The key differences between tours and events

Early on in my journey developing the concept for Future Tides, I met Michelle Young and Augustin Pasquet of Untapped New York. Their combination of editorial content and experiential tours immediately inspired me.

Young founded the discovery-focused online magazine in 2009. Pasquet, her husband, later joined the business and is now CEO. In 2012, they “accidentally” started giving tours and later launched a new line of business that’s grown substantially over the past decade.

As part of my research, I attended a tour myself in New York and interviewed Pasquet about their tour operations. 

Tapping into tours

Untapped New York’s first tour was a “two-in-one situation.” It raised awareness about the tour location, a historic skyscraper, and allowed Young to meet her audience, which at its core are local New Yorkers.

“It’s just nicer than to read Google Analytics,” Pasquet said.

This set off a light bulb for Pasquet, who has a background in marketing and business. He saw a new revenue opportunity with upfront payment and low overhead costs. It also resonated with Untapped New York’s mission.

“You’re not in the business of publishing articles. You’re in the business of discovery,” he recalled telling Young. 

After that, tours shifted from a fun, creative side-project to a pillar of the publication’s business.

Events vs. tours

As a former event organizer for a media startup, I’ve often considered the differences between events and tours for journalism. Pasquet also sees them as distinctly different, with tours offering a more “lightweight operation.”

Even at its most basic, an event requires a venue with equipment, staffing and date-specific marketing. There are upfront costs and it may or may not be profitable. Tours offer an alternative.

“It’s a very low fixed costs operation to do tours, because in many cases it’s just people walking around. So it’s very easy and flexible to put together,” Pasquet said. “It’s also low coordination.”

Once you have a time and a place — that’s it — you can repeat the tour. This repetition is key. 

While you may have 10-20 people on a tour, compared to a 200-person event, you can repeat the same tour again and again. Over time, that adds up. 

“Whereas an event, it’s a one off thing, and then when it’s done, it’s done,” he said.

Pasquet is a big fan of this recurring business model because they can build promotion around it and respond to demand. If demand is strong, they keep sales open, adding times or tour guides to maximize that opportunity. 

This flexibility extends to what tours are available. Even if Untapped New York stops offering a specific tour, if someone asks, they can bring it back. When developing new tours, they invite guests for free and gather feedback like a focus group.

What makes a good tour? According to Pasquet, a high quality experience and creating a connection with your guests.

Find more valuable insights and practical recommendations from Untapped New York in my RJI Fellowship project: A Tour Guide for Journalists (launching March 2026).

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Cite this article

Kuhlman, Cara (2026, Jan. 13). A lightweight tour operation for your independent newsroom. Reynolds Journalism Institute. Retrieved from: https://rjionline.org/news/a-lightweight-tour-operation-for-your-independent-newsroom/