Les PoHtes, a cheerful, innovative and quality welcome!

Published on June 1, 2021 by Capucine Pedamond

For many years our Tourist Information offices, despite various and varied redevelopments and digital equipment, have been neglected by vacationers and more every year. Digital transformation plays an important role in this change: vacationers are all connected (or almost), they have everything they need in terms of tourist information in their smartphone. Everything… except human contact, meeting people, which can sometimes transform your stay!

Home outside the walls

The Offices, to compensate for this drop in visitors, initially developed reception outside the walls. At Les Gaillards our red truck with a mustache circulates throughout the territory to meet visitors at “hot spots” such as local farmers' markets, campsite welcome drinks and even on the motorway area just before the arrival of vacationers in the promised land.

These receptions outside the walls are very successful and today represent one of the essential links in tourist reception in the Gaillard region. But visitor behavior is constantly evolving, pushing us too to adapt and reinvent ourselves.

Make “real” encounters

Visitors, although connected, are looking for “real” encounters. They are looking for human exchanges, sharing experiences with locals who do not represent the institution like the Tourist Offices. The institution can sometimes have an overused message subject to highlighting the completeness of the offer. The visitor is aware of this, he wants bias!

The number 1 tourism information providers

Tourism professionals are often the first to inform visitors about the territory. Hosts, restaurateurs and visitor site managers are regularly the first people visitors informally turn to for tourist information about the area.

Limit white areas

Finally, despite the presence of several tourist information offices in the territory and a significant program of reception outside the walls during the tourist season throughout the territory, a significant number of white areas in terms of reception remained in the territory. . These areas in which there are no or few accommodation providers, no visit site or no activity site, are nevertheless areas visited by tourists who are increasingly looking for secret corners to discover, leisure activities within natural spaces etc.

Tourist Hospitality Points

The conjunction of these different observations has given rise to a new concept of innovative tourist reception in the region: PoHTes, or Tourist Hospitality Points. Bakery, newsagent, town hall, postal agency, media library, grocery store, flea markets... All different and above all all volunteer to be part of the tourist reception strategy in the Gaillard territory.

These new partners complete the overall system already made up of our tourist information offices, our reception centers outside the walls and the welcome provided by our tourist service providers. These ambassadors of the territory are naturally requested by visitors for diverse and varied tourist information. We make a point of concretely supporting our service providers in this information mission that they fulfill on a daily basis.

They are now integrated into our overall strategy and we provide them with tools: tourist documentation of course (guide to good deals and tourist map), but also training for their reception staff, displays and 100% Gaillard branding, and above all a strong link with the reception team through a closed Facebook group.

The advantage of this welcome: Visitors are informed by locals who, using the tools, can provide complete tourist information, but most importantly this information will be personalized! Each PoHTe has its favorite Gaillard corners, its good addresses… An innovative and quality welcome: a 100% Gaillard welcome!

Share this article

Or share the link