey for the tours, activities and attractions industry to ensure we are able to share accurate, informed, up-to-date insights with you for the year ahead. All you need to do? Simply take a few minutes to respond to this short and confidential survey. Our goal is simple: help you grow your business.

“Do you have a distribution strategy, or simply a collection of distribution contracts?” That’s the question Alba Basora, Director of Global Trade Sales at Go City, wants operators to sit with before they sign their next reseller deal.

If your pitch to Latin American travelers leans on solo bucket-list adventures and hidden-gem itineraries, you may be selling the wrong trip. New consumer research paints a different picture of the traveler in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico: someone who travels less often than their U.S. or European counterparts, brings the whole family along when they do, and wants to see the places they’ve always dreamed of, not the off-the-beaten-path experiences.

Are tour operators stronger together? One newly-formed investment group, focused on building a portfolio of day tour operators, is determined to prove they are. Walks founder Stephen Oddo has partnered with Charaf El Mansouri, co-founder of immersive experiences brand DHARMA, to re-acquire his former company, now called WalksDevour, which he sold to Hornblower Group in 2021, along with two other major Europe-based operators: Amigo Tours and Askos Tours.

At least 71% of European TikTok users say they’re likely to book a holiday based on recommendations they’ve seen on the platform. And according to TikTok Marketing Science, 70% of users report booking a trip or activity after seeing TikTok content, with 52% completing that booking within a week.

How does one celebrate the 10-year anniversary of an event focused on the experiences sector of travel? With experiences, of course. We’ve got some incredible experiential sessions lined up for the first day of the conference, to get you out of the conference center — and into the forests, parks and rivers around Spokane, with guided discussions in the great outdoors.