Cruise News
A New Zealand Odyssey
PAUL GAUGUIN CRUISES will offer their fi rst ever two-week voyages to New Zealand in 2010, highlighting the vibrant Maori culture and friendliness for which the country is famous. The Paul Gauguin sails from her Tahiti base on November 6 and 21 to Moorea, Bora Bora, the Cook Islands, Tonga and then the Bay of Islands, Tauranga, Matakana Island and Auckland in New Zealand.
President & CEO Richard Bailey will accompany guests onboard to experience his home – the islands of French Polynesia – and, in honour of their fi rst-ever New Zealand sailing, the line has organised a number of special events for the voyages including: • President’s cocktail reception • A ‘Town Hall’-style meeting to share the company’s philosophy, their commit- ment to conservation, and news about eco-friendly developments
• A series of special lectures by renowned archaeologist Mark Eddowes
• And a commemorative gift Prices for the two voyages start from £5,655 per person, including return scheduled fl ights, transfers, 14 nights in an ocean-view stateroom with all meals, soft drinks, selected alcoholic beverages and gratuities. More info: call 020 7434 0089 or visit
www.pgcruises.com.
Closing the luggage gap
FRED HARGREAVE wasn’t looking to start a new business as a result of taking a cruise – but that is exactly what happened as a result of his most recent voyage. And travelling with luggage will never be the same again.
By Simon Veness
door to cabin door, so he started trying to fi gure out how this bane of all journeys could be solved.
H And, from a previous career in the
transport business, he was able to build an entire logistical operation from scratch – and THE BAGGAGE HANDLING COMPANY was born. Now, anyone who would like their
luggage transported for them, to be delivered swiftly, securely and hassle-free, from home to cruise ship, can either go online or call and it will all be taken care of. Hargreave explained: “Yes, I came up with the idea. We have been cruising for the last 7 years ourselves and I am now 68. It occurred to me that there may be a lot of passengers of a similar age who all struggle with their bags as we did. “So, on our last cruise, I decided to look into what services there were for luggage carrying and quickly found that, for Southampton, there was an obvious opportunity. I had quite a large company in transport some 15-20 years ago, so I had no problem dealing with the logistics. “We started researching last February.
We checked out how it was done in the US and Australia but there was nowhere in this country doing anything of the kind. So I just decided to give it a go. We had a website built and sent out various leafl ets and other material. We managed to get into ABTA and then gradually grew things from there.” ‘Gradually’ has quickly become a major country-wide business for Hargreave and his team, who have found several cruise lines keen to block-book his
16 WORLD OF CRUISING I Summer 2010
argreave, 68, fi gured he wasn’t alone in fi nding it awkward to get all his suitcases from front
company’s services. And, at £50 per case (up to 30kg) round-trip, there has been plenty of business to go round, too. The secret, Fred says, is the fact they handle and store everything themselves. Nothing leaves the company or is handled by anyone else, providing the essential peace of mind for those who wouldn’t normally let their own luggage out of their sight. Hargreave added: “We have since added services for Fred. Olsen and Readers Offers Travel. We started working for their clients straight away. It is such a simple operation because we don’t give it to anyone else. Everything is done in our own vehicles and in our secure store and we get it back to customers within 48 hours. We never leave it with anyone else. “With Fred. Olsen we have taken on
Dover and Portsmouth and, as things open up it is possible we will eventually open a similar storage system in Northern England, maybe Manchester or Leeds.” The phrase ‘From little acorns do mighty oaks grow’ probably wasn’t coined for a UK baggage handling company dealing purely in cruises and cruise ships, but it is perfectly apt. Their Southampton base has quickly become a thriving family enterprise and, in this day and age, anything that takes the stress out of travel – especially for those who don’t like to fl y – has to be applauded. So, the next time you are looking at all
your luggage by the front door and thinking ‘If only it could be magically transported straight to my ship,’ you don’t need to look for a magic lamp or a genie in a bottle – just call The Baggage Handling Company! More info: call 02380 873 111 or visit www.
thebaggagehandlingcompany.com.
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