NEWS ROUND-UP NEWS IN BRIEF
Lines react to Bermuda’s same-sex marriage ban
Same-sex weddings hosted on ships registered in Bermuda will no longer be permitted after the British overseas territory repealed a law on the issue. Sister lines Cunard and P&O Cruises, which both have ships registered in Bermuda, are “very unhappy” about the change, which outlaws same-sex marriage ceremonies on their ships. The lines will offer alternative “commitment” ceremonies on board.
Three Britons die in Grand Canyon helicopter crash
Three British holidaymakers who died when a helicopter crashed in the Grand Canyon were named as Becky Dobson, 27, and brothers Jason Hill, 32, and Stuart Hill, 30. Three other Britons and the pilot were injured in the crash on Saturday. The helicopter flight was operated by Papillon Airways.
Der Touristik in talks to buy the Kuoni brand in France
Kuoni’s German parent Der Touristik is in talks to buy the owner of the Kuoni brand in France. Negotiations with Travel Lab SAS are due to be finalised by June. Travel Lab is a high-end French operator, with brands including Kuoni, Vacances Fabuleuses, Scanditours, Celtictours, Les Ateliers du Voyage and Donatello.
Kevin O’Regan joins RWH Travel as managing director
Specialist walking holiday company RWH Travel has appointed Kevin O’Regan as managing director. O’Regan, who starts on February 19, takes over from Kathy Cook and Tony Lock who were joint managing directors for 17 years. He previously worked at Tui, Wyndham Worldwide and Disney and was product and commercial director at Monarch Holidays.
Turkey is Cook’s ‘standout destination’ for bookings growth
Turkey has become Thomas Cook’s joint-second-bestselling summer destination, as the country recovers from terrorist attacks and political upheaval. Chief executive Peter
Fankhauser said Turkey was the “standout destination” in all markets, with UK sales picking up earlier than in Germany.
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travelweekly.co.uk 15 February 2018
Spain remains Cook’s number-one destination, with Turkey and Greece joint second. Official figures released last
week also showed Turkish tourism revenue rebounded last year by 18.9% year on year after recovering from a
“Turkey, Egypt and Greece are seeing good growth across all source markets”
Cook urges Peta to ‘work with us’ on animal welfare
Amie Keeley
amie.keeley@
travelweekly.co.uk
Thomas Cook has reasserted its commitment to stop selling animal excursions that fall short of welfare standards amid protests by animal activists.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) supporters stood outside Cook’s offices in London last week during its AGM demanding the company stops selling SeaWorld tickets. Chief executive Peter
Fankhauser said the company had “an ambition to improve” standards and if SeaWorld was found to fall below them it would
stop selling it. He said SeaWorld was one of the next operators to be checked as part of an audit of all animal attractions Cook sells. “We want to improve the welfare of animals and we are following our process,” Fankhauser said. “We are in constant talks [with
Peta] but we are not just following pressure from pressure groups.” Tui and British Airways are among other holiday companies that also sell the attraction. Fankhauser said: “It’s clear Peta
felt we took the lead in this policy so they perhaps targeted us because we publicly stated our ambition. They target the leader because that will have the biggest impact.” Cook has audited 46 animal
excursions and removed 29 of them from sale because they failed to meet standards. The remaining 65 will be audited during 2018. In a blog, posted on the company’s website, Fankhauser wrote: “By taking a considered and methodical approach, we have improved the welfare of thousands of animals, and I am determined to continue along the path we’ve set out. Rather than fight against us, I’d urge them [Peta] to work with us to effect real change across the industry.” A statement from SeaWorld said:
“We have been in discussions with Thomas Cook and we continue to work collaboratively with them throughout this process.”
PETA: Animal rights activists protest outside Thomas Cook’s London offices last week
series of terrorist attacks and a failed coup. Fankhauser said: “We have made an encouraging start to trading for summer 2018, with our holiday and flight programme now 34% sold, 3% higher than this time last year. “Turkey, Egypt and Greece are seeing good growth across all source markets, while the very strong demand we have seen for Spain over the three years appears to be normalising.” › Thomas Cook results, page 79
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