Sure, discounting is good, but have you tried offering value? 

As we look back on another peaks and waves season, I’m once again left wondering if as an industry we’ve become too reliant on a lever – discounting – that in an ideal world, we’d only ever pull in emergencies, with specific audiences and objectives in mind.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a believer in the power of discounting. During this latest peaks, Titan’s headline offer, a blanket 20% off all 2026 tours, was our biggest of the year, and we’ve recently launched a spring campaign with a 15% discount. 

But our real focus is on the fantastic value customers can expect when they book a Titan holiday thanks to the numerous inclusions that come as standard, such as our nationwide airport drop-off service. The story our sales teams and regional BDMs tell throughout the year is why we’re worth it (to paraphrase a well-known cosmetics brand).

The richness of what we’re selling means there is so much more we can talk about than price, and so many touch points where value can be added. Of course, the cost of a holiday is an important factor, but if it’s made the defining one then the outcome is race to the bottom. 

Discounting is a tool, not a strategy, and we need to be better at giving the reasons why competing on desirability trumps competing on cost.

The reasons why we’ve got to where we are, and whether in doing so we’ve trained would-be travellers not to believe that price displayed is the ‘real’ price and if they just wait then it’s the brand which will blink first, is for another time. And no-one says that tactical discounting doesn’t have a place in the economics of our industry.

But for now, 2026 is an opportunity for us to be braver. Value doesn’t necessarily mean higher prices – it means telling a better story, and with conviction. It means that whatever the short terms gains of discounting they aren’t worth the long term erosion of customer loyalty, and a shift of your brand from trusted and expert curator of experiences to commodity seller.

Are the temporary removal of friction and a short term boost to revenues, enquiries, or traffic worth the clustering of demand around set periods of the year when the language of price drowns out emotional connection?

When a holiday feels like it’s thoughtfully designed, and a customer feels their needs have been anticipated and accommodated, it competes on desirability rather than cost – which is far more powerful. Instead of taking things off in 2026, think about what you can add.

Don’t devalue your experience and the value of you, a travel expert. ‘We’ll beat any price’ may win today, but will certainly lose tomorrow, and opens you up to negation. So back yourself and the benefits you bring as a signal of quality.

The value of that to your customer will be much higher than any discount – as will their lifetime value to you when they rebook again in the future. 

When trading is sluggish, the siren call of a simple savings message can be hard to ignore. But while discounting increases demand today, value increases demand permanently.