Tour operators are sharpening their focus on Gen X, saying that travelers in their mid-40s to 60 are increasingly turning to guided tours over independent travel because of a desire to make the most of limited vacation time.

Tauck in August said it will launch a new brand next year, Roam by Tauck, that will specialize in travel for people in their 40s and 50s. The typical Tauck traveler is a wealthy retiree, and though the operator will continue to cater to that customer base, the company is teeing up tours for this younger generation, said Tauck president Jeremy Palmer.

Palmer called Gen X "one of the most attractive markets … in our space."

The Roam brand comes after two years of research involving more than 4,000 travelers, Tauck said, a similar study to one done 20 years ago when boomers were the age Gen Xers are now. Palmer said the Gen X research revealed that they have a stronger interest in Tauck products like river and ocean cruises and small-group tours than boomers did.

"They're really attracted to the type of product that we provide," he said.

Though travelers of any age can travel across Tauck's different travel collections, the Roam itineraries were designed to optimize experiences for Gen X, Palmer said.

The research found that this generation of travelers -- which Palmer described as busy, successful and independent -- value travel experiences that enable them to "sort of step back and not worry about the details," with "moments of independence" mixed in. They also want to trade jam-packed trips for more laid-back ones.

"It was a pleasant surprise that these aren't just people who are independent in life and therefore want to be completely independent on their travels," he said.

With this in mind, Roam itineraries were built with half of the trip scheduled and the other half left open for solo exploration. (Palmer called this approach to itinerary building "guidance versus guiding.")

The itineraries feature multiple nights at each property rather than a new destination each day that requires unpacking a suitcase half a dozen times.

Though Tauck has not yet released specific itineraries, Palmer said that 2026 itineraries will bring travelers to Mexico City; Bordeaux, France; Bilbao, Spain; and on river cruises on the Douro and the Danube. The brand will expand to the U.S., Africa, Japan and New Zealand in 2027.

Gen X likes a tour package

The Globus family of brands is also seeing an influx of travelers from Gen X, with sales from that market doubling over the past five years, said chief marketing officer Steve Born. The company has been increasing its focus on Gen X for a while, Born said, with Globus' small-group tours and those that offer more choice being particularly attractive to that group.

The dramatic growth of what Born calls "the next generation of travelers" has led the company to commission a study to better understand the motivations and interests of Gen X when it comes to travel.

Born said Gen X travelers have found that with the pressure to make the most of their limited time off, vacations can feel high-stakes and pulling off a seamless trip is challenging to do on their own. "The stage is set for guided tours to be the answer to that, and I think we're just on the cusp of that for the category," he said.

Born said that Gen X is drawn to Globus tours due to the price point and the time value, echoing Palmer's point about those travelers wanting to maximize their limited vacation time.

"It's like, wait a minute, I only have a week to get away. How am I going to fit all this in? How am I going to schedule this? How am I going to get the most out of this week?" Born said. "Then, looking at guided tours and saying … I can get more out of a week with a guided tour, like twice as much experience, than I could get doing that on my own."