Mayflower Cruises and Tours

What Mayflower Cruises and Tours does

Mayflower Cruises and Tours is a privately held U.S. tour operator founded in 1979 and headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, operating as a subsidiary of the Australia-based Scenic Group since 2018. The company curates and resells guided travel experiences across three primary product categories: land-based escorted tours (spanning North America, Central and South America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Europe, and Australia and New Zealand), river cruises operated on Emerald Cruises Star-Ships and Scenic Luxury Cruise Space-Ships across European, Nile, and Mekong waterways, and luxury yacht cruises aboard Emerald Superyachts and Scenic Eclipse I & II vessels. Its portfolio comprises more than 150 itineraries, supplemented by specialized travel styles such as scenic rail journeys, national park tours, holiday packages, and small-group adventures.

The company generates revenue primarily through one-time packaged tour and cruise sales rather than subscriptions or licensing, with all bookings routed through a dedicated phone-based call center (1-800-323-7604), a 24/7 online reservations portal, a travel-agent portal, and physical brochure distribution. GTM is sales-led with an event-driven overlay through annual Discovery Expos, supported by content marketing (travel blog, email newsletter) and organic social across Facebook, X/Twitter, and Instagram. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, and the company targets leisure travelers, retirees, and group travelers across the U.S. with an emphasis on removing planning friction. The underlying technology stack is conventional web and CRM infrastructure with no proprietary AI, no app, and no public API; competitive differentiation rests on brand longevity, itinerary breadth, and exclusive access to Scenic Group vessel inventory rather than technology.

Name

Mayflower Cruises and Tours

Legal name

Mayflower Cruises & Tours Pty Ltd.

Website

https://mayflowercruisesandtours.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Guided Tour and Cruise Operator

NAICS

Tour Operators (561520), Tour Operators (56152), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Luxury & Expedition Cruise Specialists (THAKAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Luxury Cruise + Land Expedition Operators (Cruise-Tour Programs) (THAEABAH), River Cruise + Land Tour Packages (Cruisetours) (THAEACAK), Eco-Cruises & Small-Ship Nature Cruises (Expedition Cruising) (THAAAEAK)

Keywords

• Guided tour packages
• River cruise vacations
• Luxury yacht cruises
• Group tour operator
• Travel booking services

Headquarters

HQ city

Downers Grove

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Guided Tour Packages: One-time tour packages for land-based guided holidays across North America and international destinations, including domestic motorcoach tours, international vacations, scenic rail journeys, and cultural experiences.
2. River Cruises: River cruise packages featuring itineraries on European rivers (Danube, Rhine, Rhône, Seine, Douro, Main, Mekong, Nile) and other destinations, operated in partnership with Emerald Cruises and Scenic luxury cruise lines.
3. Luxury Yacht Cruises: Premium yacht cruise experiences including Mediterranean, Caribbean, Antarctica, and superyacht experiences on Scenic Eclipse vessels.
4. Holiday Tours: Seasonal holiday tour packages including Christmas market tours and U.S./Canada holiday destinations.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Mayflower Cruises & Tours is a tour operator that sells curated guided travel experiences to leisure consumers. Its portfolio spans land-based guided holidays (motorcoach, scenic rail, national parks, small-group, and special-interest tours) across North America, Central & South America, Asia, Africa & Middle East, Europe, and Australia & New Zealand; river cruises on European rivers, the Nile, and the Mekong operated via Emerald Cruises Star-Ships and Scenic Luxury Cruise Space-Ships; and luxury yacht cruises aboard Scenic Eclipse superyachts and Emerald Superyachts in the Mediterranean, Adriatic, Caribbean, and Antarctica. The company distributes these packages through a call center, an online booking portal, an agent portal for travel professionals, and brochures.

Product overview

Mayflower Cruises & Tours operates as a tour operator offering a diversified portfolio of travel experiences. The company provides three primary product categories: Land Tours (guided holidays spanning North America, Central & South America, Asia, Africa & Middle East, Europe, and Australia & New Zealand), River Cruises (on Emerald Cruises Star-Ships and Scenic Luxury Cruise Space-Ships operating on European rivers, Nile, and Mekong), and Luxury Yacht Cruises (featuring Emerald Superyachts and Scenic Eclipse vessels). Additional offerings include specialized travel styles such as scenic rail journeys, national park tours, and holiday packages, supported by a loyalty rewards program and annual Discovery Expo events. Since 2018, the company has operated as part of the Scenic Group family, providing access to their fleet of luxury vessels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Land Tours Guided land-based holidays for leisure travelers covering North America (Eastern, Midwest, Southern, Western US, Hawaii, Mexico, Canada, Alaska), Central & South America (Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Panama, Brazil, Argentina, Chile), Asia (India, Japan, Turkey, Singapore, Thailand), Africa & Middle East (South Africa, East Africa, Jordan), Europe (Northern, Southern, Central & Eastern), and Australia & New Zealand.
• River Cruises River cruise vacations operated aboard Emerald Cruises Star-Ships and Scenic Luxury Cruise Space-Ships, with itineraries on European waterways (Danube, Douro, Main, Rhine, Rhône and Saône, Seine), the Nile in Egypt, and the Mekong in Asia.
• Luxury Yacht Cruises Luxury yacht cruising experiences aboard Emerald Superyachts (Emerald Azzurra, Emerald Sakara) and Scenic Eclipse I & II superyachts, with itineraries in Western and Eastern Mediterranean, Adriatic Sea, Caribbean and Central America, and Antarctica.
• Travel Styles Specialized tour categories that customers can select within the broader tour offering, including Autumn Foliage, Special Events, National Parks, Scenic Rail Journeys, Holiday Tours, Small Group Adventures, and Motorcoach Holidays.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Scenic GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018In 2018, Mayflower Cruises & Tours joined the Scenic Group family, opening the door to even more luxury cruise and tour experiences while continuing the personalized service and traveler-first philosophy. This acquisition brought access to Scenic's luxury cruise fleet and superyacht experiences.
• Emerald CruisescoreTechnology or IntegrationEmerald Cruises operates the Emerald Cruises Star-Ships fleet featured in Mayflower's river cruise offerings. Emerald provides luxury river cruise experiences on European waterways including Danube, Rhine, Rhône, and Douro rivers.
• Scenic Luxury Cruise LinescoreTechnology or IntegrationScenic Luxury Cruise Lines provides Scenic Luxury Cruise Space-Ships and Scenic Eclipse Superyachts featured in Mayflower's luxury cruise offerings. Vessels include Scenic Eclipse I & II with helicopter and submarine capabilities.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Collette: Family-owned guided tour operator founded in 1918 offering land tours across all seven continents at a similar scale and price point to Mayflower. Directly comparable business model (curated guided holidays, call-center sales, travel-agent distribution, 150+ itineraries) and overlapping customer base of North American leisure travelers and retirees.
• Globus family of brands: Operator of Globus, Cosmos, and Avalon Waterways, offering escorted land tours, river cruises, and small-ship cruises globally. Highly comparable to Mayflower because it pairs the same land-tour plus river-cruise product mix with multi-channel distribution (consumer, travel agent, brochure) aimed at the same North American leisure traveler segment.
• Tauck: Premium guided-tour and small-ship cruise operator offering escorted land journeys and river cruises worldwide. Comparable to Mayflower as a higher-AOV, curation-led tour brand selling both land tours and partner-sourced cruise inventory to North American affluent travelers via direct and travel-agent channels.
• Insight Vacations: Premium escorted tour operator (part of The Travel Corporation) offering guided land tours across Europe, North America, Africa, and Asia. Highly comparable in product (guided holidays, premium service tier), customer (affluent North American/European leisure travelers), and channel strategy (travel agent + direct).
• Trafalgar: One of the world's largest guided-holiday brands, also part of The Travel Corporation, offering 300+ escorted itineraries across multiple continents. Directly comparable to Mayflower on guided-tour product, geographic reach, reliance on travel-agent distribution, and target customer of leisure and senior travelers.
• Adventures by Disney: Disney-branded guided group tours across all seven continents plus river cruise departures. Comparable to Mayflower as a premium, fully-escorted tour brand selling high-AOV guided experiences to families and affluent travelers, with similar itinerary structure and reliance on curated content as a differentiation lever.
• Uniworld Boutique River Cruises: Boutique river cruise operator (also part of The Travel Corporation) running European and exotic river itineraries. Comparable to Mayflower's river-cruise offerings because both sell upscale river cruise packages to North American consumers via direct and travel-agent channels on partner-operated ships.
• Gate 1 Travel: Tour operator offering guided land tours, river cruises, and small-ship cruises across more than 75 countries. Comparable to Mayflower on broad guided-tour product mix, multi-channel distribution, and similar mid-market price tier, though Gate 1 leans more digital-direct in its go-to-market.

Broad incumbents

• Viking Cruises: Large river and ocean cruise operator with a strong North American direct-to-consumer brand. Comparable to Mayflower on river-cruise product, affluent senior target customer, and itineraries (Danube, Rhine, Mekong, Nile), but operates at significantly larger scale and owns its own fleet rather than reselling.
• AAA Travel: Travel agency division of AAA selling packaged tours, cruises, and guided vacations to a large North American membership base of older leisure travelers. Comparable to Mayflower on target demographic (AAA skews 50+), reliance on phone/agent-led sales, and curated tour + cruise product mix.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mayflowertours
• Facebookfacebook.com/mayflowertours
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mayflower-tours
• Instagraminstagram.com/mayflowercruisesandtours

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mayflower Cruises and Tours