INTERVIEW LITHUANIAN TOURIST OFFICE
lithuaniaspeaks
Why should agents be selling Lithuania in 2011? Lithuania is one of Europe’s best-kept secrets – but that may not be the case for too much longer! We are very excited that WizzAir has
AUGUSTA JAUDEGYTE UK Director, Lithuanian National Tourist Offi ce 020 7034 1222
info@lithuaniatourism.co.uk www.lithuaniatourism.co.uk
Where to Book it Baltic Holidays 0845 0705711
www.balticholidays.com The operator has a variety of tailor-made options. A summer fl y-drive with three nights in Palanga, two nights in Kaunas and two nights in Vilnius is £769pp, based on two sharing. Flights, car hire and four-star B&B accommodation is included
decided to establish its 14th operating base in our capital, Vilnius. WizzAir is the fi rst low-cost airline to fl y to Vilnius airport, and it will open up the city to anyone seeking a value-for-money destination. From April 17 WizzAir will operate services
between London-Luton (fi ve a week), Doncaster-Sheffi eld (three a week), and Cork, Ireland (two a week). The services should attract those clients looking for a summer short break with a difference. The key thing for us is that WizzAir is establishing as base, which means it will not be moving anywhere after one season.
Have you done any guesstimates on how WizzAir’s new fl ights will impact on visitor numbers? Last May Ryanair opened a base in Kaunas, Lithuania’s second city, and announced new weekly fl ights to destinations that include London-Gatwick, Edinburgh, Barcelona, Berlin, Paris and Milan. This was in addition to its existing services from Kaunas that include London- Stansted, London-Luton and Liverpool. The airline has now fl own over two million visitors in and out of Lithuania and since its new fl ights in May we have seen a 15%, increase in visitors. The expectations are that WizzAir will grow arrivals by 5% this year.
“We hope to develop a core number of
travel agents with the necessary knowledge and confi dence to be able to recommend
Lithuania for longer than a two-night stay. We feel the potential for this is huge”
Although not trade friendly, agents can use Ryanair to dynamically package Lithuanian holidays. Agents should remember that our hotels are very reasonably priced compared with other European destinations, so that even if minimal commission is earned on the fl ights, a tailor-made break to Lithuania can still earn them commission.
What are you planning in terms of trade promotions and activities? We intend to strengthen our online travel training programme. It is now very well established and in the fi rst year alone around 2,000 travel agents signed up. We do have some plans for the UK travel trade and agents should look out for our news, which we will announce early in the year. We certainly intend to keep working with the trade. We hope 2011 will be a year of product expansion and development, and next year plan to take up to 30 travel agents to Lithuania, for an experience that will help them to better sell our products.
we have a seaside, we have rivers and lakes and we have countryside tourism?
The message we want agents to give to their clients is that Lithuania is much more than a city break. However we know that if travellers are looking for more than, say, a two-night city break, they will most likely have a gap in their knowledge about where and when to go and what to see. They will want to seek the knowledge and expert advice of local experts – and that’s where well-informed agents can come in.
What are your plans for agents? We hope to develop a core number with the knowledge and confi dence to be able to recommend Lithuania for longer than two nights. We feel the potential for this is huge. For example, we have over 2,000 lakes and both countryside and coastal tourism are well developed. We want to educate the travel trade to be part of our ‘story’.
Are there any specifi c reasons to visit Lithuania in 2011? Visitors from more than 100 European cities are expected to attend the International Hansa Days in Kaunas (May 19-22). This will be one of the greatest festivals
Explain why travel agents are still important to you. In common with many other destinations, in recent years we have seen a decrease in trade bookings and an increase in internet bookings, but we still consider agents an essential part of the booking process in the UK. We appreciate that not everyone wants to book online. There are lots of people out there who want the security of booking with a retailer. As bad as last year was for travel in general, I think agents will benefi t from the ash cloud and industry failures, which highlighted the very useful role they can play.
Does Lithuania particularly lend itself to good advice from agents? Yes, I think it does. We are not Spain in that we have a well-known offering of sun and sand, beach resorts, cities, golf, etc. How many agents know that aside from Vilnius we have other great cities that make for a perfect short break,
ever staged in Lithuania and will be a great time to visit. Over 100 events will include a medieval fair and carnival with a grand tournament of European (duelling) knights; markets, a hot air balloon fi esta, and a fi re performance above two rivers. There will also be a jazz festival, a folk festival and an Operetta in Kaunas castle.
14 Spring 2011 •
www.shortbreaksholidays.com
Post-it question
Q. How can agents help themselves sell more of Lithuania in 2011?
A. They should (a) train online and (b) learn all about our fascinating country. Then visit our website to see a list of UK operators and inbound operators selling Lithuania. Also, any agent is welcome to contact me personally. I will be more than happy to help them give the right advice.
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