Incentive Tour to Budapest and Paris for Car Dealers from Mexico

Case Study of an Incentive Tour for an Automaker

Client: Mexican subsidiary of a Japanese Automaker

No. of participants: 50

Destinations: Hungary (Budapest), France (Paris)

Period: September 2025 (8 days)

# Case Studies
# Event Solution
# Group Travel
# North/South Americas
# Europe

An incentive tour for 50 people to two European cities offered by a Japanese automaker. We spoke with two JTB representatives who led this tour to learn about the behind-the-scenes work required to manage a high-quality tour for affluent travelers.

A diagram titled 'JTB's Collaborative System for Successful Tours' illustrating the synergy between the JTB Account Based Marketing Team (a one-team network across Europe) and DMCs (Destination Management Companies with local expertise). It shows how their collaboration leads to 'Compelling Content Proposals' and 'Reliable, High-Quality Tour Management.'

Summary

・Planning and operation of an 8-day incentive tour to two European cities for about 50 top-performing car dealers offered by the Mexican subsidiary of a Japanese automaker.

・Sightseeing, site visits, meals, and exchanges were designed to a high standard and with attention to detail for the mostly affluent, experienced travelers.

・To ensure appealing tour activities and stable operation, there was close cooperation with DMCs and a “one team” system between European JTB branches.

・Dinners with live music and a river cruise facilitated exchanges between the participants and created a sense of unity among the group.

Speaker

JTB Europe,
Meetings & Events (JTB M&E)
Project Manager, Benelux

Yoshiko Tokita

JTB Europe,
Meetings & Events (JTB M&E)
Project Manager, France

Yumi Sato

Exterior view of the Esztergom Basilica, the largest cathedral in Hungary, showing its grand classical facade with columns and a statue in the foreground.

Offering High-End Tours for Mexican Car Dealers

Yoshiko Tokita: JTB M&E was requested to plan and operate an incentive tour (reward travel) for the Mexican subsidiary of a Japanese automaker. The company invited 50 of its most successful car dealers from around Mexico to join an eight-day tour to Hungary and France.

Yumi Sato: Many of the tour participants were affluent business owners with extensive travel experience, so we needed to organize all aspects of the tour—transportation, site visits, sightseeing, meals, and exchanges—to the highest standards.

Tokita: The itinerary in Hungary, where I was in charge, was centered on Budapest. In addition to a tour of a local car dealership, we included a visit to Esztergom Basilica, the largest cathedral in the country, a Hungarian wine tasting, and special restaurant dinners with live music. Since the guests were very knowledgeable about food and drink, we paid close attention to restaurants and menus to make sure they would be satisfied. Our strong partnership with the destination management company (DMC) which has a long and strong track record in the local market, allowed us to select attractive hotels and restaurants to create an optimal itinerary tailored to local conditions.

A high-quality, beautifully plated dish featuring grilled cauliflower and vibrant sauces, served at one of the carefully selected restaurants during the incentive tour.

Sato: Outside Japan, travel times and routes are often different to what web searches indicate. At times, there may even be sightseeing restrictions in some areas. A good DMC is always well informed and up to date, however, allowing us to plan well and ensure the peace of mind of our clients. For example, the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum each have their own specific reservation rules, but thanks to the flexibility and strong network of our DMC, we were able to navigate our requirements smoothly, even for a large group of 50.

Tokita: Of course, we didn’t just leave everything to the DMC. We visited local hotels and restaurants ourselves and held meetings for detailed discussions. We were especially careful to make sure that restaurants suited Mexican tastes, by focusing on meat dishes, making sure there was plenty of cola and hot sauce, and preparing menu cards with Spanish explanations of all dishes. To make sure that everyone would relax and enjoy their meals to the fullest, we meticulously designed every detail, from the seating layout and photo spots to restroom access.

Sato: Since I was taking over responsibility for the group in France, I stayed in close touch with Tokita to ensure that we kept the tone of the tour consistent. We tried to keep up a high standard of service, of course, but we also wanted to maintain a sense of unity down to small details such as the menu card design. This helped our guests to enjoy the tour as seamlessly as possible.

Yoshiko Tokita of JTB Europe, smiling and gesturing while discussing an incentive tour case study during an interview.

Overcoming the Unexpected Through Flexibility and Teamwork

Tokita: Various unexpected things tend to happen during tours. This time, due to a delayed flight, the guests arrived at the hotel very late at night on the first day. We therefore greeted them politely, sensitively considering their fatigue, and provided them with a dinner box to eat in their rooms.

Sato: During our stay in Paris, it happened that the two buses taking the guests to a wine cellar were set to arrive at very different times. Thanks to the adaptability of our hosts, the early group was able to proceed alone to a tour of Reims Cathedral, allowing all the guests to enjoy themselves without feeling inconvenienced.

Tokita: To deal with these kinds of situations, it is essential to cooperate closely with the people at the tour venues, hotels, restaurants, and DMC. In the second half of our stay in Budapest, the roads were congested due to a strike by the country’s largest taxi company. Traffic was practically stopped! However, by contacting the restaurant we were skillfully able to rearrange lunch and wine tasting to fit within our scheduled time. Since our DMC has been building strong relationships with local hotels and restaurants for many years, we received impeccable service. All the many questions that the guests wanted to ask about food and wine were answered thoroughly and politely by chefs and sommeliers. All the guests felt satisfied and bought numerous bottles and glasses.

Yumi Sato of JTB Europe, speaking thoughtfully about seamless tour operations in France during an interview.

Understanding and Meeting the Needs of Clients Through Collaboration and Expertise

Tokita: I believe that the success of this tour can be attributed to JTB’s three key strengths. The first is our close relationships with DMCs and other partners who are deeply knowledgeable about local conditions.

Sato: The second is our ability to respond seamlessly throughout Europe. The JTB branches in each country are not vertically structured. Since they operate side by side without barriers, they can cooperate with each other very flexibly. Through text chats and emails, they actively exchange information and support across countries every day. Even in areas without a JTB branch, such as Hungary, coordination between our European bases and sharing of information allows us to systematically respond to any kind of need. Since a Japanese person serves as a point of contact for clients, we can also offer characteristically Japanese attention to detail and scrupulous care, as well as tour planning ability that makes use of local cultural understanding and connections.

Tokita: The third strength is the vast experience accumulated by JTB and our DMCs, which is shared across the whole JTB network. This shared experience allows us to create appealing tour plans that meet the expectations of clients and to deliver high-quality tours, regardless of the country or personnel in charge. Seeing all the past tours and travel programs we have designed and operated also helps our clients to clarify their ideas and to enthusiastically work with us in planning their tours and travel.

A cruise boat sailing on the sun-drenched Seine River in Paris, with the Eiffel Tower and Pont Alexandre III in the background.

Tokita: With incentive tours like this one, clients want more than just pleasant sightseeing and food. In this case, for example, the client wanted the dealers to engage with each other more deeply, exchange knowledge, and motivate each other to perform even better. That’s an important theme for us too. We always reserved private rooms at restaurants and negotiated with them to arrange a live musical performance to make meals a special occasion. When the music began, all the guests quite naturally stood up to start dancing. Naturally, these experiences create a sense of unity and stimulate the conversation.

Sato: During a dinner cruise on the Seine (river), with the Eiffel Tower majestically looming behind us, everyone raised a glass of premium tequila and shared cake to celebrate the birthday of a surprised guest. It was an incredibly lively scene! This was typical of how the connections between people grew stronger.

Tokita: Although tours are short, our communication with guests gets deeper every day. So, instead of just doing support work in the background, we enjoy tours along with our guests and help to make it exciting. As well as the sightseeing spots and the food, guests also pay attention to our facial expressions. That’s why it’s vital that we do our best to provide sincere hospitality at every moment of the tour.

Sato: Rather than mechanically providing standard travel agent services, we value human interaction, sincerity, and meticulous attention to detail. That is our responsibility and the best and most essential part of this kind of work.