OCR Text |
Show A-8 The Park Record Marketplace Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, December 16-19, 2017 Nightly Lodging Tally Occupancy Report for week of December 17-23, 2017 Website ‘Gydes’ travelers around the globe 100% 90% 80% 70% Gyde and Seek connects travelers to tour guides in six destinations 60% 50% 40% 30% CAROLYN WEBBER 20% The Park Record 10% In a city that thrives off national and international tourists, Andrea Guthrie wants to increase the tourist experience beyond Park City’s borders. Her new website, Gyde and Seek, aims to flip the tourism world on its head and give power back to the individual. Guthrie, a Park City resident, and her business partner and longtime friend, Vanessa Guibert Heitner, launched the tourism website last year. Gyde and Seek connects tourists directly to tour guides who are selected by the Gyde and Seek staff. “There is really exceptional talent that, up until now, has frankly been pretty hard to access unless you go through a traditional travel agent,” Guthrie said. “We are trying to open and democratize it in order to get a much broader group of people access.” Gyde and Seek opened in 2016 and has six international locations on its site with 12 to 15 guides at each location. Two more locations, in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, and Prague, are scheduled to become available soon. The guides range in knowledge and expertise, from general tour guides to chefs that bring tourists deep into the culinary scene. The business aims to help both tourists and tour guides, Guthrie said. Guides determine their own price and receive 100 percent of the funds. A 15 percent surcharge is tacked onto the overall price from using the service Gyde and Seek. “The guides set their own rates and that’s what they get paid,” she said. “It’s that simple.” She said that helping tour guides was one of the reasons Heitner and Guthrie came up with the idea for the business. The two met in high school while attending a school in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The U.S.-born teens quickly became friends and, over the years, fell in love with travel. Heitner worked in the travel industry in Latin America for several years while Guthrie worked in consulting and retail, traveling any chance she could. Combining their desire to stop what they perceived as the exploitative business of tour guides and help travelers have better experiences, Gyde and Seek was born. Although Heitner and the rest of the team Sun Mon Tues 2017 - As of 10/31/17 2016 - As of 10/31/16 2016 - Historic Actuals Wed Thurs Fri Sat Week High 2017 .. Sat/Sun 50% Week High 2016 .........Thu 48% Weekly Average 2017 ....... 42% Weekly Average 2016 ....... 46% NOTE: This is not a forecast of bookings. Data presented in this report represents occupancy on the books as of the report date. Source: DestiMetrics & Park City Chamber/Bureau © 2017 COURTESY OF ANDREA GUTHRIE Andrea Guthrie, co-founder of Gyde and Seek, traveled to Teotihuacan, near Mexico City, Mexico while exploring the globe for the company’s website. Mexico City is one of the six locations of which the site offers information and tour guides. work remotely, Guthrie said that it has been helpful for her to be in Park City, where there are many entrepreneurs to learn from and network with. Guthrie is involved in the collaborative working space of PandoLabs, and she said that she gets emotional support and advice inside the peer-to-peer group as she manages the challenges of being an entrepreneur. But so far, Guthrie said that business has People want to get onto computers and they want to do it themselves. They want to see all of the information and have visibility and transparency in pricing.” Andrea Guthrie cofounder, Gyde and Seek been doing well. They have clients from around the U.S. and Canada, including a handful from Park City, and the majority rated the guides with five stars. Plus, clients have said they enjoy the ability to directly select and message the tour guides instead of working with a middle man throughout the process. “People want to get onto computers and they want to do it themselves,” Guthrie said. “They want to see all of the informa- tion and have visibility and transparency in pricing.” She said that the movement is similar to one that took place in the last decade in the lodging, airline and transportation industries. Now, individuals are able to plan every part of their trip on their own. With many people planning last minute trips on other sites, Gyde and Seek has found a special niche helping that audience. “We see people who are getting on a plane with a family of four and haven’t planned anything,” she said. “At least half of our bookings have been very short notice.” Guthrie said that Gyde and Seek will continue to expand into new markets in the coming year, ultimately aiming to be a global business. It’s not hard to convince the team to jump on a plane and hang out with tour guides and experience a city for a couple of weeks, since Guthrie said they all love seeing their clients have experiences they will remember. “The most rewarding thing to me is when I read that feedback and I recognize that we have transformed someone’s experience,” she said. “They have gotten a much richer and more wonderful experience in that particular destination than they would have on their own.” Gyde and Seek gydeandseek.com/ customerservice@gydeandseek. com F h Top Shelf shakes up the cocktail industry Bartending service is partnering with Traeger Grills CAROLYN WEBBER The Park Record Most people would not think of a grill as a necessary appliance while making a cocktail. But then again, Casey Metzger and Grayson West are not like most people. The two, who own and operate the mobile bartending service, Top Shelf, in Park City, recently formed a partnership with Salt Lake Citybased Traeger Grills to tap into the cocktail business to create specialty products. The companies have since created a cocktail recipe book and two simple syrups together, and say there are more innovations on the way. Metzger, founder of Top Shelf, first started experimenting with the grills while serv- ing at one of Traeger’s parties in Salt Lake City in 2015. He spotted the grills and knew that he wanted to incorporate them into the party somehow. “The approach that we always try to have is a creative approach,” he said. “So, the question was, ‘How do we tie in Traeger to what we’re doing?’ Otherwise we’re just pouring wine and beer and making cocktails.” So, he threw some fruit on the grill and served smoked Manhattans and Old Fashioned drinks with smoked cherries, oranges and bitters. “It was a really quirky attempt at finding something different,” he said. The experiment caught the attention of Denny Bruce, executive vice president of Traeger Grills. He saw the passion behind Metzger and West’s work and asked if he wanted to pursue the experiments further. Metzger and West dove in, not sure what they would find. Please see Top Shelf, A-9 Words from “Holiday Blues” Although we often think of the holidays as a happy and fulfilling time of year, it is often a time of hardship for many individuals. The holidays can be a time of reflection and memories, which can include regrets and ruminating over losses. For some, it can come with conflict due to high expectations of what “should” be, but is not. For others, loneliness or longing for family and friends that are far away or that are not available can be challenging. These can all be reasons for people to feel sad around the holidays and experience “holiday blues”. It is important to set realistic expectations with kids, other family members, and friends. This can reduce anxiety before guilt and shame overtake the holidays. It is also important to set aside time to take care of ourselves and make sure that we are eating healthy and not overindulging (in whatever areas we have a tendency to do this in: sugary/fatty foods, shopping, alcohol, etc.). Getting involved and scheduling healthy activities with community members can be a great way to feel a part of something important and also help keep busy. Volunteering and giving time instead of money can also be a way to give back without feeling pressure to write checks that can’t be cashed. Asking for help when needed is a very important step in fighting the holiday blues. It is important to remember that feeling down sometimes is very normal and usually engaging in some of these ideas mentioned will help to raise spirits. In some cases however, it may be clinical depression and best to make a therapy appointment and get a little more intensive help. Valley Behavioral Health is here to help if needed. We have three offices in Summit County: Park City, Kamas, and Coalville. Please give us a call at 435-649-8347 if you’d like to talk to someone about the struggles you’re having. |