EDITOR’S COMMENTS
NEWS Hot Stories
04 – Corfu inquest hears hotel lied about gas boilers; industry raises £250,000 for Nepal; World Travel Holdings/TTNG deal enables dynamic cruise packaging; Abta calms fears of Greece cash shortage
News Digest
08 – Report divides travellers into ‘tribes’; green toolkit targets waste; PPA Group appoints Tom Knopek; lawyer Peter Stewart dies; Canada launches five-year eTA for visitors
Conference Report
10 – Hays Travel and Bolsover partner to push growth in cruise
DESTINATIONS
Special Report 12 – Holiday Confidence Index reveals growing uncertainty
NEWS YOU CAN USE Product News
15 – Do Something Different in free access to new Orlando attractions
Operator News 16 – Gold Medal expands in Florida
Hotel News 18 – Mecure heads to the Maldives
Cruise News 21 – Royal Caribbean airs radio ad campaign aimed at virgin cruisers
The US
41 – Florida’s beaches: pick the perfect stretch of sand every time 47 – Utah: awesome and accessible 50 – Civil War is a draw for visitors
Malta
55 – There’s so much more to Malta than first meets the eye JOBS AND CLASSIFIED
59 – Vacancies and business services TRAVELWEEKLY BUSINESS
News
68-70 – Airbnb happy to host landlords with multiple properties: report from World Tourism Forum
ALL ABOUT YOU
Letters 24 – Cook; Tui; Gatwick trains
Comment 26 – Andy Freeth: knowledge is king
All For You 28 – Win an Air France/KLM flight
Readers’ Lives 30 – Rebbeca Kingston, Dress In Love
Mystery Shopper 38 – Thomson is tops in Eastleigh
LUCY Editor-in-chief HUXLEY
A difficult week is defined by tragedy
tragedies that have been felt keenly by many. The sudden death of leading lawyer Peter Stewart as we
I
went to press came as a shock to all who knew him, and our thoughts are with his family and many friends this week. On an entirely different scale, the images of Nepal over the
past few days have been horrifying. It is gratifying to see so many operators and agents stepping forward to help not just their own customers, but the people of a beautiful country who now face an uncertain future. The third story is no less tragic, with the inquest opening into the deaths of Robert and Christianne Shepherd in Corfu, in 2006. Reports from Wakefield Coroners’ Court bring back memories of a truly dark episode for the industry and, as a parent, it is heartbreaking to consider what the family must still be going through. The findings of the inquest, which is likely to conclude in about two weeks’ time, could have implications for the companies concerned, including Thomas Cook – where there have been widespread management changes in the intervening period – but also for the wider industry. The fact that the coroner’s inquiry is taking place before a jury is an acknowledgment of the public concern. It is no consolation that the inquest could also serve as an opportunity to restate the industry’s commitment to health and safety, and the importance it places on safeguarding customers at every stage of a journey.
lucy.huxley@
travelweekly.co.uk WHAT LUCY DID THISWEEK 1
2 3
Chaired the judging for this year’s Agent Achievement Awards – such tough decisions in every category. Thanks to all the judges and entrants.
Caught up with Abta Lifeline – our chosen charity for this year’s Agent Achievement Awards.
Watched my son take part in a county-wide inter-school general knowledge quiz tournament.
30 April 2015 —
travelweekly.co.uk • 3
t has been a sobering week for the industry, with this issue of Travel Weekly including reports of three very different
CONTENTS Inside your number-one industry mag!
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