Is it really more cost-effective for young people to mix in the senior group?

China-Singapore Jingwei, May 3 (Zhou Yihang) "There are no projects that need to go up the mountain and down to the sea to participate in the senior group, the overall pace is slow, leisure-oriented, and the play is very gentle. 27-year-old Mao Mao (pseudonym) posted on social media platforms that he thought it would be a bad trip to attend the senior group meeting, but he didn't expect to be cured.

In addition to the relaxation of the itinerary, some people are taken care of because of the age advantage of the juniors, and some people become group pets because of their mastery of photo skills...... Nowadays, "joining the senior group" has become a new idea for some young people to travel.

Young people "blend in" into the senior regiment

"In October last year, I signed up for a tour group to Jiangxi for 6 days and 5 nights at a travel agency in Guangxi. Because it was an individual group, it wasn't until I met at the airport that I found out that I was accompanied by uncles and aunts who were retired in their fifties and sixties, and a pair of grandparents in their seventies, that I realized that I had joined the 'Sunset Red Tour' by mistake. Mao Mao, a girl from Guangxi, shared her experience of "mistakenly" entering a senior tour group with China-Singapore Jingwei.

Recalling the experience in the tour group, Mao Mao said with a smile that she was very apprehensive when she first learned that she had participated in the senior group. I didn't expect the whole journey to be very pleasant, eat and sleep well, the itinerary is not compact, there are uncles and aunts to help her take pictures when playing, grandma helps her iron dishes and chopsticks during meals, and you can also talk about life with older grandfathers when you are free.

"The group I reported was more than 3,000 yuan, which is a medium price in the same type of tour group. The uncles and aunts I met were all retired groups, and they were also highly tolerant of young people. Mao Mao said that she was the same age as the children of these uncles and aunts, and they (uncles and aunts) took care of her juniors.

Jiangxi guy Li Ran (pseudonym) also shared his experience of participating in the senior group on social platforms. In the video, the uncles and aunts in the same group called him a "handsome guy", feeding snacks during the trip, helping to take pictures at tourist attractions, and chatting was also "boastful style", and the emotional value was directly full...... This video received 19,000 likes, and after clicking on the comment area, some netizens were infected by the cheerful atmosphere and shouted, "It's not that you can't afford to play independently, but the elderly group is more cost-effective." ”

It is worth noting that while "young people mixed into the elderly group" out of the circle, many travel agencies also smelled business opportunities and took "cost-effective", "positive energy" and "gentle rhythm" as the promotional selling points of the elderly group.

On April 28, Zhongxin Jingwei called a travel agency in Yunnan as a consumer, and the customer service staff said that the so-called "elderly group" was just a conventional concept. Generally speaking, the age of middle-aged and elderly tourists participating in the tour is between 50 and 70 years old, and the travel agency is unlikely to delineate the "elderly group" according to age.

"The advantage of participating in the senior group is that there are fewer trips, the play experience is very relaxed, most of the elderly love the juniors very much, and the atmosphere is more harmonious, but it does not mean that the young people will receive special care in the senior group. The customer service staff said that from the current situation, the young people in the elderly group are still mainly accompanying their families, and young people will still give priority to traveling in groups with their peers, and the itinerary is relatively compact.

Some people are healed, and some people are tormented all the way

It is true that "low price", "high cost performance" and "group pet" are the main factors that attract young people to participate in the senior group. However, during the whole travel process, the care of the elderly travel companions cannot dilute the problems of some tour groups themselves.

Li Mei (pseudonym) from Sichuan complained on social platforms about her experience in a low-cost senior group. "I didn't mean to catch up with the trend, but I happened to see that the itinerary and price of an elderly group were very suitable, so I signed up with my friends. I didn't expect that in the five-day and four-night trip, there would be four shopping links, and the shopping target was not a simple snack specialty, but thousands of jadeite and jade and bracelets. If you don't buy it, the tour guide will lose his temper and say, 'I came for nothing'. Li Mei said.

In addition to shopping, Li Mei also had a headache because the tour guide arranged for them to interact with the locals. The uncles and aunts sang and danced happily, and only she and her friends looked at each other, like pins and needles. In the end, because he didn't perform, he was disgusted by everyone, "not active enough, not as vibrant as young people." ”

Lin Tianjia (pseudonym), a girl from Tianjin, realized during the group trip for the elderly that there is an age gap between young and old people, different concepts, and very different living habits.

"I signed up for the elderly group in Jiangxi last year, 3,000 yuan per person, and the uncles and aunts in the group are about the same age as my parents. Lin Tianjia said that in her imagination, going out to play should be a slow walk and a slow feeling, but the uncles and aunts who are traveling with her seem to be very "rushed". When eating, some people are about to turn the table away, and when traveling, uncles and aunts are in a hurry to go to the next scenic spot to take pictures and check in...... After 5 days, she felt very tired and was in a hurry every day.

"Try not to follow the trend, the healing trip circulating on the Internet is a probability event after all, and if you are not careful, the whole journey will be very painful. Lin Tianjia said.

How to avoid the "low price" trap?

Wu Liyun, an associate professor at the Chinese Culture and Tourism Industry Research Institute of Beijing Second University of Foreign Chinese, told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that at first, young people's participation in the senior group was an accidental phenomenon, and young people found the uniqueness of walking with the elderly in the process of joining the group. But on the whole, it is not a common phenomenon for young people to participate in senior groups.

"As far as the choice of young people for the elderly group is concerned, it reflects that more and more young people's consumption habits are inclined to pursue cost performance. However, due to the age gap, there is a certain generation gap between the two in terms of living habits and common language, and many elderly groups may not be suitable for young people, which may have a certain impact on young people's travel experience. Wu Liyun added.

Regarding how consumers should identify and avoid the "low price" trap of some elderly groups, Wu Liyun said that consumers should adhere to three principles when signing up for a group: first, find a legal and regular travel agency to sign up for a group; second, do not be greedy for cheap, consider the cost performance at the same time, but also consider that the tour price is too low There may be hidden consumption factors such as shopping; third, rationally choose the tourism products and corresponding services suitable for themselves, focus on personal consumption needs, and do not be misled by gimmicks such as "group pets".

Zhao Zhanzhan, a lawyer at Beijing Jiawei Law Firm, told Zhongxin Jingwei that consumers should be cautious about low-cost elderly groups before choosing a tour group, and try to avoid tour groups that may have forced shopping.

(For more report clues, please contact the author of this article, Zhou Yihang: [email protected]) (Sino-Singapore Jingwei APP)

(The views in the article are for reference only and do not constitute investment advice, investment is risky, and you need to be cautious when entering the market.) )

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Editor in charge: Wei Wei and Li Zhongyuan