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70 | TRAVEL TRADE NEWS
January 2024
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ABTOT Joins UK Outbound Travel Lobbying Group
THE Advantage Travel Partnership, Britain’s largest consortium of independent travel agents, and AITO (The Specialist Travel Association) announced that ABTOT will be joining their lobbying efforts with immediate effect.
ABTOT is an approved body, appointed by the UK Government Department for Business and Trade, and operates and regulates a financial protection bonding scheme for travel organisers who need to comply with UK Travel Regulations. Advantage
and AITO formed a
partnership in October 2022 to raise the profile of the independent and specialist UK outbound travel industry with UK government and policymakers, and to draw political attention to the many issues facing their members.
The extended partnership with ABTOT covers more than 1200 leisure and business travel businesses across the UK.
Stuart Byron Leaves Royal Caribbean Stuart Byron,
Royal Caribbean
International’s Sales Director for the UK, Ireland and Spain, is set to leave the line to take up a new role.
The company said Byron, who joined as insights director in early 2018, had decided to “take on a new challenge outside of the travel industry”. Royal’s UK and Ireland sales team will report in the short term to head of sales admin and trade marketing Nicki Lewis.
Greek National Tourism Organization and Mastercard Commit to Strategic Cooperation on Tourism
THE Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) and Mastercard signed an agreement to further expand their successful cooperation in recent years and create new prospects for joint actions aimed at promoting and upgrading the Greek tourism product. The agreement was signed at the World
Travel Market London by the Secretary General of the Greek National Tourism Organization,
Dimitris Fragakis, and
Hays Travel Tour Operator to Rebrand Under Different Name
HAYS Travel Tour Operator (HTOL) will be rebranded Vista from the end of 2023. Sales and product for HTOL have been headed up by former Travel2 manager, Kathleen Molloy, since May 2022; meanwhile Head of HTOL Operations, Tracey Luke, has been with HTOL since it was established in 2012. As Vista, the B2B-only tour operator
will provide travel agents with a greater product offering and expertise across cities, beach, cruise-and-stay, and touring holidays, by bringing in a dedicated in- house product team to drive further growth.
Kathleen Molloy will be Head of Vista
Sales and Product, she said: “We have done a lot of work to build HTOL’s expertise and reputation over the past three years and now is the right time to rebrand. It’s an opportunity to move our operation to the next level, by strengthening our existing relationships with agents and building partnerships with new ones.”
As well as deepening its connection and visibility within the travel industry, the move will also see Vista expand its offer beyond the city breaks and beach holidays it is well-known for.
Mastercard’s Country Manager for Greece, Cyprus and Malta, Panagiotis Polydoros. It focuses on 4 main pillars of cooperation: the implementation of co-advertising actions, the
upgrade of the Visit Greece
application, so that it becomes a reference point for the visitor,
the provision of travel trend data through
the Tourism Insights platform that will lead to an even better understanding of visitors preferences.
the future involvement of the Greek National Tourism Organization in the Mastercard Tourism Innovation Hub, a Mastercard initiative aimed at promoting innovation and sustainability in the tourism sector.
Following to the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Mastercard, the Secretary General of the Greek National Tourism Organization Dimitris Fragakis, declared: “The G.N.T.O. is once again at the cutting edge regarding its partnerships with the private sector. The signing of the agreement confirms the strategic alliance of the G.N.T.O. with Mastercard and paves the way for the Greek tourism internationally. Investing in innovation, new technologies and statistical data is of crucial importance for the promotion of the Greek tourism. In a constantly evolving ambience this collaboration guaranties excellent results for the Greek tourism in the near future.” Mastercards Country Manager for Greece, Cyprus and Malta, Polydoros, in
Greece
said: is
a
“Supporting tourism strategic
priority
Panagiotis for
Mastercard, guided by its importance as a pillar of growth for the Greek economy. We are thrilled by the expansion of our strategic partnership with the Greek National Tourism Organization.
EMIRATES CHRISTMAS EVENT
VISIT BELFAST CHRISTMAS LUNCH
Local Travel Agent Scoops Award at MSC Cruise Agent Champion Awards
AMERICAN Holidays has picked up the award for Top New Business Partner Ireland for MSC Cruises at the first ever MSC Champion Awards, held in the iconic BT Tower in London on November 1. Astrid Bell, Cruise Product Manager American Holidays said: “I couldn’t have been prouder to be recognised for our expertise in cruise at the first ever MSC Champion Awards, at the iconic BT Tower in London on the 01 November 2023 where I picked up an award on behalf of myself and our incredible team on winning Top New Business Partner Ireland for MSC Cruises.”
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