62 | TRADE NEWS


www.nitravelnews.com


June 2024


Gold Medal Launch First 2024 Destination Brochure with FAM Trip Places to Win


GOLD Medal, the flagship brand of dnata Travel Group UK, have launched their first destination brochure of 2024 – Indian Ocean & Africa. The brochure includes an exciting range of hotels and resorts plus an array of multi-centre itineraries, including 36 new properties and 15 new tours and experiences. Exploring the tropical paradise islands of the Maldives, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and Seychelles, plus the wonders and beauty of South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and East Africa, the Gold Medal experts have hand-selected all-inclusive escapes, exquisite spa retreats, family-friendly, and adult-only resorts to create 140 pages of inspiration. To celebrate the launch of the Gold


Medal Indian Ocean & Africa 2024-25 brochure, Gold Medal are giving agents the chance to win one of five places on a FAM trip to Sri Lanka in partnership with Sri Lankan Airways. There are three places up for grabs to agents who register an Indian Ocean or Africa package with Gold Medal between 16 April and 16 June 2024, with another place being awarded at their flagship Access All Areas event later this month, plus an additional wild card place. Agents can visit goldmedal.co.uk for


more information on how to register their bookings.


Yalago Retail expands UK- based team as travel demand grows in 2024


YALAGO Retail, Yalago’s brand focused on supporting travel agencies across the UK and Scandinavia with a growing port- folio of market-leading hotel rates, is ex- panding its UK-based team at a time of high demand. Yalago, part of the Emirates Group based in Dubai, is one of the world’s fastest-grow- ing leisure accommodation wholesale spe- cialists. The number of agents trading with the business in the UK and Scandinavia has more than doubled between 2023 and 2024, and its UK-based team is revealing ambitious growth plans to offer additional partner sup- port. Kyle Donald has been appointed in a newly created Sales Executive role, and sev- eral additional positions are to be announced across the region, designed to offer local cli- ent support.


Starting with the business on March 18,


Kyle Donald joins Yalago from Ramsay World Travel in Aberdeen. He will report in to Col- in Currie, Yalago’s Head of Retail – UK and Scandinavia, and be based alongside Colin in Scotland, with regular travel anticipated across the UK and Scandinavia. Colin Currie, Head of Retail – UK and Scan- dinavia at Yalago, commented: “Due to the record expansion of Yalago Retail over the last year, we are increasing the team with the addition of Kyle to allow us to work even closer with our new agents, and to support with expansion further across the UK and Scandinavia in 2024. Kyle brings a wealth of retail experience and enthusiasm to the role, and I am excited to bring him on board and join me on this exciting journey.”


Hydrogen Refuelling Trial Celebrates Success at Major UK Airport


IHG Hotels & Resorts Brings Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants to Lisbon


IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, announces the signing of Kimpton Lisbon, the first Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants property in the Portuguese capital. Set to open its doors in early 2025, the boutique luxury hotel marks the second Kimpton to come to Portugal, following the signing of Kimpton Algarve São Rafael Atlántico in late 2023. Kimpton Lisbon adds to IHG’s fast- growing luxury & lifestyle portfolio, now the second largest in the world, and reinforces its focus on its growing presence in the country. In the luxury & lifestyle segment, IHG operates six open hotels and has a further seven in development for brands including Six Senses, Hotel Indigo, and Vignette Collection’s recently opened Convent Square Lisbon and Casa da Companhia in Porto.


Signed under a franchise agreement with Real Hotel Group, the hotel will be reimagined as an excellent representation of the Kimpton brand, with 141-guestrooms and


public areas redesigned to


in Portugal, joining the recently signed Kimpton Algarve São Rafael Atlántico, and further demonstrating owner demand and guest appetite for our Kimpton brand. Merging a culture of genuine hospitality and unique, design forward hotels for all, Kimpton Lisbon will create transformative experiences where locals and visitors seamlessly come together. I look forward to welcoming guests to our latest Kimpton boutique luxury property when it opens its door in early 2025.” Eurico Almeida,


CEO, Group, commented: “We are thrilled


Real Hotels at


take


inspiration from the light and colours of the city. From unique, design-forward spaces featuring inspiring high-quality finishes to seasonally-inspired restaurants and bars – including a rooftop bar and pool – the hotel will seamlessly cater guests looking to engage in new cultures, cuisines


or


A ground-breaking airside hydrogen refuelling trial, led by easyJet and supported by several cross-industry partners, has been successfully completed at Bristol Airport – the first airport trial of its kind at a major UK airport. Hydrogen was used to refuel and power ground support equipment (GSE) – specifically, baggage tractors – servicing easyJet passenger aircraft. Conducted as part of the airline’s daily operations, the trial demonstrates that the gas can be safely and reliably used to refuel ground equipment in the busy, live airport environment. The trial, dubbed Project Acorn, was in development for over a year and involved many other leading organisations from across aviation, engineering, logistics and academia. These include Cranfield Aerospace Solutions, Cranfield University, Connected Places Catapult (CPC), DHL Supply Chain, Fuel Cell Systems, the IAAPS research institute, Jacobs, Mulag and TCR.


The group intends to use the outputs of the trial to help develop industry best practice standards, provide guidance to airports, airlines, local authorities and regulators on required infrastructure changes, and support the development of a regulatory framework for hydrogen’s use on an airfield – standards which, due to hydrogen’s nascency in aviation, do not currently exist.


The data and insights gathered will also feed into research that groups like Hydrogen in


Aviation (HIA)* are conducting to ensure UK infrastructure, regulatory and policy changes keep pace with the technological developments in carbon-emission free flying. It also supports the work and ambitions of other bodies such as Hydrogen South West (HSW) and the Hydrogen Innovation Initiative (HII), the latter having also co-funded the project.


conversations. Located in the heart of Lisbon, Kimpton Lisbon will become an ideal launch point for exploration, with key tourist attractions in walking distance including the Eduardo VII Park, Marquês de Pombal Square and Avenida Liberdade, as well as museums and the city’s bustling restaurants and bar scene. (Mrs) Willemijn Geels, VP Development, Europe, IHG Hotels & Resorts, commented: “Working with our partners at Real Hotels Group, we are delighted to bring our Kimpton brand to the vibrant and culturally-rich city of Lisbon. The hotel is a great addition to our growing luxury and lifestyle portfolio


the opportunity to bring the first Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants property to Lisbon, and our eighth hotel in partnership with IHG Hotels & Resorts. We look forward to combining IHG’s global enterprise with Kimpton’s renowned blend of luxury and individuality, partnering with the award- winning architecture and design group, Rockwell, and infusing them into the heart of Lisbon’s vibrant hospitality landscape.” Kimpton pioneered the concept of unique, distinctive, design-forward hotels in the United States. Founded in 1981 by visionary hotelier Bill Kimpton, the brand is inspired by his travels to Europe where Kimpton saw an opportunity for a hotel experience that was more than a place to stay, but rather a place to experience, feel a sense of belonging and explore.


IHG acquired Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants


in 2018 and has since


spearheaded its expansion into Europe and beyond. Kimpton Lisbon joins a portfolio of eight Kimpton hotels across the UK and continental Europe and forms part of Kimpton’s global portfolio of 78 hotels across 12 countries, representing 13,721-bedrooms.


IHG Hotels & Resorts currently operates 20 hotels across seven brands in Portugal, including


Six Senses, InterContinental,


Vignette Collection, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Iberostar.


CLIA Reports Record Breaking First Quarter with Boost of Membership


CRUISE Lines International Association (CLIA) UK & Ireland has reported a re- cord-breaking first quarter of the year, with its overall membership up by 4% on 2023, meaning it is now at its highest level. In addition, accredited agents who have completed a minimum of the first level of CLIA training courses, are up 22% year-on- year.


The trade body has also revealed it has sold out its three main April and May events in the UK and Ireland. These comprise an Ex- pedition Cruise event in Dublin and an Expe- dition Summit in Greenwich, which are both onboard Seabourn Venture, as well as a River Cruise Dinner in Glasgow.


Two new monthly webinar series, ‘Focus


On’ and ‘In Conversation’, have similarly attracted record audiences, with the next In Conversation episode on April 25. Meanwhile, a record-breaking 800+ del-


egates will attend the annual CLIA Confer- ence, which will be held from May 23-25 in Southampton – with the last few places now available. The conference – the largest annual travel agent event of its kind in Eu- rope – will include ship visits, conference sessions, an industry trade fair and a cele- bratory evening event. Attendees will be able to choose two ships to visit over consecutive days, from a selection of seven in total.


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