Agent gives up her cruise for clients


Harry Kemble


A travel agent gave up her own cruise holiday to ensure her customers could sail on the same voyage aſter finding out their cabin was double-booked. Michele Dance, co-director


of Ocean World Travel, booked a group of 12 in February on an ex- Southampton sailing in August – and was due to sail on the same cruise. But she said she was “shocked”


to discover ahead of the cruise last month that three of her customers in one of four cabins she had booked


for them faced being bumped off the ship because it was overbooked. Te family-of-three – due to sail


with nine others on a trip to celebrate a 60th birthday – were unaware their three-night weekend cruise was ever in jeopardy. Dance said the Eastleigh-based


agency “fought tooth and nail” to ensure the customers were on board, but were unable to come to an agreement with the cruise line. So to save their holiday, Dance


decided to sacrifice her own cruise, which she had also booked in a family cabin with her own children.


Michele Dance, Ocean World Travel


“I asked my kids, and they


were lovely and agreed,” she told Travel Weekly. “I have been in the trade for


24 years and [overbooking] has only happened once before.” Dance said she believed other


customers were also affected by the overbooking, but she declined to name the line with which she works closely. She said the family – regular


bookers with Ocean World Travel – had contacted her aſter returning from their cruise to say thank you, but were still unaware of how close they came to losing their booking. “We received a lovely email from


them the other day saying that they had a wonderful time,” she added. “If only they knew!”


Hotel buffets ‘should cut waste’ Ian Taylor


Nearly two-thirds of holidaymakers think hotel buffet restaurants waste food and four out of five agree they should do more to avoid food waste, according to research on behalf of Tui. Te study among UK customers


by polling giant YouGov found almost nine out of 10 holidaymakers (86%) enjoy trying local food on holiday. But 63% agreed hotel buffet


restaurants “create unnecessary food waste” and 79% that they “should do more to avoid wasting food”. Tui has made cuting food waste a


priority, not just in its own hotels and on cruise ships but industry-wide. A trial involving Tui Cruises and


German-based sustainable food organisation United Against Waste


4 12 SEPTEMBER 2019


achieved a 17% reduction in waste. Tat initiative has been extended


across Tui Cruises, with UK brand Marella Cruises looking at how to follow it, and Tui has developed guidelines for the rest of the cruise sector and for hotels. Te research also found


a 10-point rise to 71% in the proportion of holidaymakers prepared to make lifestyle changes “to benefit the environment” compared with a similar survey two years ago. Te latest study, by YouGov,


suggested one in two holidaymakers (51%) would book a “more environmentally sustainable holiday” if readily available – on a par with two years ago. Tui Group sustainability director


Jane Ashton said: “Tere has been a significant shiſt tied to lifestyle


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Tui’s 300-plus hotels are sourcing more food locally


SPECIAL EDITION


changes. You see it in supermarkets and farmers’ markets – the desire to keep things local and reduce food miles. “People want to experience local


food and local culture on holiday and be involved with local people.” Efforts to source food locally


meant that 79% of food served at Tui Hotels and Resorts’ 300-plus properties last year was sourced in the destination country and almost


half (47%) from the local region. i Special Report, page 12 i Tui’s Dawn Wilson: Business, page 70


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PICTURE: Christopher Willan


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