talking shop OUT AND ABOUT VIP style for Virgin’s top agents
BY JULIE BAXTER Five of Virgin Atlantic’s top-selling
agents were treated to a VIP trip on the airline’s inaugural flight to Vancouver, Canada. Flying out Upper Class with a host
of other VIPs, the agents received Virgin’s renowned Rockstar treatment during a weekend of celebrations including a launch party for the service attended by Sir Richard Branson. Hosted by Virgin’s head of regional
sales, Penny Munn, were Chris Young, Trailfinders, Pam Spratt, Dial-a-flight, Nicola Hopcroft American Express, Anthony Peckham, Reed & Mackay and Julie Cope, Chambers Travel. Also on the trip was latest teen
heart-throb, Connor Maynard, and UK Olympic gold medallist Amy Williams who was returning to Vancouver for the first time since winning her medal, for skeleton bobsleigh, in the city two years ago. The group checked out the mountains and spotted wild bears with a night at the Fairmont Chateau
SNAP SHOTS Kenya
Airways and Serena Hotels recently hosted a
screening of
Disney Nature's African Cats for 80 trade partners. Attendee Michael Creighton from Travel 2 won a great holiday for four, people with Kenya Airways flights and stays at the Serena Beach Hotel, Kilaguni Serena Safari Lodge and Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge.
BBC TV travel presenter
Whistler from where they luxuriated in a Scandinavian spa or joined cycling, zip-lining and hiking adventures out and about in the resort’s stunning landscapes. Their second night was spent at the Fairmont Pacific Rim, in Vancouver, where they attended a pre-party cocktail and canapé reception at the hotel followed by Virgin Atlantic’s
Vancouver launch party at the city’s Commodore Club. There was then just time to head
over to the city’s North Shore to cross Vancouver’s famed Capilano Suspension Bridge and check out Grouse Mountain complete with bear viewing, a lumberjack show and a fantastic helicopter flight-seeing trip over the mountains!
Famtastic to Peru and Easter Island ACE is on TV Suzie Prince, Co-operative Travel,
joined the Selling Long Haul and LAN fam trip to Peru and Easter Island. Her itinerary included time in the Brazilian capital combined with three days on Chile’s Easter Island. You can read the full story of the
group's adventures in the supplement distributed with this issue but here are a few highlights from Suzie: “Your first impression of Easter Island
is of a rustic and really authentic destination. It felt magical and reminded me of the Caribbean or Hawaii, or perhaps St Vincent 20 years ago. The people were so friendly and welcoming and the landscapes reminded me of the film Castaway. "I felt it was a real hidden gem that I
was discovering and to be honest I want to keep it a secret although that might not help my sales!. “Now I am back I will be selling this
to well-travelled older couples who want historic sites within a charming setting or perhaps to second time Australia clients wanting an alternative stopover on their way home.
60 June 2012 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com
Simon Reeve has made exclusive
appearances
at several Kuoni shops to talk about his epic adventure series ‘Indian Ocean’ on BBC2. The recent Sunday evening series covered destinations like Mozambique,
Mauritius, Seychelles, Somalia, Oman, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Australia.
The
The Association of Cruise Experts (ACE) is launching new social media tools in order to keep its member agents up to date. They include a series of live webinars
with the first featuring Hurtigruten, Cruise & Maritime, The River Cruise Line, Rocky Mountaineer and Crystal Cruises which will air in June and July. Also launching this June is ACE TV,
"Honeymooners looking for something different would definitely love it and those who don’t just want a beach holiday. I would advise clients to combine it in a two/three-centre holiday with Cusco for Machu Picchu and maybe even the Galapagos. That three-centre holiday could easily fit the bill for someone looking for a holiday of a lifetime. “The whole island is intriguing but it
needs researching before you send clients there to ensure they get the most from the trip. I’d recommend sorting out their tours before departure and encouraging them to stay at least three days.”
www.lan.com
featuring interviews with the movers and shakers in the industry. The first interview was with Royal Caribbean’s Associate VP and GM for UK & Ireland Jo Rzymowska and Giles Hawke, from Complete Cruise Solution, will appear in early June. Said ACE director Andy Harmer:
‘There’s a great deal happening in cruise and by providing webinars and ACE TV, it means we are able to bring the very latest information directly to agents at their desktops. These are the latest steps in our revitalisation programme to ensure that our travel agent members are kept up to date with all things cruise in a convenient and interactive way”.
www.cruiseexperts.org
Mauritius Tourism
Promotion Authority (MTPA) held its third
annual travel trade roadshow last month (May) in partnership with Air Mauritius. More than 300 travel agents from Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham and
London met representatives from 18 different Mauritian resorts. Eight lucky travel agents won a holiday to Mauritius and nine won stays at island resorts.
Maverick
Airlines and Helicopter Tours in Las Vegas flew
the British hit group JLS last
month (May). Groom-to-be and JLS star Marvin Humes’ stag party also took the opportunity to visit the iconic Grand Canyon with the long- established flight-seeing operator.
See yourselves in action in our latest fam trips to Brunei and South America
All available online in our great archive at
SellingLongHaul.com/reviews
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