AS PART of a wider portfolio restructure, Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) has revealed its touring brand Topdeck will undergo a major overhaul (TD breaking news).
Contained in its latest financial reporting, FCTG said the “under-performing” asset will be repositioned to focus exclusively on small-group trips capped at 18 guests from late Sep, catering for the evolving Gen Z traveller.
The Global Touring brand will also refresh its touring suite with new styles, which will commence operating from Apr 2026.
A range of other enhancements for Topdeck are also in the pipeline, including new routes and destinations, while significant investment will be poured into a major brand refresh to formally mark the business pivot as well.
These are set to encompass a new website and launch marketing campaign.
Commenting on the relaunch, FCTG Global CEO and Topdeck co-founder Graham ‘Skroo’ Turner said today’s younger travellers have been asking for change, which also aligns with his own fond memories as a young man.
“I was 23, living in London and just wanted to explore Europe with my mates in a way that was fun, low-fuss and let us experience more in the places we visited,” Turner said.
“That first trip had only 14 people, so it feels right to return to that smaller group style.
“It is also exactly what younger travellers today are telling us they are looking for,” he added.
While bookings performance was a driver of the change, surveys also played a role in FCTG pulling the trigger on a relaunch.
In a Topdeck survey of more than 2,000 younger travellers, 60% said they would consider a group tour to holiday, compared to 45% in 2019, while 68% noted they would prefer to travel in a group of up to 20 people.
“Large groups are perceived as overwhelming and overbearing when infiltrating a destination as ‘tourists’ – young travellers want to feel like locals when they travel,” Topdeck GM APAC Anna Fawcett said. AB
