Over the past twenty-some years, our museum's foreign travel committee has planned and executed many successful oversees trips.  Up until recently the trips were usually fully booked.  But during the past few years we have experienced a decline in trip enrollment.

We know that many other museums are encountering similar problems.  Our customer base is aging, and younger people are less inclined to go on structured tours.  And it is essentially the same committee that has been working on these trips from the beginning.  They're weary --
especially since their efforts are going towards a trip that they don't consider completely successful.

We are reluctant to drop the program.  Not only is it a money-maker for the museum, but it provides a benefit to membership.

What are other museums doing about this problem?  Have you turned to a travel agency to plan your trips (and cut down on the amount of money raised)?  Are you collaborating with other museums in order to appeal to a wider audience?  Have you dropped museum-sponsored oversees trips?
Are you changing the structure of your trips to appeal to different age groups?

Our foreign travel committee is in the process of deciding how to continue.  Any suggestions would be welcomed.

Heather Price
Ella Sharp Museum
Jackson, Michigan
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http://www.ellasharp.org/

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