Thomas Cook – the father of organized tourism
Behind Thomas Cook’s big dream was a great ideal: he believed that the journey in man is the easiest and fastest transformation to that, he is his best version!
How does it all start? Well with an offer – to the railroads who could lower ticket prices with full occupancy of seats. Seeing this market niche, after watching what’s happening in the transportation industry, preacher Thomas Cook makes an offer to 570 people, and they take the world’s first organized 17km / Leicester-Loughborough trip at a minimal cost. There were also bonuses: an orchestra on the train, light handwriting, a walk in the city …
Thomas Cook believed in the success of his business venture! Even participants in this so-called tourism experiment had, besides curiosity about new places, another passion – alcohol abstinence (just like hin).
His idea has evolved over time and is gaining ground – as far as the train can go. Destinations of kilometers from the comfort zone of the home are becoming a popular pastime for those curious about life and its diversity. The next major cultural event that gathers more enthusiasts is the exhibition of Prince Albert. This is a precedent for its time, as it causes more than 150,000 people from the countryside to leave their homelands at the same time to watch art. What’s more – they even get addicted in the next half year, looking more and more into the vast debris of art, thus expanding their horizons.
Cook’s passing business is developing thanks to the narrow-minded beliefs of a century and a half ago, and it is the prejudice that if a young and single woman embarks on such a journey (unaccompanied relative or romantic mate), it is likely to have a slight demeanor …
For the Victorian era, this was a revolution in the education of young ladies who cast tapestries to travel. Affordable train ticket prices gave them the peace and independence they needed. But tourism has already shown its different levels: for the rich of the middle and upper classes – luxury travel, for the poor – healthy shoes and come on the bair!
In addition, travel has filled many education gaps. However, the problems that arose were with the people – the rich did not want to share with the poor and blamed Cook for this class mingling.
For a long time, transportation remained mostly rail / as convenient and cheap for the average Englishman /, ticket revenue was increasing, and not only for the first class.
With Cook’s dream, other dreams became possible – for new horizons and adventures. Services have grown – they have already added tickets to a ticket reservation for a spectacle, a certain restaurant or other significant cultural event. Thus, tourism gradually profiled itself, with other countries such as France, Italy, America, Egypt, Palestine and Mecca already being added. Cook suspected the power of advertising and his first posters appeared in 1850. Even then, the thread of today’s all-in-one club model began, with the then voucher for food reductions at certain establishments with which he had previously signed a contract. A few years later, the Cook Company also offered a worldwide trip, establishing its own bank.
His business model has been copied many times and successfully by his competitors, but at the same time, along with his thirst for quick profit, they are also expanding – rapidly expanding the perimeter of Thomas Cook’s dream – people to change themselves for good. No gambling and alcohol, expanding your knowledge of the world.
Today’s journeys already have infinitely many options for experiencing