| Industry | Travel |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1925 |
| Founder(s) | Arthur Tauck |
| Headquarters | Norwalk, Connecticut |
| Website | http://www.tauck.com/ |
Tauck is an operator of guided tours and cruises; in 1925 it became the first tour operator to be awarded a federal Tour Broker’s License by the U.S. government.[1] The company, which celebrated its 85th anniversary in 2010, is owned and operated by the Tauck family and is based in Norwalk, CT. Tauck offers approximately 100 guided land journeys, small-ship ocean cruises, European river cruises, safaris and family travel experiences in more than 60 countries,[2][3] and has received numerous accolades.[4][5][6]
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Tauck was founded in 1925 by Arthur Tauck, Sr., then a 27-year-old traveling salesman, when he brought six paying guests along on one of his sales trips through New England and southeastern Canada. The all-inclusive, six-day trip covered 1,100 miles and cost each guest $69. The group traveled in the mornings and guests relaxed in the afternoons while Tauck made sales calls to local clients.
At first Tauck planned no additional tours, but when word-of-mouth recommendations from his six passengers resulted in numerous inquiries about additional trips, he reconsidered. Tauck soon launched Tauck Tours and began promoting his guided journeys in earnest.[7][8][9]
In 1958 Arthur Tauck, Sr. was succeeded by his son, Arthur Tauck, Jr., who expanded the company by adding additional domestic and later international destinations to its portfolio.[10] The younger Tauck is widely regarded as a travel industry innovator, and he is credited with a number of “firsts” including combining motorcoach tours with air travel in the 1950s, offering the first international charter air tour packages in Nova Scotia, bringing many of the first East Coast travelers to the U.S. National Parks of the American West, and introducing “Heli-Hiking” in the Canadian Rockies.[11]
Today Tauck offers nearly 100 different all-inclusive, guided journeys in more than 60 countries worldwide. Travel categories offered by Tauck include land journeys, small ship cruises, Tauck Bridges family travel packages, and Tauck Culturious trips. Launched in 2009 to serve boomer-aged travelers, the Culturious journeys provide an active and immersive exploration of smaller geographic regions.[12] Tauck’s entry into European river cruising in recent years has also been well received.[13][14][15][16][17]
The Tauck company is still a family-owned and operated enterprise.[18][19] Arthur Tauck, Jr. serves as Chairman. Four of Arthur Tauck's five children have worked for and run the business to varying degrees. Dan Mahar is Tauck’s current CEO and a Board Director.
Tauck is active in philanthropic efforts and holds annual employee volunteer days which typically benefit U.S. National Parks[20] and other sites associated with the tourism industry, such as Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts.[21]
Tauck is a member of both the United States Tour Operators Association[22], and the National Tour Association, which was founded by Arthur Tauck, Jr. in 1954 as the United States Tour Brokers Association.[23]
In September, 2010, Tauck announced a partnership with the documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and his longtime collaborator Dayton Duncan. Working with Burns and Duncan, Tauck is creating new land journeys and special events that explore the topics covered in Burns’ films, including the Civil War, America’s national parks, and jazz.[24]
According to news reports, the partnership has three components:
In 2011, Tauck was voted the “World’s Best River Cruise Line”[28] by the readers of Travel + Leisure magazine. The company was also voted to the magazine’s list of the “World’s Best Tour Operators & Safari Outfitters” for the 14th consecutive year.
The Tauck web site lists some 70 additional awards that the company has received over the years.[29] Notable honors have come from the White House[30] and U.S. Interior Department[31], as well as other travel magazines including National Geographic Traveler[32], TravelAge West[33] and Travel Weekly.[34]