Arthur Tauck Jr. — a 2nd-generation family business owner whose locally based Tauck Tours revolutionized the travel industry, and who made a major mark on Westport by saving National Hall — died Wednesday at his winter home in Vero Beach, Florida, surrounded by family. He was 94.
In 1950, at 18 years old, he joined his father’s fledgling tour company, Tauck Tours, as a young tour director. He led guests through New England every summer, during his undergraduate studies at Lehigh University. He graduated in 1953, with a degree in marketing.
A devoted alumnus, in later years Arthur supported an endowed scholarship, a faculty chair in international marketing and logistics, and the Tauck Scholars Program, which has funded hundreds of rising seniors to complete international business internships.
Arthur Tauck
After graduation he entered the US Air Force as a lieutenant, and spent several years stationed in Germany.
Arthur returned to the family business in 1956. He became president 2 years later, at 27. Those formative experiences shaped a lifelong commitment to people, service and hospitality.
Arthur settled his growing family in Westport. and became active in the community. He learned to sail, and taught himself celestial navigation to pursue his passion for ocean racing. He twice served as commodore of Cedar Point Yacht Club.
Arthur was also an avid skier, golfer and scuba diver, and enjoyed biking the winding roads of Fairfield County in the early morning.
He also loved sharing summer evenings with family and friends in his gazebo, savoring a cold martini, and a smooth cigar.
Arthur Tauck with a cigar and martini, at his Westport home.
Arthur reveled in tackling new projects and interesting ideas. From 1987 to 1992 he created the National Hall Historic District in downtown Westport, preserving 19th century history at the corner of the Post Road and Wilton Road.
At the time, there was a very real possibility that the 1873 National Hall building would be demolished.
The Inn at National Hall.
Instead, he restored it into a Relais Chateaux hotel, with 13 rooms and an award-winning restaurant. The district also included the 1931 Vigilant fire station (now Oko Restaurant), and several brick buildings and walkways along the Saugatuck River.
The Tauck family also donated the old-style street lights that line the nearby Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
The Tauck family donated the old-fashioned street lamps, on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge. (Photo/JC Martin)
Arthur forged long-lasting friendships with people from all over the world, and all walks of life. He was a master storyteller, with a great sense of humor. He believed deeply in “doing the right thing” with humility, integrity, generosity and care.
His impact on the travel industry is immeasurable. Over 75 years, Arthur’s entrepreneurial spirit led to many new ways for Tauck guests to experience the world.
In the 1960s, with the rise of jet planes, he saw an opportunity to introduce guests to the national parks of the western United States, Hawaii and Canada.
Inspired by his own passions for hiking and bicycling, he pioneered heli-hiking in the Canadian Rockies in the 1970s, and curated Tauck’s Yellow Roads of Europe in the 1990s, offering authentic experiences off the beaten path.
Arthur Tauck helped create, and popularize, both heli-hiking and heli-skiing in the Canadian Rockies.
His love of the sea and the historic waterways of Europe is reflected today in the company’s intimate and culturally rich ocean and river cruise experiences.
While these and many other innovations cemented his place as a travel industry visionary and pioneer, his personal motivation was always to the guest experience, with a strong commitment to service, value, and the human touch.
He believed deeply in the power of travel as a force for good in the world, whether by building understanding among people, preserving history and culture for future generations, or fulfilling individual dreams.
In 1994 Arthur founded the Tauck Family Foundation. The family endeavor encourages multiple generations to work together to give back, and make a positive impact on the world.
Today, the foundation supports communities to maintain healthy, regenerative ecosystems and land use practices through education and engagement.
Having lost his mother at age 5 and his father in his late twenties, Arthur valued family above all else.
He taught his young children to sail on Long Island Sound and to ski challenging terrains in Vermont. He supported his grandchildren, showing up at their games and school programs, and enjoying conversations with them.
He loved working alongside his adult children and son-in-law in the family business, and was confident that his grandchildren would uphold the company’s values and steward it successfully in its second century.
The 2nd and 3rd Tauck generations (from left): Peter, Chuck, Robin, Ronni and her husband Arthur, Liz. Most live (or have lived) in Westport. Missing: Kiki.
In addition to his wife Ronni, Arthur is survived by his sister Connie; his former wife Lee, and their children, Chuck (Fran), Robin, Peter Tauck, Kiki Mahar (Dan) and Liz Walters (Fred); step-children Bernhard Duerrmeier (Amber), Marina Rizzi (Damian), Christopher Duerrmeier (Laura), and Philip Duerrmeier; 21 grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.
Arthur’s family will celebrate his life in a private memorial service later this spring. Contributions in his memory may be made to Tourism Cares, a non-profit dedicated to advancing sustainability and meaningful travel within the tourism industry, or Fairfield County’s Community Foundation.
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A personal note: For nearly 2 decades, I wrote Tauck Tours’ internal newsletter, for its tour directors. It was a great gig — both for travel opportunities, and because I got to meet Arthur Tauck.
He was warm, generous, fully engaged, quite funny — and very, very active.
One memory stands out. At an annual meeting for tour directors, Arthur gave an informative, inspiring “state of the company” presentation. Then he answered a wide range of questions, with honesty and insight.
He closed with this: “If anyone wants to talk any more, I’ll be rollerblading tomorrow morning at 7. You’re welcome to join me.”
He was in his 70s then.
That’s the Arthur Tauck I’ll always remember.
(In 2015, “06880” saluted Tauck, on the company’s 90th anniversary. Click here to read that very intriguing back story.)
Arthur Tauck
