• Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Write for Us

Travel Bloggers Guide

Travel blogging news and resources

  • Blog
  • Travel Blog News
  • How to start a travel blog
  • Travel Blogging Resources

How to ask a tour operator for a free tour

July 7, 2016 By Lorna Davidson

How to ask a tour operator for a free tour

Many tour operators provide free experiences in return for exposure. It’s simple. Every operator wants to reach a wider audience of potential customers and blogs have the online readership to help make this happen, especially as the majority of people these days research their vacations online before booking.

Travel blogs are a better means of investing in the future with their potential to influence the millennial age. Wordstream Report “10 Stats That Will Make you Rethink Marketing to Millennials”, 2016 study reveals that millennials are 24% more likely to be influenced by blogs and social media than advertisers. However, with the majority of bloggers jumping on the “free experience” bandwagon, tour operators are becoming a lot more selective regarding who they give free experiences to.

As marketing and PR manager at Italy tour operator The Roman Guy, when I receive an email from a blogger, there are certain questions that always run through my mind: Does the blog have strong SEO? Does the blog reach our target market? Do the blog have a substantial following on different social media platforms? How many unique visitors does the blog get each month? But there are occasions where these questions are not the be all and end all when responding to a request.

There is a perfect way to ask a tour operator for a free tour and here it is in 4 and a half easy steps.

Step 1 – Know Who You’re Talking to

If you’ve ever been pitched before, then you know how important it is to have someone be personable. A good pitch is sent by someone who does their homework first. Remember, you’re suggesting a partnership, something that both parties will benefit from. i.e Find out who they are and what they need.

When pitching tour operators, it’s important you know:

  • The name of the person you’re emailing.
  • The company’s character and personality (check out their about us page on their website, social media pages and youtube videos. You can also check a press page to see who they’ve worked with before.)
  • What you’re planning on writing about (make sure the topic appeals to the type of audience they want to attract.)

Step 2 – Social Media

The person you’re pitching is most likely either the same person or has a close working relationship with someone in their department who manages social media for the brand. So, “Like”, “Follow”, comment on their posts and get your name known. Take the extra step and even tag the operator in a post, retweet them, regram or share their posts with your own social media following – even just once or twice! It makes huge difference. You’re promoting them before you even work together.

Step 3 – Be Human

When proposing a partnership, it’s almost human instinct to write a formal email (“Dear Sir” etc.) Relax. Remember you’re talking to a human being. Be likeable! Crack a joke. Pay the tour operator a compliment (“I loved your video How to Order Pizza in Rome, you’re definitely the sort of cool company my readers would like to learn about”). Compliments go a long way.

Step 4 – DON’T Step Over the Line but DO Step Over the Line

Think about what you’re requesting. Perhaps you’re offering coverage in one blog post in return for on one of the more expensive tours on their website. Think about what was mentioned in Step 1 – find out what they need too and reach a middle ground in your pitch. Group experiences tend to sell the most and are widely affordable, so that’s most likely what the operator spends their time promoting.

This doesn’t mean you can’t write about a luxury experience, however, as many tour operators pack VIP value into their group tours to make them stand out as being worthwhile. For example, The Roman Guy offers Rome Tours, Vatican Tours and a Colosseum Dungeons Small Group Tour. It’s the same price of a group tour, but your group is limited to maximum 13 people and you get to go behind locked gates and into restricted areas of the Colosseum that the general public and even private Colosseum Tours don’t have access too. VIP without the price tag – who doesn’t want to learn about that.

Also, the more you offer, the more you can get. Writing more than one blog post, live social media updates and tagging during your experience and a short video about your time spent with the tour operator uploaded onto Youtube wins you MEGA brownie points. When you step over the line in this way, you can find yourself getting 2, 3 or even more free experiences – that’s all the sites on your bucket list ticked off in one vacation!

Step 4.5 – Statistics

It’s not 100% necessary, but if you’ve got them, flaunt them. For your own self promotion, hook up your blog to google analytics and create a Media Kit that outlines qualities about your blog traffic. Gender, age, geographic location and how many unique visitors you get per month. You can also include your social media analytics in here (Post reach, likes etc). Think of it as your shop window. Get creative and show off how good you are.

Filed Under: Travel Blogging Tagged With: partnerships, sponsored travel, tours, travel review

About Lorna Davidson

With a Law Degree and Masters in Marketing under her belt, Lorna moved to Rome to pursue the Dolce Vita. At the same time as traveling the country, meeting the locals, finding cool new Italian experiences and making all her relatives at home jealous of her Italian adventures, she manages the marketing & PR department at The Roman Guy. Nicknamed the "Social Butterfly", Lorna is always on the look out for interesting people who've also been bitten by the wanderlust bug

Comments

  1. Kevin Casey, The Jet-setting Copywriter says

    August 8, 2016 at 4:15 am

    Great post, Lorna – thanks!

    I was just in Milan a month ago, pretending to be writing but mostly checking out all the gelato shops within a kilometre radius of my AirBnB apartment – Sardinia is next on my bucket list!

About Travel Bloggers Guide

James ClarkHi, I’m James. I run a travel media business and a travel blog at nomadicnotes.com.

Travel Bloggers Guide is a free resource on starting and maintaining a travel blog.
More About Travel Bloggers Guide

Travel Blogger News

Subscribe for a monthly roundup of the best articles on the business of travel blogging. No Spam!



View the news archive at travelbloggersguide.substack.com

Write For Us

Travel Bloggers Guide is currently accepting guest posts from travel bloggers, blogging/social media experts, and companies that work with bloggers.
Write for us

Promote Your Travel Writing

The Travel Wire is a weekly newsletter about Travel. Subscribe to find out how to submit your travel writing to be featured.

Featured Affiliate Networks

Join up to find travel affiliate programs. Shareasale
Affiliate Window

Recent Posts

  • How to earn money as travel blogger
  • Travel Blogger News: February 2020
  • Travel Blogger News: January 2020
  • Quasi-niche sites – turning a general travel blog into a semi-themed site
  • The case for having a general travel blog

Featured Posts

Free Domain Or Your Own Domain Name?
Choosing a domain name for your travel blog
Choosing a theme for your WordPress blog
Travel sites that offer guest posting opportunities
Websites that pay travel writers

Travel Blogging Resources

See this page for a full list of Travel Blogging Resources.

Travel Bloggers Guide

About
Contact
Newsletter
Write For Us

Travel Blog Jobs

Find blog jobs, writing offers, and partnership opportunities.
Message Board

Travel Blog Directory

Browse travel blogs from around the world and add your own to the travel blog directory.

Around The World
Africa
Asia
Caribbean
Central America
Europe
Middle East
North America
Oceania
South America

Follow Travel Bloggers Guide!

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on Twitter

Copyright © 2025 travelbloggersguide.com · Log in