p5 News Jan15 13/1/10 20:20 Page 5
ttglive.com
news
In brief
■ Compulsory deadline looms for ESTA
From January 30, all passengers travelling to
Touring body to
the US will need an Electronic System for Travel
Authorisation (ESTA). British Airways is recom-
mending customers apply at least 72 hours
before their journey. Once complete, the
application is valid for two years and allows
play its Ace card
multiple visits without the need to reapply.
■ Celebrity unveils new slogan for Solstice ships
Celebrity Cruises has announced a new brand
Rupert Murray.
C
O
opportunity and the real nature of
definition for its Solstice Class ships. The tagline SOME OF the top escorted tour oper- the holidays.
“Designed for You” will now be used to describe ators in the country have joined
STO
VER
R
Y
Insight Vacations and Trafalgar
the fleet as the result of a six-month study forces to create their own trade Tours sales director Paul Melinis said:
surveying the needs and expectations of 10,000 association. “We have been working independently
international cruisers. Around $3.7 billion has The founding fathers of Better for years but together, as a single touring
been invested in Celebrity Cruises’ five-ship Escorted Touring (BEST) hope by pulling voice, we can break through more barriers and
Solstice Class fleet. together they can drive a transformation of overcome perception issues with agents.”
perceptions of touring similar to what the Shearings commercial director Caroline Brown
■ HAL ventures into Yukon territory Association of Cruise Experts has helped agreed that speaking to the trade with one voice
Holland America Line is offering 13 cruise tours achieved for the cruise sector. could reap rewards far beyond those possible
featuring Canada’s Yukon Territory in 2010 with Key players have discussed working together with operators acting individually.
highlights including Whitehorse, Dawson City, for several years but have never before been able Collette Worldwide Holidays general manager
Tombstone Territorial Park and Kluane National to put aside competitive differences and agree to Peter Traynor said BEST could lead to every
Park with itineraries ranging from 10 to 20 days. speak with one voice. agent having a touring tab on its website.
But after TTG brought the companies together, The escorted touring market could “easily
■ Seabourn Quest unveiled for 2011 the touring sector, which carries about 300,000 double” in the next couple of years, according to
Yachts of Seabourn has revealed its newest people a year and is estimated to be worth at one agent who ditched cruise to focus on selling
vessel will be called Seabourn Quest and launch least £500 million, now has its own association. holidays in the sector.
in June 2011. The yacht follows in the footsteps of The key aims are to raise the sector’s profile
Coachholidays.com founder John Flin believes
sister ships Seabourn Odyssey, launched in June among the retail community, change agents’ many agents haven’t cottoned on to the poten-
2009 and second sister ship, Seabourn Sojourn, perceptions and help the trade understand the tial earnings: “This is a good time to push the
which launches in June this year. Together, the commercial opportunities. sector as a renaissance is on the cards. Touring is
three new vessels, which each carry 450 guests, Senior figures from Cosmos Tourama, Collette not as price-driven as cruise, the margins are
represent a capacity increase of more than 200% Worldwide Holidays, Page & Moy/Just You, Leger higher and the operators are very keen to help.”
for the line from 2009-11. Holidays, Insight Vacations and Trafalgar Tours, Karen Allen of Manchester agency Aspen
Wendy Wu Tours and Shearings gathered with Travel revealed her average escorted tour
■ Give it a go, urge tourist board and Emirates TTG in London to launch the venture. selling price is more than £2,000. “Once you get
Tourism Australia and Emirates have joined Page & Moy head of sales Colin Wilson believes someone on an escorted tour they come back
forces to create a national advertising campaign the new body gives agents a great opportunity again looking to tour another destination – and
encouraging Brits to holiday in Australia by to understand the breadth of the commercial we get no complaints,” she said.
promoting the country’s unique wildlife, laidback
coastal lifestyle, friendly locals and its “give it a
go” spirit. The campaign also highlights the
convenience of flying to Australia with Emirates’
one-stop services via Dubai.
■ Fred Olsen organises Balmoral Bridge games
Fred Olsen Cruise Lines has teamed up with the
English Bridge Union to offer a bridge tournament
onboard Balmoral on the 12-night Canary Islands
cruise, departing Dover on May 3. Prices start
from £1,004 per person. Bridge players must
Meet BEST’s
pre-book and will be charged an additional £100.
founding
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15.01.2010 05
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