Tauck reports it has entered into an exclusive, multi-year partnership with BBC Earth. The move will bring the expertise and perspectives of BBC wildlife filmmakers to Tauck’s itineraries offering travelers the opportunity to explore the natural world.
Tauck notes the BBC is a leading producer of award-winning natural history documentaries, such as Planet Earth, Frozen Planet, Life and The Blue Planet. Those series and other BBC productions have reached over 500 million people in over 180 countries worldwide to date, Tauck notes. Tauck CEO Dan Mahar said: "Our Earth Journeys will help BBC Earth to connect with their millions of fans in exciting new ways, enabling people to now experience the natural world with all five senses."
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"At the same time, Tauck will be providing our guests with a richer, deeper immersion into the natural world’s most compelling destinations. It’s truly a case of the whole being far greater than the sum of its parts," Mahar said. Amanda Hill, chief brands officer for BBC Worldwide, said: “This partnership offers a fantastic opportunity for BBC Earth to reach new audiences and share directly the knowledge and expertise of the BBC’s filmmakers to bring people a deeper connection with nature.”
The Earth Journeys collaboration will launch in 2014, with initial components of the partnership being phased into several existing Tauck itineraries over the course of the year. Those itineraries will include two African safaris (the 12-day “Botswana, South Africa & Zambia” itinerary and the 13-day “Kenya & Tanzania: A Classic Safari”), Tauck’s 13-day “Antarctica” cruise expedition, and its six-day “Manitoba: Polar Bear Adventure” in Canada. Enhancements to Tauck’s itineraries will include the creation of a series of original, exclusive films by BBC Earth that Tauck guests will view on location. These brief (approximately 10 – 20 minutes) vignettes will utilize BBC Earth’s resources, including the world’s largest collection of nature film footage plus insights and voiceovers from BBC Earth experts, Tauck says.
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The resulting films will provide context and add fresh perspective to the animal life and natural wonders that Tauck guests are experiencing during their travels. Tauck said it will also work with BBC Earth to use the same technologies employed by its filmmakers to bring Tauck guests into more intimate contact with the destinations they’re visiting. Specific technologies will vary by itinerary, and may include motion-activated camera traps, infrared night-vision cameras, long-range directional microphones, underwater cameras, and small fiber-optic endoscopic cameras.
Tauck said it will also work directly with BBC Earth filmmakers and naturalists, leveraging their passion and experience to add additional original content to the portfolio of Earth Journeys itineraries. BBC Earth will also work with Tauck to co-create entirely new Earth Journeys itineraries for launch in 2015 and beyond. Mahar added that the partnership provisions announced today are just a small hint of things to come.
“To use an appropriate analogy, this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Mahar. “Tauck and BBC Earth have a shared vision and passion for what this partnership can represent, and the possibilities are virtually endless. We’re looking forward to additional announcements in the weeks, months and years to come.”
BBC Earth is a leading factual brand for BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC. BBC Worldwide Limited is the main commercial arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
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