Destination Golf - September 2016 * | Page 24

Peter Walton, NAC (North America Golf Tourism Convention) 2016 Opening Address, Pinehurst Resort © Peter Ellegard

development strategies for some 33 countries and regions, helping
position destinations to deliver the best possible experience to visiting
golf travellers
• We take over 300 golf tour operators to more than 30 golf destinations
each year on familiarisation trips each year
DG: Has the golf travel industry changed much since IAGTO’s
formation? And have people’s golf vacation habits changed?
PW: We define a golf holiday as being a vacation where golf is the
primary purpose of travel, so in many ways the basics have remained the

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Destination Golf .TRAVEL

same in that avid golfers are just looking for a great golfing experienc
a price they can afford.

Where they go, how long they go for and who they travel with of
course changes with age and changing circumstances of each individu
golfer. However, in a recent survey, 56% of IAGTO member golf resor
golf courses and hotels reported a significant increase in women golf
travellers over the past three years, and with this we have seen a grow
in couples and groups of couples travelling to play golf.

How people book holidays has, of course, been the biggest change o
the past 20 years. Golf tour operators have immersed themselves in