Catching up with:
Conor Duffy
Vice-President, Royal Irish Tours
What do you miss most about travelling?
Aside from actually visiting and discovering new places, which I can’t wait for — I would even settle for the feeling of just being in an airport. I miss it so much – it’s always such an exciting buzz (I actually thought about driving by Pearson a while ago just to imagine it). People watching, meeting friends before a trip, a sneaky pint before the flight – love it all! I even remember heading there with my dad as a little kid all the time to ‘help’ when RIT had groups heading out every Friday night.
Where’s the first place you want to go and why?
I had so many fun adventures scheduled for 2020 – right now, I should have been over in Dublin for the EURO 2020 tournament, and I’ve been getting constant reminders of events and flights from my calendar every week… really need to disable that, as it’s getting sad. Would love to get back to Dublin right away to catch up with friends, family and work colleagues (my brother works at our office there too – haven’t seen him in several months). Asia has been high on my list, so I do hope to make that happen in the fall.
How have you been coping during the last few months and how have you been keeping busy?
We had a busy season on the books for clients scheduled to travel with us this year, so it’s been quite a lot of rescheduling and postponing wherever possible for the most part. Most are so keen to still go at some stage, which has certainly been one of the positives I’ve noticed – and that does show an eventual light at the end of the tunnel. Other than keeping busy with work, trying to stay fit and get as much golf in as possible (just about finished all of Netflix as well).
Conor Duffy
Vice-President, Royal Irish Tours
“Aside from actually visiting and discovering new places, which I can’t wait for — I would even settle for the feeling of just being in an airport. I miss it so much – it’s always such an exciting buzz (I actually thought about driving by Pearson a while ago just to imagine it). People watching, meeting friends before a trip, a sneaky pint before the flight – love it all! I even remember heading there with my dad as a little kid all the time to ‘help’ when RIT had groups heading out every Friday night.”
Is there anything agents should know about RIT?
Best thing that I can say is that we are here for you. Pick up the phone and give us a call – whether it’s from home or cell, or even in the office – you’ll be speaking to one of us instantly. We haven’t stopped with our availability and efforts as we are well aware of the headaches this is causing everyone. Our 2021 tours are all confirmed and ready to go – and we are VERY excited to launch as we head into our 20th anniversary.
There’s been a lot of talk about the industry coming out better on the other side of COVID-19. What are your hopes?
Aside from the obvious hope of a vaccine and to put this behind us as soon as possible, it will be interesting to see the impact of these events on travel as a whole. The footprint of global travel has been decimated — as we start to travel again, hopefully we can find a way to ensure sustainability and be mindful of overtourism.
We have always paid close attention to travel demands and client feedback when it comes to our holidays. Where some travellers might not be comfortable in larger groups – we are taking this into consideration as we create and improve our itineraries – reducing group sizes even more for a more personalized experience. We try to have something unique for all types of traveller – whether it’s a small, intimate group, or an original, custom, boutique driving holiday – I think we will be more prepared than ever heading into 2021.
Where better to get away from it all then the remote countryside of Ireland, in a small coastal village away from it all with a warm Irish welcome – can’t beat it!
