How to Write a Captivating Tourism Newsletter (With Examples)

Writing doesn’t come easy to most tour operators. And when you’re short on time, it can be one of the first things you neglect in your business. 

A tourism newsletter doesn’t have to be complicated or long-winded. It’s really a roundup of any fun or insightful travel content you think your guests might be interested in. 

The best part of these tourism newsletters? Giving past, present and future guests a sense that you have a wealth of knowledge worth sharing.

Wondering where to begin? Start by evaluating the type of marketing emails you like and what stands out in them.

A tourism newsletter paves the way for you to establish a personal level of communication with your audience. And it’s pretty easy to get started, especially if you’re passionate about what you do.

Why send newsletters to your tour guests? 

Travel newsletters are designed to inform and provide value to the reader at a glance.

As mentioned above, sending a newsletter to your email list allows you to engage with your audience on a personal level, arguably more so than the broader reach of your social media. This means addressing people by name with personalized tokens and sharing relevant content at scale. 

As you continue to build your email list, treat your travel newsletter subscribers the same way you’d interact with guests in real life. Done strategically, your tourism newsletter can create opportunities to engage with your customers, which, over time, can lead to new and repeat bookings.

Your tourism email newsletter is a way to provide subscribers with fresh content, tips and promotions. At the same time, it helps to keep your tour business at the top of your customers’ minds. As you know, the right content can turn visitors into subscribers and prospects into bookers.

What to include in travel newsletter content

When travelers sign up to receive updates from your tour company, they’re exchanging their name and email address for the promise of engaging content that’s both educational and entertaining. Therefore, the first step before deciding what to write for them is to know your audience. If you offer water-based activities, you may find that your audience is interested in sea-related topics. Consider tailoring your content to their interests. 

Here are the different types of content you can include in your tourism newsletter:

News and updates

Offer newsletter subscribers the opportunity to be the first to know about events, exciting news, and special offers. These emails can follow your reservation reminder email.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, two BC resorts; Wild Renfrew and Nimmo Bay, have been sending out newsletters with each new health regulation and update. Their goal was to keep current and future guests informed of what to expect and when they could be able to book again their trip to their wilderness resort north of Vancouver Island. 

Travel tips and recommendations

Your travel newsletter is an outlet to connect with past, present and future guests, keeping them excited and in the loop. Captivate readers with your subject line or beautiful photos they can picture themselves in, and lead them down a path of travel inspiration. Be sure to include tailored travel tips and recommendations. Highlighting nearby, non-competing activities and accommodations may even spark to valuable partnerships in the future. 

Promotions and deals

A newsletter is a great way to share event announcements, new product offers, and seasonal promotions.

Think about the newsletters you subscribe to and what they do well. While promotional content is valuable, it shouldn’t be the main focus. Hubspot suggests that content should be 90% educational and 10% promotional.  

If you want more guests to take advantage of your tour promotions, paint a picture of what they can expect and the benefits of booking in advance. Using email marketing travel examples such as:

• “Sign up for our emails to hear about the latest promotions.”
• “Prepare for your trip with easy tips, send once a month.”
• “Get our email for the latest events, promos and travel news.”
• “Subscribe to our travel newsletter for insider tips.”
• “Learn how to make the most of your vacation with tips, pack lists and more.”

Aim to create the kind of tourism newsletter you’ll be able to share with your audience consistently. And as people grow accustomed to hearing from you, they’ll be more likely and excited to see what you have to offer when it lands in their inbox. 

If you’ve never sent a tourism newsletter to your audience, start with quick tips and your latest promotions. Include a short message that will be visible immediately when a recipient opens the message. Include 2-3 photos and a note about how you’re looking forward to welcoming guests in your next tourism newsletter.

How to write a tourism newsletter

Your tour guests will look to you for advice and recommendations. Plus, your tourism newsletter is a fantastic opportunity to connect with your audience and keep the conversation going throughout their booking journey.

Make it personalized

In this day and age, it’s a no-brainer to personalize your emails: 82% of marketers have reported an increase in email open rates thanks to personalization. Most email and marketing automation software offers this in the form of personalization tokens that you can add to your newsletter.

Subject line 

Keep your subject line short, aiming for 4-7 words that call for immediate action. The subject line of your tourism newsletter will determine whether someone opens and reads it. Did you know that top-performing marketers write on average 44  characters in their email subjects (notably including spaces)? 

Since your email newsletter subject line may be the only thing your readers see, make sure it accurately reflects the content of your travel newsletter. Here are 7 eye-catching subject line ideas you can use for your own business:

• Paddle, surf, and cruise while you’re here!
• First time skydiving? We’ve got you covered!
• Best veggie spots in town? Let us guide you!
• Discover our top 10 must-see local attractions!
• Packing for Chicago? Grab our free checklist!
• Ready for summer? Explore our favorite things to do in [location]
• What to pack for your trip to [location] + our favorite activities

Valuable content 

Are you wondering what your guests want to know? Think about the problems you can solve for them! Include answers to the most common questions you receive in a newsletter. Are people asking where else they can enjoy other activities while in the area? Point them to some of your favorite experience providers. 

Mobile-friendly experience 

Using a template from a newsletter service is an easy way to make sure your emails look good on mobile devices. With so many people checking emails and websites on their phones, being mobile-friendly will increase email opens and click-through rates. Good email marketing software lets you design newsletters with drag-and-drop templates and mobile-friendly designs. Explore travel newsletters from a handful of brands you follow along with newsletter layout and style inspiration.

Photos and videos

Your tourism newsletter is a perfect place to inspire guests to share their own experiences and photos. If your guests have a cell phone, there’s a good chance they’ll have some fun photos from their experience. 

Just as reviews carry weight user-generated content is an important angle to include in your tourism newsletter. While not everyone is inclined to share on social media, they might be excited to share the photos through email. Ask guests to share and incentivize them with the promise of a promo they can share with their friends. 

Blog posts 

Cast a wide net with your audience with 1-4 different topics or links to blog posts. You can sprinkle in 1-2 promotional mentions, but they shouldn’t be the focus of your email newsletter. Even something like your updated policies or a link to your frequently asked questions can provide value to your readers. Share blog post updates, helpful tips, or links to articles that will encourage the reader to visit your website. 

Limited-time offers  

When bookings are a bit slower, try offering promotions, especially if you can incentivize guests to book by a certain date. Your email newsletter is a perfect place to share promo codes and seasonal discounts. Pitch your newsletter as a way to find out about deals and promotions first. 

Reviews and testimonials 

Already have a process in place to hear back from your guests? Include guest reviews in your newsletter and make it easy for readers to share their own feedback with hyperlinks to review sites. User-generated content is one of the most coveted forms of media because people place more value on relating to other’s experiences vs. what a business says about themselves. Pair a guest review with a photo to take care of one section of your tourism newsletter.

Calls-to-action

When writing content for your newsletter, ask yourself what action you want people to take as a result of reading a blog post, seeing a photo or watching a video. Use clear calls-to-action such as read more, learn more, download guide and book now to guide readers to the next step. Do you want your subscribers to book a trip, read reviews or connect with you on social media? Make sure it’s clear what you want them to do with clickable buttons and hyperlinks.

What’s the call to action in your travel newsletter? 

Do your subscribers open, read and engage with your newsletter? Or are they unsubscribing because it contains irrelevant content? 

Inspire subscribers to take the next step, whether it’s learning more, reading testimonials or daydreaming about their next vacation while ogling pictures at work. Finally, don’t forget to always include a call to action (CTA). A CTA is something like a “book now” button, and it gets recipients to take immediate action when they receive your newsletter.

When people book, they’ll be on the lookout for a booking confirmation email. If they opt-in to future communication from you, they’ll be groomed to expect high-quality content from your emails. Make sure your tourism newsletter is GDPR compliant and you have received email consent from each person on your subscriber list.

Build relationships with your guests through email automation

Newsletters give you the opportunity to build trust with people over time, before they’re even ready to book. It’s similar to developing a friendship, just as you might find you share similar interests and values. That’s why consistency is key: sending your newsletter on a regular schedule will foster credibility and brand presence. 

You don’t want to tackle the same topics over and over, so you’ll have to find a balance that works for you. This can range between quarterly, monthly, bi-weekly, or even weekly messaging. Creating a plan in which you plot holidays and newsletter themes will give your content structure.  You might have a booking software that does a lot of the work for you — including gathering email addresses. Every time a guest books with you they exchange their email address and expect to receive emails tailored to them. An email marketing platform like Mailchimp can assist you with tracking the results of your tourism newsletter. This way, you’ll have a way of assessing whether your audience opens and actively engages with your content.

Any guest who has ever interacted with your brand or booked an experience with you can be on your email list. Since Mailchimp integrates with Checkfront, you’ll automatically collect email addresses from website visitors who sign up along with booked guests.

Start with a tourism newsletter template 

You don’t have to start from scratch when it comes to creating a newsletter. There are a wealth of free newsletter templates available through Adobe and Mailchimp that take care of the design so all you have to do is upload images along with your written content. 

Many tourism newsletter templates follow a similar structure. Starting with a catchy subject line, designed to get the reader to open the message – they promise value within. And, the email body content will have bold, short headlines with a sentence or two underneath along with attractive photos, all designed to inform, inspire and incentivize the recipient. 

Grab your free tourism newsletter template here!

Final thoughts

As you work to create your newsletter, keep asking yourself, “would my guests find this content of use as they plan their trip”?

Focus on including content you’re excited about. This could be as simple as a few lines of a raving review, followed by an invitation to learn more or view photos to help inspire people to book. 

We hope you find these tips helpful as you design your tourism newsletter. And as you share relevant content with your readers, you’ll naturally grow your email marketing list, and your business.

Looking for more tips on ways to connect with your tour guests?