The same philosophy that gave birth to Airbnb and allowed people to make money from renting their homes is behind a new program being offered by Sacred Rides, a mountain bike tour company based out of Fernie, BC, Canada.
With their new Getaways program, Sacred Rides is equipping mountain bikers around the world with the tools, training and support they need to guide other mountain bikers on their local trails, via 1/2 to 2-day adventures. They're also giving back to each guide's local community with 5% of every booking going to a community projects fund, such as trail building and maintenance.
How it works
Prospective tour guides complete an application and do a video interview to see if working together would be a good fit. If accepted, the new guide pays the initial fee of $3,499 CAD (approx $2,653 / £2133).
Insurance and land-use permits are the responsibility of the tour guide. Sacred Rides has insurance partners that provide discounted rates for their Getaways affiliates. Once approved, the guide will have a 30km/20-mile exclusive radius where no other Getaway-based guide can lead trips.
Next is the guide's personalized Getaways website, along with instructions, and help with marketing. Once the site is up with rides and details, guides are ready to start taking bookings for 1/2-day, or 1- or 2-day trips.
Additional online guide training is available through seven detailed training modules covering all aspects of operation and guiding, from our core values to guiding scenarios, to risk management and more. In addition to the online training, new guides will also be required to attend an in-person guide training in their region within one year after launching.
Mike Brcic of Sacred Rides says the goal is "to get to 300 Getaways destinations by the end of 2018. We believe there are huge advantages to scale; each new Getaways guide helps to promote the brand and raise awareness, and the more we can cover the globe with mountain bike adventures."
For more information or to book a trip, visit getaways.sacredrides.com to browse mountain bike Getaways around the world or for information about joining the program.
Package includes
- Your own website
- Custom bookings and operations system
- Blog
- SEO-training
- Listing on Getaway's site
- Guide training
- Marketing and sales training
- Sacred Rides riding kit
- Private Facebook group
- Training webinars
Costs
There is an annual fee of $3,499 CAD (approx $2,653 / £2133), which can be paid in monthly installments. Every booking has a 10% fee, 5% to Sacred Rides, 5% to a community projects fund.