It’s this time of the year again. From Eastern Cape to Alaska, people are doing their last rounds shopping for Christmas and New Year presents and putting up the trees. Some are about to embark on a journey, while others are going through their groceries to see if everything is there for the big holiday meal. Children are wondering whether Santa has received their letter (and whether there is such a guy or is it the parents that smuggle the presents in). Adults are flipping through their moleskins and count the gains and losses of the old year.
The BookYourHunt.com team is no exception. Those of you who have been with us for a while know that we’re mostly a positive thinking, lemonade-out-of-lemons kinda bunch, so we focus on the wins. Yes, this has been another abnormal, anxiety-filled year, so what? First, you’ve got but one life, and should make the most of it, and then again, it was still better than the previous year.
In 2020, we were proud that our marketplace for hunts has not seen any decrease in traffic and bookings as compared to 2019. That was a real bad year for the tourism industry, which overall experienced losses by an average of 50%, with many companies closing for good. However, it allowed BookYourHunt.com to show its strengths: efficiency and flexibility. Shifting the focus from global to local allowed us to hold our own. 2021 proved to be much better, and we’re seeing again the growth that BookYourHunt.com has experienced since its launch in 2015.
Of course, success comes only to those who work on it, and we haven’t been idle. A lot of new things were added to the website to make your experience even better, especially in the mobile version of the website. Better search filters and better price calculators make it easier to find your adventure, and you can now book your hunt from our mobile app, available for both Android and iOS users. Even more exciting features are coming in 2022!
Have you checked out our YouTube channel? It has interviews with outfitters, short hunting tips, and perhaps the cream of it, the BushTV series: wildlife videos captured by trail cams. Enjoy wonderful and occasionally hilarious wildlife, and get an idea on what the outfitters have on their properties, and how these properties look like.
We’ve always said that BookYourHunt.com was “just like a big outdoor show, only better”. This year the “show” part became real. From January 20 to February 20, 2021, we’ve run our first Online Hunting Show. The survey that we run in its wake showed that most of our outfitters liked both the idea and its outcome. Based on their suggestions, we decided to repeat the Online Hunting Show in 2022. From January 14 to February 13, 2022, you’ll get the best that you expect from a hunting show: best deals and exclusive offers, without the worst of the outdoor show: travel, hotels, crowds.
While we’re at it, with the outdoor show in mind, it pays to be a registered user of BookYourHunt.com. It’s free and comes with absolutely zero obligations for you, but it gives you access to the best deals that are reserved to BookYourHunt.com users only. In addition, we’ll be having a gift card giveaway – sign up to learn all details!
All in all, we’re looking into the future with optimism. Whatever happens, people keep hunting, and we’re positive that there will be travel opportunities as well. You simply can’t keep the planet locked and closed forever without terrifying economic consequences. Life goes on, and so does hunting. And fishing, too – haven’t we told you about our sister website, BaitYourHook.com, which is everything that BookYourHunt.com is, but for anglers? We launched it only a year ago, but you can already find fishing trips all over the world there!
As you sip your Glühwein by the cracking logs in the fireplace, or a mojito at the swimming pool, as the case might be, you may find that the losses and shortcomings of the year that is about to pass dominate your thoughts. But we hope it is not so. This year was definitely better than the past, and the next year is bound to be even better. Stay safe, keep calm and go hunting.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
