I agree with you that there are crowds of selfie takers, camera sticks, tour buses, large group tours, long lines at tourist spots and locals trying to con tourists into buying their warez. It's all in good fun though, I like to keep an open mind and just simply take it all in and smile. When you see it that way, it is actually fun. Think about it this way, if you're not having fun on holidays because it is that busy and crowded, then ... spare a thought for the locals who's idyllic peace and quiet has turned into a nightmare? =)
Some of them you might have seen or heard, as they are physical stores in Australian locations: Student Flights, Student Universe, 99 bikes, Travel Money Oz
Some of them you would never even have thought up: Flight Centre Travel Academy (huh?), Flight Centre Sports and Events (huh??), Moneywise Global (homeloan? tax advise? broking? what???) ... but they do exist within the FLT business group.
And then there are the rest that generate income overseas that, the tours, holiday packages, experience packages, cross selling of accomodation, rentals, services, executive travel, travel "clubs", adventures & experiences ... I love those. I like businesses that have successful operations overseas, because it means it is hedging my predominantly AUD based portfolio with some USD and EUR earnings.
Do go into more detail, you'd be surprised by what a conglomerate FLT is. I used to only see them as the big red FLIGHT CENTRE store at shopping malls, until I decided to take a closer look on why on earth the FLT ticker kept posting increasing earnings and such strong free cash flow report after report.
FLT Price at posting:
$44.30 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
(20min delay)
