Benjamin David, Sales & Marketing Manager at one of Amsterdam’s most iconic attractions, explains how a balanced strategy of direct sales and key OTA partnerships keeps the Heineken Experience on top of visitors’ must-do lists, wherever they come from. The Heineken Experience is keeping the brand’s brewing legacy at the heart of the city.
Housed in the brand’s original brewery in the heart of Amsterdam, The Heineken Experience is an immersive journey into the “world’s most famous beer.” When the brewery ceased operations in 1988, there was a clear call to honor its legacy. The Heineken Experience was a natural progression, opening in 2001 and quickly becoming one of Amsterdam’s top .
The attraction’s continued success lies in a strategy that blends its rich history with modern innovation. For Benjamin David, Sales & Marketing Manager, a key part of that strategy is seeking outside perspectives through partnerships. “We like to say in this building, ‘When you are inside the bottle, you can’t read the label,’” he explains.
“Having a partner can help you zoom out and see what’s happening in the wider market.” This collaborative approach has been instrumental in driving growth. Here, Benjamin shares his insights on striking the right balance between direct sales and OTAs, using data to innovate, and how he leverages GetYourGuide’s global reach to stay ahead.
What has your journey at the Heineken Experience been like so far?
“I started at Heineken seven years ago as a digital marketer, responsible for our website, online sales channels, and digital campaigns. My role grew, and about four and a half years ago, I became the manager of our marketing, sales, and customer service teams. Currently, I oversee the commercial strategy, which encompasses all our partnerships, marketing initiatives, and sales efforts aimed at driving sustainable business growth. I’m also part of the management team, so we’re always looking at how the Heineken Experience fits within the broader Heineken brand strategy.”
For those who haven’t visited, what can people expect from the Heineken Experience?
“We are the brand home of Heineken. As soon as you enter the building, you get immersed in our world. You’ll learn everything about Heineken, from our brewing process to our history of innovation and sponsorship, all in its first purpose-built home. The tour is interactive, and of course, it includes tasting the beer itself.
Our most popular option is the self-guided tour, but we have upgrades available to our rooftop bar or VIP tour for a more intimate, guided experience — there are extra beer tastings from the Heineken portfolio with those, too. We also partner with other local attractions to offer combination tickets with things like canal cruises, so you can continue your experience outside our walls and get the complete Amsterdam experience.”
What was your biggest focus when you joined the Heineken Experience team?
“When I joined, most of our sales came from OTAs and resellers. There was a big focus on growing our own channel to capture customer data directly and have more control over the online narrative. We wanted the guest experience to start on our website, even before they arrived. We grew our direct sales significantly in just a few months, which was a success, but it also started a conversation about our long-term strategy.”
That’s interesting. So why did you decide to continue working with OTAs instead of focusing only on direct sales?
“We quickly realized that you need OTAs for many different reasons. It’s all about finding the right balance. There are markets you can’t reach, audiences you can’t talk to, and resources you don’t have access to on your own. That’s why we collaborate with partners like GetYourGuide. They might be very strong in a country like Germany or the US, for example, and can help us tell our story and sell tickets in a market where they already have a captive audience. Each OTA has different strengths, whether it’s their technology, their geographic reach, or the specific audiences they attract. It’s now a key part of our sales and marketing mix, both direct sales and third-party platforms, and the two are working together extremely well.”
Does reaching such a diverse international audience mean you have to constantly adapt the experience?
“We’re very lucky in that respect. We have between 150 and 200 tour guides at any time, and they speak pretty much every language you can think of. While the main tour is in English, having that diversity in our team brings a lot to the experience. On any given day, there will always be someone who can speak Dutch, Spanish, German, Chinese, or French. We also have an audio guide to help, and we’re always exploring new technologies to lower those language barriers even further.”
Have you used data or insights from GetYourGuide to evolve the Heineken Experience?
“The idea to combine experiences outside of the brewery was actually recommended by our account manager at GetYourGuide. They had the insight that many customers’ baskets included tickets for the Heineken Experience and the growing canal cruise segment, so suggested we create an all-in-one ticket with a boat company. We did, and the sales flew. They also noted that workshops and food experiences were on the rise, which gave us ideas for new combinations.
I love the entrepreneurial spirit GetYourGuide brings to the partnership. It’s not just about selling tickets, although our success is theirs too, of course. We have conversations about new trends and what’s happening in the market. Like, ‘Okay, guys, look what’s happening, maybe in Germany or in the US or in Asia.’ Their outside perspective is always really helpful and means we aren’t staying inside our own bubble — or bottle.”
GetYourGuide’s analytics and market recommendations are available to all partners, supporting innovation and growth for businesses of any size.
How does that collaborative spirit help when you’re looking for new solutions?
“It means that ‘no’ is never the first answer. It’s always a conversation. It’s ‘let’s talk about it, let’s see if we can do something together, let’s see if we can make this work.’ That’s incredibly valuable. Recently, our account manager and I discussed how the Amsterdam market was under pressure and how a lower price point would impact sales overall. We had a conversation about it and decided to run two pilots together to test the idea. The results were quite positive. It’s that ability to quickly test a hypothesis based on shared data that really helps. Having productive conversations about what’s working and what’s not.”
Is it easy to manage day-to-day things like content updates with GetYourGuide?
That is managed through the GetYourGuide team, who are incredibly helpful and proactive. Because of our internal policies at Heineken, we don’t have direct access to the GetYourGuide backend to make changes ourselves. We rely on the support team for everything, from getting information to updating content. The collaboration is great and makes it easy to keep things up to date and respond quickly to new opportunities.
The Heineken Experience boasts a 4.6 to 4.8-star rating based on over 36,000 reviews on GetYourGuide. How do you maintain such high guest satisfaction?
“Quality is one of our top three objectives. It starts with our staff. They are key to the experience and undergo months of training before leading a tour. Second is the quality of the tour itself; we ensure everything is up-to-date and functioning perfectly. Finally, our Development and Innovation team is continually working to keep the experience fresh and worth sharing.
We also listen to feedback. We have a system that analyzes thousands of customer reviews each month, which provides valuable insights and recommendations. Our operations team can then act on immediate feedback — such as if the music is too loud — and inform our future vision and strategy based on the longer-term ideas and feedback. Word of mouth is priceless, too, and the only way to ensure you get that is always to give high quality.”
What’s your key message to anyone who wants to forge the right relationship and balance of direct and OTA sales?
“I think you need to come together if you really want to go far. The tourism industry today can be unpredictable. You have to ask, ‘What kind of value can an OTA bring to us, and what value can we bring to them?’ If there’s mutual value, it’s worth having a conversation. For us, it’s about reaching new audiences and leveraging our partners’ market strengths. For a smaller operator, a partner like GetYourGuide can help you go from selling one ticket to one hundred tickets a day. It’s a key relationship.”
Key takeaways
- OTAs unlock new markets. Even for a world-famous brand, OTAs provide crucial access to specific countries and customer demographics that are hard to reach alone.
- Partnerships drive innovation. The data and insights from GetYourGuide have led to the development of new product combinations, like canal cruise packages, and informed successful pricing strategies.
- Quality is a team effort. Maintaining a satisfying, high-quality guest experience comes from intensive staff training, constant innovation, and a structured process for analyzing and acting on customer reviews.
- Collaboration is key in a changing industry. In today’s unpredictable tourism landscape, working together with partners provides shared insights and the ability to test and learn together.
- Leveraging GetYourGuide’s global audience, data, and flexible tools helps attractions of any size grow, innovate, and adapt in a changing market.
