Collette taking ‘proactive’ approach following Paris attacks, anticipates more requests for domestic tours

Collette, the world tour operator based in Pawtucket, said Monday it is encouraging future travelers to the City of Light to take a wait-and-see approach before changing travel plans.
Eighty travelers on two tours in Paris are safe following Friday night’s terrorist attacks, and most have taken steps to return to the United States, Amelia Sugerman, public relations manager for Collette, said Monday. There are no other Collette tours to Paris scheduled until March, and some are set as far out as 2017, Sugerman said.
“We’re at the mercy of seeing how things go over the next few months, but we’re staying proactive and monitoring government advice,” said Sugerman. “We’re pushing a little bit more on the domestic side of tours because we do anticipate there will be more requests for tours in the U.S. during the coming months.”
While the U.S. Department of State and Bureau of Consulate Affairs has not posted any alerts or warnings for Paris or Europe, it does have notifications out for other regions around the globe, including Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, The West Bank and Gaza, Pakistan, Algeria, Libya, Kenya, Yemen, Chad, Bangladesh, Burundi, the Philippines, Iraq, Nepal, Somalia, the Central African Republic, Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Sudan, Niger, Djibouti, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Two groups of 40 tourists each were on their third day in Paris on Friday night as part of the Spotlight On London and Paris, in which travelers stay three days in London and four in Paris, Sugerman said.
“We were able to locate two tour managers on Friday night and were informed everyone was OK,” she said. “We needed to change their itinerary but did not stop or cancel the tours. “The majority were scheduled to fly out on Sunday; some have not because of airport delays. It was very traumatic for everyone involved, but all things considered, we were pretty fortunate.”
The agency is not canceling any overseas trips in France or in any other parts of the world, she said.
That said, Collette has received an undisclosed number of inquiries about possible cancellations of future trips, though no one has actually canceled yet, Sugerman said.
“Obviously, there are people who are going to be nervous about this, but we’re keeping a constant eye on world events,” Sugerman said. “We’re trying to say, ‘It’s only been 48 hours; we’re encouraging people not to cancel.”
The average age of Collette customers is 68, and many are retirees, she added.
“We’re not asking anyone to change from going to Europe,” Sugerman said. “Only those that are fearful might consider domestic tours.”

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