Peter Walton, Chief Executive of global golf tourism organisation IAGTO, talks to Destination Golf’ s Peter Ellegard
DG: What prompted you to set IAGTO up?
PW: IAGTO is 20 years old this year … For three years to 1996 I was UK Director of the Tenerife Tourist Office, during which time one of my goals was to turn this popular tourism destination into a successful golf destination, even though it only had three courses then, not the eight that it has now. In researching the market within the UK and beyond, the enormity of this niche travel sector became apparent, but so did its disparate nature and the lack of any coordination or support structure. I decided to have a go at changing that and dived headfirst into establishing the International Association of Golf Tour Operators( IAGTO) and the International Golf Travel Market in 1997.
DG: How has IAGTO grown since then?
PW: In September of 1997 I think we had about 20 golf tour operators, predominantly in the UK. Today we have just shy of 2,500 member companies in 96 countries, of which 641 are outbound golf tour operators carrying some 1.9 million golfers on golf vacations last year alone. The larger part of our membership now comprises golf resorts, golf courses, hotels, tourist boards and other golf tourism suppliers from virtually every golf destination on the planet.
DG: What does IAGTO do to help its members?
PW: Similar to most industries, ours comprises‘ buyers’ and‘ suppliers’ – the buyers in our case being golf tour operators and the suppliers being the golf destinations, their golf courses and hotels. So as a trade association our remit has always been to make it easier, less costly and more effective for our buyers and suppliers to work together. Right from the beginning I set IAGTO the target of creating at least three new dynamic services every year that our members could take advantage of, so that the value of our organisation to our membership grows rapidly year by year. Here are just a few examples:
• We established the first golf tourism trade show, the International Golf Travel Market, now in its 19th year( owned and operated by Reed Travel Exhibitions) on, CEO of IAGTO
• We created the largest golf tourism photo library in the world for the benefit of our members
• We have been engaged by governments and tourist boards to produce the golf tourism promotional and
Volume 3 • Issue 35 23