Group Organizer Guide
Do you want to organize a group booking but are unsure about how to get started? No problem. Our comprehensive Organizer Guide has everything you need to know about how to arrange a group booking from start to finish.
Remember, if you have any questions, just give us a call on 877-359-7458 (US) or 0808 168 1458 (UK) and one of our cruise experts will be ready to help
Step 1: Select a destination and a theme
eWaterways offers a variety of cruising experiences around the world.
Select the type of cruise and destination that best fit the interests of your potential traveling companions. As you peruse our website — and the myriad of travel programs we offer — please consider the following aspects for your group:
Interest: Do you want to concentrate on a particular theme?
Destinations or regions to be experienced: Where do you think your group would like to travel?
Length of tour: We have programs for as few as 4 days to as many as 30.
Price: What is the approximate budget, per person, for your group? This is just an estimate. Our experts will discuss your budget before you contact your potential travel companions.
Time of year you plan to travel: When do you want to travel? Some people, like teachers, have very defined travel times while others are flexible. Traveling during off-peak times can help you greatly reduce the program cost while still allowing you to have a wonderful travel experience.
Number of included activities and excursions: How much of your program do you want pre-arranged?
Talk to your eWaterways' cruise expert
eWaterways'experts are knowledgeable and professional and work with Group Organizers as their main responsibility. They will assist you with every part of planning a group trip.
Call 877-359-7458 (US) or 0808 168 1458 (UK) at any time with questions or comments.
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Step 2: Enlist group participants
Whom should you approach to join your group?
Everyone loves to travel and everyone is a possible traveling companion. Think about asking:
Family: Everyone from your brother to distant cousin. What about a family reunion in some special place?
Friends: Who better than your friends as travel companions?
Places you socialize: Work, community center, with your fellow alumni, country club... you get the picture — talk to everyone.
Spread the word!
It takes time to gather the troops, so you should start promoting your trip well in advance; at least six months or more before your departure. Once you have decided on your itinerary and departure date, we suggest that you get everyone together to talk about the trip. We will help you with collateral material and, if your gathering is large enough, we could even send someone to help.
How can you promote your group? The possibilities are endless, but here are a few proven ideas.
- Put a small ad in your local newspaper or community bulletin, advising people about the trip and the date and place of your informal get-together.
- Give the group itinerary to everyone you know. People love to see details and it will show that you are serious about promoting your group. You should also include the details about your get-together.
- Send a personal email out to your potential group participants about your trip.
- Put it up on the web — we can send you the digital material to make this simple.
- Create a flyer (we can help you) and have it included in your community bulletin. You can even drop off a supply at your library, country club, etc.
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Step 3: Get everyone together
Getting ready for your get-together
Once you have created enough interest for the group, it's time to get everyone together to really talk things up. eWaterways will prepare the detailed itinerary and supporting materials for you. We'll even create sign-up forms and other items that will really make the meeting a success — just make sure you discuss all of this with us in advance so we can prepare everything for you.
Get all your ducks in a row
Just before your meeting, we'll finalize the following with you:
- Itinerary and travel dates.
- Airline information.
- Final price per person.
- Travel Insurance Protection Plan.
- All important deadlines including those for sign-ups, deposits, etc.
- Plus anything else you may want us to address.
About the meeting
The main focus of the meeting is to create excitement about the trip. Make sure you keep a list of everyone that attends, along with all of their contact information. This will make follow up easier.
Nothing sells travel better than passion. Be sure to share your excitement with the group. Tell them why you selected the particular destination and about all the wonderful, enriching experiences they will come away with if they join you.
Some things you need to be sure to cover are:
- Describe the itinerary and go over the departure and return dates.
- Give out the detailed itineraries and reservation forms. We will help you with these.
- State clearly the cost and when deposits and final payments are due.
- Go over each of the group itinerary components that are included in the cost.
- Get firm commitments from people early on. You may even want to offer an early booking discount to encourage sign-ups right there at the meeting.
- Follow up with anyone who you thought was interested but had not yet confirmed their participation. Sometimes, people just need a little push to make a commitment.
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Step 4: Making reservations
Follow up after your meeting
After your meeting, you should send a thank-you note out to all the people that attended. At the same time, this is a great opportunity to give a little push to those fence sitters.
Reservation process
You need to review all the reservation forms and make sure they are complete and signed. Each application should be accompanied by a check or credit card form. Ensure that the checks are made out to Group IST, LLC. Also make sure the checks mention your group name. After we receive payment, we will process all the reservations and send out confirmations to you and your group participants. This should take approximately 21-30 days. You and your group participants should double check the information we send you. If you have any questions or comments, we are just a phone-call away.
Collateral and other material
Upon confirmation of each participant's trip, we will send each of your participants the following:
- A detailed, day-by-day itinerary.
- An invoice / confirmation statement which will highlight all payment information.
- A pamphlet explaining our Group IST Travel Protection Program.
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Step 5: How to get more travelers
There are many ways you can get more travelers to join your group. We always encourage signing up as many people as you feel comfortable with, keeping in mind that sometimes people have to cancel their trips, so having extra sign-ups is a good idea. The more people on your group, the more benefits you will receive from eWaterways.
What about those people who were interested but couldn't make your meeting?
Now would be a good time to contact them. If you have enough interest, you might even want to set up another meeting.
The best source for more group participants is those people already signed up.
Word-of-mouth is a powerful marketing tool, so encourage your group participants to talk to THEIR friends, family and co-workers.
Follow up, follow up and follow up again.
Contact people who attended the meeting but have not yet submitted a reservation form. They may have questions about the tour that you can easily answer. Some groups might want to hold regular meetings, say once a month, to help them prepare for the trip. This is a fun way to bolster positive energy about the group. If you feel you don't need to physically meet with the participants monthly, you should at least communicate with them via phone, mail or e-mail. This is important to keep the momentum and word-of-mouth marketing going.
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Thank you for taking the time to read our Organizer Guide. If you’d like to get in touch with us so we can start arranging your cruise, please complete our Group booking form or call us directly on 877-359-7458 (US) or 0808 168 1458 (UK).