Ken Bowie, employment reference, payment details and other personal papers

These archival files are part of a collection of objects that are representative of the early history of Contiki, a travel and tour company specialising in tours for 18 - 35 years olds, established by New Zealander John Anderson. Contiki tours to Europe have been hugely popular with young New Zealanders, and for many was a key part of ‘The Big OE’ (overseas experience), regarded to be a rite of passage for young New Zealanders since the 1960s.

Contiki began in 1962 and is still operating today. Originally the focus was Europe but now Contiki offers 300 trips to 6 continents including tours throughout New Zealand. With their focus on young people and the longevity of their offerings, the Contiki story is one that generations of New Zealanders can relate to either personally or through the experiences of their friends and family.

The first tours were mainly low budget tours and involved camping in tents. Contiki provided standard issue suitcases designed to fit neatly into the bus ensuring there was enough space for all the passenger's luggage - one of these suitcases is part of the acquisition but has been personalised with stickers relating to various stop offs on the tour.

Tour Manager Ken Bowie

Most of the collection of objects in this acquisition materialise the Contiki experience through the memories and experiences of Ken Bowie who was a Tour Manager between 1977 and 1981. By the 1970s, Contiki was a much-loved, well-established organisation whose success paralleled and is linked to the increase of young people travelling abroad during the 1970s and 1980s, a phenomenon enabled by Jet air travel.

Ken led many groups throughout Europe and was responsible for disseminating information about the places the group visited. He also navigated the bus, ensured the safety and wellbeing of the group, organised accommodation, and instigated various fun activities. Ken was responsible for coining the phrase ‘Sleaze tours’ which came to be printed on many of the unofficial Contiki souvenir t-shirts.

Contiki tours were renouned for being sexually charged boozy trips that whipped through Europe. For some a Contiki tour was more about the social side of travel but for others it was an opportunity to get a quick overview of a country or counties after which they would go back to the places they liked the best.

While the brochures, photos, newsletters, ephemera, suitcase, travel bag and postcards, relate to Ken Bowie and the tours he led, they are also representative of the Contiki travel experience and the organisation’s management approach. The objects are illustrative of the antics that typically took place of Contiki tours and some of the logistical challenges faced on tour.