travel bulletin 25th october 2013

A special souvenir issue tomark our 2013 Star Awards

October 25 2013 | ISSUE NO 1,847 | www.travelbulletin.co.uk

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KINGS OF THE JUNGLE...Pictured with DreamWorks character, King Julian of Madagascar fame, at the CupcakeCupboard on Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis of the Seas are the agent winners of the cruise line's incentivecompetition, which required agents to make a booking for any long-haul fly/cruise in 2013/14. Agents were flown outfor a three-night Miami stay and ship visit courtesy of British Airways. Pictured are, from the left: Kevin Cook, IGLU;Liam Oliver, Reader Offers; Tracy Worthington, Liverpool Cruise Club; Elinor Gault, The Cruise Specialists; Darryl Geegan,Thomson; Chanchal Dass, Royal Caribbean International; Sabita Kamaladin, British Airways; Joanna Rigby, Thomas Cook;and David Sanderson, Royal Caribbean International.

This Week

3 newsa round-up of this week'sindustry announcements

8 notes from normantonthe latest musings fromtravel agent, Sandy Murray

9agent bulletinfind out what's in store forScorpio this month, plusagent booking incentives

12airline bulletinnew research finds nine outof ten want reclining seatsbanned on aircraft

16pix miximages from South AfricaTourism's fam trip to CapeTown & Durban

18personality bulletinwhich sales manager saysthat his skills as a massagetherapist come in handy?

19 star awards 2013 celebrating the industry'sfinest

3www.travelbulletin.co.uk October 25 2013

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A RECENT study of more than 650 agentsfrom 34 countries found that travel agents areusing Global Distribution Systems (GDS) morethan ever before.

The 2013 Bi-Annual Global travel agentGDS Study, conducted by market researchfirm Phoenix Marketing International inpartnership with TravelClick, surveyed travelagents worldwide who use Amadeus, Galileo,Sabre and Worldspan.

The GDS is one of only two channels thattravel agents are using more than in the past,with the percentage of agents increasing theirusage of the GDS up by 14% from 2011. Theonly other channel that experienced growthwas hotel/chain websites, which increased3%. The study also found that travel agents’use of all other channels (including otheragent booking tools, telephone to hotel/CRO,travel mega-sites, general hotel directoriesand direct mail/fax) shrank significantly in thepast two years, decreasing by 21%.

Jason Ewell, executive vice president,business intelligence, media and websolutions for TravelClick, said: “The GDS is

more popular with travel agents than ever.This year the GDS is on track to produce 58million hotel reservations, up five million from2011. As key influencers in booking decisions,hotels need to merchandise themselves totravel agents at the point of sale through theGDS.”

The research also found that rate parityemerged as a critical issue for travel agents.Of those surveyed, 81% stated it is veryimportant that the GDS offer rate parity.Nearly two-thirds (62%) stated that theywould book away from hotel properties thatdo not offer full rate parity within the GDS.

Ewell said: “With more agents using theGDS, there is an increased emphasis onensuring rate parity so that agents canmaintain credibility with their clients. There isnothing worse for an agent than offering arate to clients only to learn that they couldfind a better rate by themselves on a differentchannel."

The study highlighted travel agents’ desire

New study finds travel agent use of Global DistributionSystems grows more than any other booking channel

● continues on next page

11 puzzle bulletinplay Su Doku for yourchance to win a £50 M&Svoucher

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WE’RE AN optimistic nation, according to cottages4you,with holiday bookings for next summer already showingthe most popular trends, and many families deciding tosecure their 2014 holiday in advance with coastaldestinations proving the most popular.

According to the company's booking trends, the keyareas include the traditionally popular seaside resortsof Newquay, Totnes and Padstow, but new additionsinclude the Norfolk villages of Happisburgh andBrundall.

The company's managing director, Nick Rudge, said:“Many of us took advantage of the great weather thissummer by booking a last minute break, but it seemsthe prolonged sunshine has encouraged more of us tosecure next year’s holiday much earlier than in previousyears.

“In addition to having something to look forward to,booking early guarantees the property and location youwant. We’ll be watching the top destinations withinterest to see what will be the most popular place toholiday in 2014.”

ACCORDING TO newresearch bySunshine.co.uk, a fifth ofBrits have been unable toshake ‘tag-along’ touristson a previous holidayabroad; that being fellowholidaymakers who attachthemselves to other peoplein the same hotel or resortas them and fail to give anyspace for the majority ofthe time away.

A total of 1,792 UK adultstook part in the poll, eachof whom had been onholiday abroad in the past12 months, and 21%reported that they hadexperienced this type of‘tag-along tourist’. Ofthose, 86% claimed to havedropped hints to the people

whom they didn’t previouslyknow, to try and get sometime away from them.

Reasons whyrespondents thought theyhad met ‘tag-along tourists’included 'Our children goton with their children'(31%); 'They seemed boredand wanted other company'(24%); 'They were just over-friendly people' (17%); 'Keptbumping into each other'(11%); and 'We mistakenlymade conversation withthem first' (8%).

However, when asked ifthey themselves had everbeen guilty of being a ‘tag-along tourist’ whilst onholiday, one in ten (11%)admitted that they probablyhad been.

TRAVEL 2 is highlighting escorted tours in Thailand and China. A 14-night break to Thailand costs from £1,999 per personincluding flights, three nights at the four-star Century ParkHotel in Bangkok in a superior room, three nights at the five-star Anantara Golden Triangle in Chiang Rai on all-inclusiveand eight nights in a suite at the four-star Kantary Beach KhaoLak on a bed-and-breakfast basis. The price also includestransfers and applies to travel by October 31, 2014.

Meanwhile, to get the most out of a multi-centre escortedtour of China, the operator recommends visiting Beijing, Xian,Guilin and Shanghai.

The company's product manager for Australasia, SouthPacific & North Asia, Heather Colbourn, said: "These fourgreat centres are by far the most popular with our customersand looking to the future I believe that touring trends will staymore or less the same.

“The pull for most travellers to China are the Great Wall, theTerracotta Warriors, the ancient culture, and the uniqueexperiences that you get from visiting cities such as Beijingand Shanghai.”

An 11-day Essential China Tour leads in at £2,519including flights with Qatar Airways for travel betweenMay 1 and June 12, 2014. For more information see www.travel2.com to see the fullterms and conditions.

Sunshine.co.uk poll finds one in fiveBrits can't shake 'tag-along' tourist

Cottages4you research reveals Brits choosethe coast for 2014 holidays

www.travelbulletin.co.ukOctober 25 20134

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TIPTO TREAT...TIPTO held its debut Isle of Man roadshow earlierthis month, where a total of 31 travel agents attended from the 11independent agencies on the island. Pictured is Feysal Nagi fromThe Holiday Team presenting Davina Holker from the FreedomTravel Group with £50 in shopping vouchers as part of a prizedraw. The next roadshow takes place on November 12 inCheltenham, Gloucestershire. For details or to register visit www.tipto.co.uk or call 020-8742 4073.

to provide value and build loyalty with their clients by bookingpromotional rates and best available rates as opposed to justrelying on negotiated rates. Nearly 60% of agents surveyedsaid that they would book a hotel room based on bestavailable or promotional message over any other factor, andthe number of travel agents offering their clients alternativesto negotiated rates increased 21% from 2011 to 2013. Inaddition, 53% indicated that a promotional message steeredthem to book one negotiated rate over another negotiatedrate.

Beyond providing competitive pricing, travel agents alsoindicated that amenities were critical in making a bookingdecision. The most popular amenities were free Internet andfree breakfast (both at 79%).

Ewell said: “To generate bookings from travel agents,hotels need to go beyond just offering a good rate by providingvalue-added amenities. This was one area that emerged asmore important than when the study was conducted in thepast, as travel agents continue to focus on building customerloyalty by providing value that their clients can’t findelsewhere."

● continued from previous page

Far East recommendations from Travel 2

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Spooky special at Universal Studios from£699 with Funway Holidays

NOW IN its 23rd year, Halloween Horror Nights - the annualevent at Universal Studios Florida and Universal StudiosHollywood - runs on select nights through to November 2.

Funway is highlighting a seven-night stay at the four-starDoubletree (at the Entrance to Universal Orlando) from £699per person, based on two sharing. The price applies to anOctober 28 depature and includes flights with UnitedAirlines.For further information or to book seewww.funway4agents.co.uk or call 0844-557 0626.

NEW FOR next year, Travelsphere has added a ‘Return toKashmir’ tour.

Will Sarson, head of long-haul product at All Leisure Group,said: “Kashmir has long been regarded as one of the world’smost sought-after destinations due to its breath-takingscenery and unique culture.

“Once the FCO determined it was safe again for Britishtourists, we were determined to offer this wonderfuldestination to our customers as soon as possible.”

Highlights of the tour include a cruise on a traditionalshikara and four nights staying on a deluxe houseboat. Thenine-day tour costs from £1,899 per person and departures areavailable between April 2014 and June 2015.

The new brochure features 26 new tours and new itinerariesto the US, China, Canada, the Middle East and Europe.

Short-haul options include six new European rail itineraries,Italy, Spain, a trip to commemorate the 70th year anniversaryof D-day landings, and Arabia. A four-day ‘Normandy D-daylandings by rail’ leads in at £499 per person and offers a railjourney to the beaches of the D-Day landings as a tribute tothe 130,000 troops who set off from the south coast ofEngland and landed on the beaches of Normandy back onJune 6, 1994. Departure dates are available between April2014 and October 2014. For further information or to book call 01858-588406 or visitwww.travelsphere.co.uk

Travelsphere announces a return to Kashmir for 2014 brochure

PORTUGAL PARTY...TAP Portugal, Turismo de Portugal and Visit Portorecently held an event for members of the trade to discover Porto andthe northern region of Portugal. A workshop gave guests theopportunity to network and was followed by presentations and winetasting. Pictured celebrating after winning a holiday to the destinationis Sadie Saunders (third from left) from The Discovery Collection.Pictured with Sadie are, from the left: Susanna Tocca, DOC DMC; MariaAndrada, Douro Azul; Susana Tavares, Hotel Teatro; Paula Sousa,Quinta Nova N. Sra. Carmo; and Rui Lemos, TAP Portugal.

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Tweets of

the WeekWho’s saying what

on Twitter...

@WeGiveUTheWorld

Who wants to see awhole world of all that'sweird & wonderful? Wellnow you can@RipleysLondon with ourFREE kids offer!

@RailEuropeUK

Winter train services arenow available to bookfrom 15 Dec - 16 Jan'14.Book viahttp://www.raileurope.co.uk

@TravelodgeUK

Planning a trip toMadrid? Check out ourrecommendations for aperfect weekend at theSpanish capital.http://bit.ly/1fA2KO0

@traveltraining

Complete the Fort Worthcourse by the end of theyear and you could WINan iPad mini!!http://bit.ly/1hYiJlzpic.twitter.com/kYJ8EHR02A

@redseauk

Last minute holidays thataren't a last resort:http://ow.ly/pDnTS

Follow us on Twitter!http://twitter.com/

TravelBulletin

Newsbites● THIS HALF-term, Jumeirah Port Soller Hotel & Spa, located on the northwest coast of

Mallorca, is highlighting four-night stays for €325 per night including breakfast.Other benefits include 15% off spa treatments and children under 12 years receivingfree access to the kids' club and free dining. The offer is available to book for staysfrom October 26 to November 3. For details email [email protected]

● TRAIN OPERATOR East Coast has announced a £2.2million upgrade of its on-boardwireless internet systems. The investment will include the installation of industry-leading hardware on each of its 44 trains, as the operator focuses on achieving amore reliable internet connection. Improvements will begin to roll out early next year.

● DUSIT THANI Maldives has achieved Silver Certification by EarthCheck, a leadingsustainable certification organisation in the hospitality industry. The resort wascommended for energy solutions such as solar thermal heating, heat recovery pumpsand a steam powered laundry facility.

●JET2.COM HAS announced that it will bring its call centre operations to Leeds and isbuilding a new £9million Training Academy. The academy will house three flightsimulators plus cabin crew trainer unit and is scheduled for completion in spring nextyear.

● LONDON'S THE View from The Shard is offering free admission for children (agedfour-15) during next week's half-term and the Christmas holidays. See www.theviewfromtheshard.com/kidsgofree

● AIR CANADA rouge, Air Canada’s leisure carrier subsidiary, has announced it willincrease its summer non-stop service from Edinburgh Airport to its Toronto hub,Toronto Pearson International Airport, from three to five weekly flights, from Julynext year.

● ACCOR GERMANY is now offering high-speed internet access with fibre optictechnology and free WiFi.

SUPERBREAK HAS given its 2014Luxury Breaks brochure a new high-end look and has created a range ofnew packages and celebration breaks.The brochure features 68 hotels thatare new to the luxury programme,bringing the total now featured to 189.

For next year, 96 of theseproperties are not featured in anyother of the company's programmes,giving the luxury breaks brochureexclusivity for agents to promote. Tohelp agents, the operator hasintroduced easy to use symbols tohighlight hotels with extra-specialbreaks on offer. As an example of

prices, a new five-star spa break atCoworth Park in Berkshire leads in at£350 per person and includes onenight in a Stable Superior room withbreakfast, a three-course dinner, useof spa facilities, a 50-minute luxurymanicure plus one other treatmentfrom a selection of options.

Meanwhile, the operator has addedsix new hotels in key Germany cities,further boosting its accommodation-only options in destinations such asHamburg, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf andBerlin.

New hotels include Hamburg Cityfrom £31.50 per person per night;

Frankfurt Falluswarte in Frankfurtfrom £29.50; and IntercontinentalBerlin from £59.

All prices include breakfast and arebased on two sharing in late January2014.

The company has also produced aspecial leaflet for agents to use forselling autumn breaks, focusingmainly on key cities in the UK andEurope. A PDF version is available atwww.superbreak.com/agents for agents to download.

For more information call 0871-221 4444.

WITH LESS than four months to go untilthe start of the 2014 Winter Olympics inSochi, Russia, Transun has launched anew three-night cross country skiingbreak.

The Cross Country Ski Laplandpackage leads in at £799 per person andis suitable for skiers of any ability. Itincludes an introductory cross country skisession for beginners as well as theassistance of expert ski instructors fromthe Davvi Arctic Lodge, where guests stayduring their trip.

Prices include flights from Gatwick onJanuary 2, taxes and transfers, fournights’ half-board accommodation,thermal suit and boot hire, transport toski locations and an introductory crosscountry ski session. A seven-nightversion of the break is also available.

Other regional UK departures are alsoavailable throughout January, Februaryand March.For further information or to book visitwww.transun.co.uk/agents or call 01865-265200.

New cross country skiing package from Transun

Superbreak revamps Luxury Breaks brochure & boosts AO options in Germany

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THE PALM BEACHES

The Palm Beaches bring together 15 distinct districts – 12 featuring shopping and dining, two focused on eco-adventures and one containing the Convention Centre and surrounding entertainment. Kick back and relax on 47 miles of Atlantic coastline, embark on an epic adventure on board the Black Sparrow Pirate ship or take in the vibrant nightlight - the choice is yours!

NEW FLORIDA BEACHES 2014 & 2015 BROCHURE OUT NOW

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that Florida has to offer.www.funway4agents.co.uk and

complete our short survey. With 8 up for grabs, you have more chance than ever before! All completed surveys will be entered into a prize draw with the winners being chosen at random shortly after the closing date.

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The Palm Beaches (5 nights) & Miami (4 nights) 10 Dec 13 NOW FROM JUST £1199pp

* Terms and conditions may apply. All prices are correct at time of distribution.

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LA DOLCE VITA...Pictured enjoying an evening of 'La Dolce Vita' inGodalming to mark Inghams' new Italy brochure launch are, from theleft: Fiona Attrell, Inghams; Barry Moxley, Traveltime; and LouiseNewton, Inghams. The new programme features hand-picked holidaysto the lakes of Como, Maggiore and Garda in the north to NeapolitanRiviera, Sicily and Puglia in the south. Agents making new bookingsfrom the brochure have the chance to win one of two holidays, and thefirst 100 agencies to book can claim two bottles of Italian wine. For details call 01483-791177 or see www.inghamsitaly.co.uk/agents

WENT TO the Yorkshire & North Mids ABTA Mtgheld at Leeds Bradford International Airport.James and Emma gave us a tour airside of the

new renovations and improvements and, I have to say, itreally is looking fantastic. It has eating places to suiteveryone - from beef burgers and a sports bar to thewonderful Saltair Restaurant. British Airways sponsoredthe evening and Jannis Scott updated us with what ishappening at BA – I loved the look of the A380! And it isexcellent that they have three flights a day down toHeathrow.

Attended the Travel Bulletin Star Awards the othernight at the Landmark in London and it was great tocatch up with so many people. A HUGE congratulations toLeeds Bradford International Airport for winning the StarRegional UK Airport – James Broughton (pictured blow)and Emma Holliday do a magnificent job in promotingLBIA - it’s certainly not a 9 -5 job! So very well done!

Read in the Daily Mail about families being warnedover holiday villa web con. Police are warningholidaymakers about internet fraudsters after a familywere cheated out of £4,000. On booking a Spanish villaonline they thought they had booked on Owners Directwebsite and even received confirmation etc., but whenthey came to confirm their arrival the owner of the villahad not heard of him. An investigation showed theowners’ email had been hacked! It did not happen onOwners Direct website but the trouble is these thievescan hide behind anything if they are a good enough fakewebsite or email – better to book with a travel agent Isay!

‘There are only two days in the year when nothing canbe done - yesterday and tomorrow. So today is the rightday to love and believe, do and mostly live’ and ‘Life islike a coin – you can spend it any way you wish but youonly spend it once’.

by SANDRA MURRAYin Normanton, Yorkshire

Notes from

Normanton...

To respond to any of Sandy’s comments email

jill. [email protected]

newsbulletin


MOVERS● ACACIA AFRICA has promoted three long serving members of staff.

Chris Mears, who was previously general manager of the SouthAfrican office, is joining the board as a director; Arno Delport willnow head up sales and marketing in the UK, North America andEurope; and Caroline Tinsley will combine her position as head ofreservations with responsibility for sales and marketing coveringSouth Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

● CIARÁN LAVERY has been appointed head of technical services byJurys Inn.

● WENDY WU Tours has announced that Sue Beech and DiogoCastanheira have joined its Business Development Team. They jointhe existing team of Mark Harris – the senior business developmentmanager and Zoe Abbott, sales & marketing executive.

www.travelbulletin.co.uk

WEBSCLUSIVES

● The extended cut of the Travel Bulletin Star Awards

2013 movie is now available to view – with morewinners, more photos and more interviews. View itnow on www.youtube.com/travelbulletin

● Agents, it’s your last chance to win an iPad 4 courtesyof the island of St Helena. Go to:www.travelbulletin.co.uk/competitions

All this and more at:


The home of the web savvy travel agent

Go

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● AGENTS WHO book their customers on a Just Youholiday before October 31 will be put into a prizedraw to win a Kindle Fire. The incentive is availableon all departures before December 31, 2014 and iscompletely uncapped meaning the more bookingsagents make, the greater the potential to win. Toenter, email [email protected] with‘Just You’ in the subject line and include your name,ABTA and booking reference in the body of theemail.

● TO CELEBRATE the launch of a new range of giftexperiences, Attraction World is offering agentsthe chance to receive a £50 voucher to spend on itsnew range of experiences including Paintballingfor four for £20, Traditional Afternoon Tea for Twofor £34 and Comedy Night Tickets for £34. A totalof 50 vouchers are available. To enter, agentsshould make a booking for one of the giftexperiences between November 1 and December

24 and email the booking reference [email protected]

● BOOKABED HAS launched a 30-day £100 per dayLove2Shop voucher incentive. Every booking madeby an agency up to November 8 will be automaticallyentered into the draw and one winner per day will beannounced. There is no minimum stay or valuerestrictions applicable against any booking made, toreceive automatic draw entry. For details see www.bookabed.co.uk

● AGENTS CAN win one of four iPad minis as part ofTravel 2’s ‘California: You’ll Love Every Minute’campaign. To be in with a chance of winning, agentsneed to make a new booking with the company toCalifornia, which includes flights with UnitedAirlines and a minimum three days' groundarrangement, by October 30. For details see www.travel2.com

HAYS SCORE...Darren Wetherell (left) fromHays Travel Wallsend won TIPTO’sAugust online training competition aftercompleting all modules to achieve fivestars. Pictured presenting his prize of £50Love2Shop vouchers is TIPTO’s newestmember, Colin Fawcus from DFDS Seaways.

Booking incentives

YOUR NATURAL personality traits – strength andconfidence – will shine this month, and your energylevels will soar, making it the ideal time to partake insome physical exercise. New opportunities forpersonal and professional growth will also presentthemselves, which should be grasped with bothhands.

Lucky day: Monday

Lucky number: 5


agentbulletin

It’s in thestars…What’s in store for Scorpio?

Agent offerAIR TAHITI Nui is offering agents special farerates on its Charles de Gaulle route to Tahiti.Prices start from €220 (approximately £187) plustaxes/fuel. The offer runs until February 14 andtravel must be taken between November 11 andMarch 31, 2014. Agents should provide a validIATA Resolution 880 form and a copy of theirIATA card. Booking requests should be emailedto [email protected].

For more information see www.tahiti-tourisme.co.uk

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Travelport offerstraining on Rooms

and MoreTRAVELPORT HAS made iteasier for agents to getstarted with new 'how to'videos on its Rooms andMore product. The hotel shopping andbooking system bringstogether more than 475,000unique hotel properties andmore than one million roomoffers.

Three five-minute videoshave been released coveringaccount set up, addingagents and making a basicbooking.

The company's UK &Ireland regional director,Simon Ferguson, said: “Thevideos are fast and free, andimportantly they will getagents on the road to morebookings and more satisfiedcustomers.

“Rooms and More takes arange of providers anddisplays the content howagents choose. That can beby highest commission,lowest rate for the customeror where you find thatavailability you need.”For details seewww.travelport.com/featured-products/rooms-and-more-videos

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TRAFALGAR IS offering more in-depthinsider travel experiences across itsnewly released Europe and Britainprogramme for next year, giving gueststhe opportunity to delve deeper into thecultures and customs of destinationsfeatured.

The company's CEO, Gavin Tollman,said: “Today, authentic travel is in ourbrand’s DNA and for 2014 we havecontinued to refine our product, lookingat the uniqueness of each itinerary, everydestination and ensuring that we gofurther, delivering even richer moreauthentic experiences.”

The newly launched programme offers104 itineraries and more than 320distinctive insider experiences. Theseinclude 52 Be My Guest experiencesincluding, for example, the new DomaineMeillan-Pages winery in Provence notknown to those outside of Luberon, which

has produced wine for 40 years usingonly local ingredients.

Tollman said: "The feedback from ourguests on the Be My Guest experiences isthat they absolutely love it; and thebeauty is that it benefits both parties,with hosts commenting on how nice it isto meet so many different nationalities."

New Local Specialties include aNorthern Spain Cider Tasting at atraditional bar in Oviedo; a Swisschocolate museum visit near Lugano;and in Vienna, a visit to theKunsthistorisches Museum.

The programme also offers newguided holidays including an 11-dayNorthern Spain; seven-day Swiss Delight;13-day The Balkans and Venice; 17-dayWonders of Europe; and nine-dayDelights of London and Paris.

The newly launched brochure contains32 hand-picked itineraries from the new

programme, with the rest of the portfolioall available online. All holidays outlinedin the brochure include scheduled flightsand VIP private door-to-door UK airporttransfers.

Meanwhile, the operator isencouraging agents to 'come on board'and highlight its range of uniqueexperiences to their clients.

Tollman said: "Our recommendationrate from our guests travelling to Europelast year was our highest ever at 99.15%,and sales for next year are up by morethan 50%. We are also seeing increasingnumbers of business partners andagents buying into the uniqueexperiences we offer and, in return, arestarting to see a profound, positiveimpact on their business."For more information visitwww.trafalgar.com/uk or call 0800-533 5616.

New Europe & Britain brochure from Trafalgar sees addition of insider experiences

Savings of up to £5,000 in Voyages to Antiquity’s winter brochure launch VOYAGES TO Antiquity has announced its winter 2014/15 programme which features inauguralvisits to East Africa, the Indian Ocean islands of Zanzibar, Seychelles, Mayotte and the Maldives,plus the chance to explore Bali, Borneo and the islands of Indonesia, plus other destinations inSoutheast Asia. Brochure prices start from £3,150 per person for an 18-day cruise-tour,including scheduled flights, transfers, shore excursions where available, Quietvox headsets toenhance the sightseeing experience, gratuities to on board cabin and restaurant staff and winewith dinner on board.

Guests can save up to £5,000 per cabin when booking by December 31, and several itinerariesfeature special rates for single travellers. For details call 0845 437 9737 or visit www.voyagestoantiquity.com

SUNDOWNER SEVEN...Anand Collection recently hosted a fam to Thailand to visit a selection of hotels,as well as an island tour of Koh Lanta. Pictured enjoying Layana Resort's sundowner cruise are, fromthe left: Sherly Drane, Hayes and Jarvis; Sarah Kewley, Bridge the World; Kirsty Richardson, Kuoni;Jas Anand, Anand Collection; Nadine Brady, Limelight Access; Khun Oom, West East Travel; and IanTurner, Touchdown Holidays.

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puzzlebulletin


Where Am I?

Cheesy town in Somerset.

Fill in all the squares in the grid so that each row, column and each of the

3 x 3 squares contains the digits 1-9.Once you have completed the puzzle, simply identify the numbers that relate

to the letters, A, B, C and D then e-mail the solution, with your name,

company name, and full postal address plus phone and ABTA number if

applicable to:

[email protected]

Closing date for entries is Thursday, October 31th. Solution and new puzzle

will appear next week.

The winner for 11th October is Paula Airey, The Travel

House in Aberdare.

October 11 Solution: A=2 B=7 C=8 D=3

➠A

➠B

➠C

➠D

Number: 133

Travagrams

Across 1. Thomas Cook brand, ___ Collection (5)4. Measured at the Royal Observatory in

London, initially (3)6. Salzburg airport code (3)8. South American river (7)9. Ancient Chinese dynasty (3)10. Singer Gloria, with a new album, The

Standards (7)13. Tour operator specialising in luxury holidays,

___ Resorts (7)16. First name of notorious 19th century

Australian bushranger (3)17. European principality, popular with skiers

(7)18. Currency of Japan (3)19. Kardamena is a lively party resort on this

Greek island (3)20. Famous English cricket venue (5)

Down 1. Property expert as seen on Double Your House

for Half the Money (5,5)2. Capital of Cameroon (7)3. Seychelles and Mauritius specialists ___

Vacations (5)4. Haunting romantic musical now touring the UK

(5)5. Tresco airport code (3)7. Caribbean island chain in the Windward Islands

(10)11. South African entertainment and leisure

resort, ___ City (3)12. National flag carrier with HQ in Vantaa (7)14. South American mountain chain (5)15. Innsbruck is the capital of this Austrian

province (5)17. Ankara airport code (3)

Where Am I?

Fill in the crossword to reveal the mystery location highlighted by the green squares.

For the solution to the Crossword, Where Am I? and Travagrams, please see page 40

Crossword

Su Doku

Num

ber:

133

Try not to ‘hurt’ yourself on this cruise liner

This place is home to these popular snacks

Right Untrue

Claw Lorn

Can you solve the following anagrams to decipher the destination & tour operator?Win a £50 M&S voucher in the travelbulletin Su Doku prize puzzle

S03 TB2510 News 2_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:22

NINE OUT of ten travellers would like to see an end toreclining seats on planes, according to an internationalsurvey by Skyscanner.

Of those surveyed, 91% believed short-haul flightsshould either ban or set times for seat reclining.

The survey of more than 1,000 flyers also found that 43%felt long-haul flights should implement set times whenpassengers are permitted to recline their seat. Almost athird of those questioned said a reclined seat had causedthem discomfort, and 3% revealed they’d even suffered aninjury.

More than 60% of international cabin crew surveyed alsosaid they had been involved in, or witness to, an argumentbetween passengers on the subject of reclined seats.

While negative emotions could be reduced by a fellowpassenger asking permission to recline their seat, thestudy found that a third of passengers are too worriedabout the reaction they’d receive, and most people (64%)have never done so.

EASYJET HAS announced new routesfrom Bristol to Reykjavik andMarrakech, which will begin operationin December.The flights, which are on sale now, willoffer the South West’s only connectionto Iceland and will be operated on the156-seater Airbus A319.

The carrier’s commercial manager,Ali Gayward, said: “We expect to carryaround 55,000 passengers in the firstyear thanks to the broad appeal ofIceland and Morocco. Reykjavik is fastbecoming one of the most populardestinations for UK holidaymakers who

are attracted to the fantastic sceneryand natural beauty as well as thethriving bar and restaurant scene.Marrakech boasts luxury hotels, richhistory and culture and excellentshopping opportunities with a flighttime of just over four hours.”

Flights to Reykjavik will start onDecember 12 and will operate onThursdays and Sundays with fares from£31.99, while flights to Marrakech willstart on December 14 and will operateon Tuesdays and Saturdays with faresfrom £33.99. Both prices are based ontwo people travelling.

Monarch expands network for next summer

MONARCH HAS announced the expansion of its routenetwork for summer 2014.

A number of new destinations will operate for thefirst time, while some existing destinations will beserved from more airports.

The airline is expanding into North Africa, with flightsto Enfidha in Tunisia – located midway between Tunisand Monastir – operating twice-weekly on Wednesdayand Sunday from both Manchester and Gatwick. Faresstart from £59.99 one-way.

Meanwhile, Agadir will become the airline’s firstMoroccan destination, with twice-weekly flights onTuesday and Saturday from Manchester and on Tuesdayand Friday from Gatwick. Fares start from £67.99 one-way.

A twice-weekly service to Hurghada in Egypt will runon Tuesday and Friday from Birmingham, Gatwick andManchester from May 2, with fares starting from£160.99 one-way, while in Europe, a five-times-weeklyservice to the French Riviera from Gatwick will beintroduced from Thursday through to Monday, with faresfrom £44.99 one-way.

In addition, Naples flights will be twice-weekly onMonday and Friday from both Manchester and Lutonairports, leading in at £61.49 one-way. All new routes are now available to book fromwww.monarch.co.uk

easyJet unveils new flights from Bristol to Reykjavik and Marrakech

Nine out of ten want reclining seatsbanned, according to Skyscanner survey


airlinebulletin

TAP PORTUGAL has increased the number of direct flightsbetween Gatwick and Lisbon as part of its winter schedule. Theairline will operate 11 flights weekly between the two airportsfrom October 27-March 29, with fares starting from £116 returnincluding taxes and charges. To book or for more information visit www.flytap.com

FLIGHT FRIENDS...More than 200 business and leisure travel agentsrecently spent the night under the wings of Concorde at ManchesterAirport’s annual Airline Road Show, to learn about the latestdevelopments on routes and travel options from the North by meetingairline, tour operators and airport staff. Pictured picking up a prize atthe event is Tracey Mallit (middle) from Destinology with TraceyBurke (left) from Balkan Holidays and Bev Ridyard from ManchesterAirports Group. For details on upcoming events visitwww.manchesterairport.co.uk/agents

S03 TB2510 News 2_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:22


Condor Ferries promotes culinarybreak for half-term

FANS OF fine dining looking for a foodie getaway for nextweek's half-term can take a trip to Jersey and Guernseywith Condor Ferries.

Taking place until November 11, the well-knownTennerfest – an annual food event offering fixed price menusfrom £10 per person – offers autumn visitors to both Jerseyand Guernsey the chance to experience the culinary delightsof the Channel Islands. Now in its 16th year, the event bringstogether more than 190 restaurants across the islands tocelebrate the best local produce and innovative cooking.

Day trips to Guernsey next week lead in at £30 perperson, while prices for a car and two passengers costsfrom £52 each way. For more information or to book see www.condorferries.com

Come get a taste of all Louisiana has to offer, from our unique cuisine to our vibrant music scene. Because there’s no better place to hear live music than where it all began.

Phone Number: 0208 460 7082Brochure Request Line: 0800 652 8251

[email protected]

Come visit us at stand number NA230G-3 within the Brand USA Pavilion

©2013 Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism

SOMETHING NEW...Destination Representation hosted twowedding training evenings last month in Solihull and Bolton,introducing weddings venues and destinations including Fiji,Seychelles and Dominican Republic. Pictured with the DestinationRepresentation bride, Debbie Walker, and embracing the weddingtheme is Travel Counsellor, Ros Walsh. More wedding events arescheduled for February 2014 visiting Bristol and Exeter. For details email [email protected]

newsbulletin

Yuletide options grow with Grand UK GRAND UK Holidays has expanded its range of Christmasand New Year escorted tours in its winter 2013/14 brochureto cater for growing demand.

The company has added new destinations and hotels forthe Christmas period, as well as Turkey & Tinselfavourites, plus Christmas markets at home and abroad.

Trips to see Christmas markets in the UK and Europestart from £189 per person for four days, and include newchoices such as Festive Folkestone & Bruges ChristmasMarket. To book or for more information call 01603-619933 or seewww.grandukholidays.com

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RAINBOW TOURS’ 2014 Latin America brochure features 16 new properties acrossthe region, from the rainforest of Costa Rica to the southern tip of Argentina, andthe beaches of Uruguay. Alongside insight from destination experts and first-handaccounts from recent visitors to the region are several new itineraries featuringmountains, beaches, rainforests, wildlife, history and Latin American culture.

A range of itineraries are available - from week-long trips taking in the majorsites of one destination, to extended trips covering many of the highlights of thewhole continent.

As examples, new for next year is a 15-day Uruguay and Argentina Highlights,which includes visits to the Perito Moreno Glacier, Iguazu Falls and thecosmopolitan beaches of Uruguay, as well as the capital cities Buenos Aires andMontevideo. Prices lead in at £4,955 per person.

Also new is a 12-day Costa Rica Sustainable Wildlife Tour featuring five of CostaRica’s most environmentally responsible properties, all Five Leaf accredited, from£3,290 per person, and a ten-day Scenic Ecuador by Train from £2,985 per person.For more information or to book visit www.rainbowtours.co.uk or call 020-7666 1260.

AGENTS WHOSE customers are looking to go on a shortbreak to Reykjavik in search of the Northern Lights cannow get an extra night free with the launch of a specialdeal from Taber Holidays. The Scandinavia specialists areoffering four nights for the price of three on selected datesthis winter. The offer is available on daily departures fromNovember 1 to December 20 and January 3 to March 29,2014 at the Hotel Björk and Sunday and Monday departuresfrom November 1 to December 27 at the Hotel ReykjavikCentrum.

The company offers a range of optional excursions tohunt the aurora travelling away from the bright lights ofthe city by both coach and super-jeep. As an example,guests joining the ‘Northern Lights and Lobster’ excursion(£185) will be taken by super-jeep in search of a clear nightsky. After a short stop on a black sandy beach for a taste ofIcelandic Schnapps, they will then sit down for a lobsterdinner in a traditional restaurant.

A four-night city break, staying at Hotel Björk inReykjavik, leads in at £684 per person, including flightsfrom Heathrow, Manchester or Glasgow and transfers. Theoffer is based on two sharing and also includes breakfast.For more information call 01274-875199 or visit www.taberhols.co.uk

Brazil highlights from Hayes & JarvisENGLAND HAS secured its place in the FIFA World CupFinals in Brazil next summer, and Hayes and Jarvis ishighlighting some of its latest deals to the destination.

As examples, a seven-night ‘Highlights of Brazil’escorted tour starts in Rio de Janeiro before taking inIguazu and Salvador da Bahia. Travellers get theopportunity to spend at least two days in each destination,with guided tours and time to explore at leisure. Departingon March 16, 2014 prices lead in at £2,099 per person,offering a saving of £274 per person, including flights fromHeathrow with TAP Portugal.

A ten-night 'Rio de Janeiro and Buzios' stay departs onMay 5 and includes a three-night stay at the four-starMerlin Copacabana Hotel on a bed-and-breakfast basis,followed by a seven-night stay at the four-star SerenaBuzios Hotel on a room-only basis. Prices start from £1,599per person, with a saving of £289, and includes flights fromHeathrow with Iberia.For more information call 01293-735831 or visitwww.hayesandjarvis.co.uk

Taber offers free nights in Reykjavik onselected departures this winter

Northern Lights, Reykjavik

Rainbow Tours expands Latin America programme

newsbulletin

TRICK OR TREAT?...Nicky Yates from Attraction World went out tospook some local agents into selling some of the operator'sHalloween attractions, followed by wine and chocolate treats forthe unwitting recipients. Pictured with Nicky (wearing the'Scream' mask) are Dawn Letham (left) and Kelly Cope from Co-operative Travel in Stockport.

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newsbulletin

JET2.COM HAS launched three new city and short break destinations fromManchester for summer 2014 – Bergerac, Jersey and Vienna.

The carrier's new flights to Vienna from Manchester are the only direct servicefrom the North of the UK. The three times weekly servicewill commence on May 2, with prices starting from £40 perperson, including taxes.

Summer short break lovers can also take theirpick from the picturesque French market town ofBergerac – the only direct service available fromthe region – or the Channel Island, Jersey, withflights starting from £31 per person, includingtaxes. For more information or to book flights visitwww.jet2.com

Jet2.com announces three new flights from MAN

Vienna

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pixmix

SIGHTSEERS...Linda Buckingham

(left) from Travel Counsellors and

Samantha Morrison from Travel 2 get

ready for the wine tasting experience.

HAT’S THE WAY…Stacey Brothers (left)

from Africa Collection and Karen

Haughton from Escape Worldwide look

forward to taking in the Durban sights.

SEGWAY SHOW…Getting to grips with aSegway tour of Moses Mabhida Stadiumin Durban are Samantha Morrison (left)from Travel 2 and Sylvia Feldman fromTravel Counsellors.

SOUTH AFRICA Tourism took agroup of UK agents to South Africato showcase the cities of CapeTown and Durban. The group alsovisited the Winelands in theWestern Cape and Phinda PrivateGame Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal…

SWINGING SISTERS…Getting ready for the Big RushSwing at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban are, fromthe left: Karen Haughton, Escape Worldwide; StaceyBrothers, Africa Collection; Cindy Warner, Lion WorldTravel; and Sjabulile Cebekhulu, Durban Tourism.

GAME ON…Pictured on a game drive at PhindaPrivate Game Reserve are, from the left: SylviaFeldman, Travel Counsellors; Nina Farrimond, SouthAfrica Tourism; Karen Haughton, Escape Worldwide;Linda Buckingham, Travel Counsellors; CindyWarner, Lion World Travel ; Samantha Morrison,Travel 2; and Stacey Brothers, Africa Collection.

WINE-AROUND…Enjoying the wine tastingopportunities are, from the left: Karen Haughton, EscapeWorldwide; Samantha Morrison, Travel 2; LindaBuckingham, Travel Counsellors; Cindy Warner, LionWorld Travel; Sylvia Feldman, Travel Counsellors; andStacey Brothers, Africa Collection.

S03 TB2510 News 2_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:23

golfbulletin

With over 40 Tour Operators offering holidays to Tunisia, manywith specialist golf knowledge, there is a wealth of informationavailable to help plan and book the perfect golfing break.

The Tunisian National Tourist Office also offers plenty ofpractical information via their website www.cometotunisia.co.ukand in recent campaigns they have used golf images overlayedonto other attractions to further promote golf.

The Tunisian National Tourist Office are keen to promote allaspects of tourism and with winter sunshine in abundance thedestination has plenty to offer the golfer on and off the course.Hotels offering fantastic spa treatments, with fine dining andboutique shopping all add to the options available for golfersand their spouses, with history, culture and adventure tourismoptions all catered for in Tunisia.

Selling The Destination

The Courses - What's on offer?Ten championship courses ranging from coastal to olivegroves, from the historical backdrop of Carthage to thebeautiful island of Djerba the championship courses willchallenge and delight the golfer in equal measure.

Shaped within the landscape by renowned golf coursedesigners the courses have been constructed to satisfy golfersof different levels, often complimented by practice areas, mini-courses and golf academies.

TUNISIA - AN OASIS OF PERFECT GREENS

Tunisia is a renowned world-class golfing destination, with

ten varied courses and ideal weather conditions prevailing

throughout the year it represents a fantastic golfing option

only two and a half hours away.

Many hotels will arrange pre-set tee-off times and providecomplimentary transfers to and from courses, and everythingfrom clubs to caddies can be hired at very reasonable rates.

Boasting year-round sunshine and championship courses,Tunisia is becoming a golfing 'must' to be enjoyed byprofessionals and amateurs alike.

Expert Help

advertorial

Images courtesy of Tunisia First


S03 TB2510 News 2_Layout 1 23/10/2013 15:45

Where was your last work-related trip? The annual Trafalgar Conference whichthis year was held in Switzerland to theeast of Zurich in a place called St Gallen.We were lucky enough to have a day tripto Lucerne which really cemented thebeauty of the country with mountainsand lakes and let’s not forget the food,including chocolate!

If you were a celebrity who would you choose to be and why? It would be someone like Hugh Jackman– he has varied talent that lends itself toso many roles which must give him thechance to have a lot of fun and beserious as well as he seems quitegrounded and just a good bloke.

What three words would yourfriends use to describe you? Organised, fun and outgoing.

What have your travels taught you? Go with the flow, leave allpreconceptions behind and be in themoment - it will all work out.

What is the best advice you recall?Advice that wasn’t specifically directed tome but that you hear regularly: ‘Don’tworry about what other people think! Dowhat you want, think what you want,believe what you want and be who youwant, as long as you are happy.’

If you could have a room full of any one thing, what would it be? Chocolate or money or dogs!

If you could change three things inthe industry, what would they be? Customer perceptions, salary and betterperks.

What's your favourite city and why? Tough question - there are so many greatcities out there to be enjoyed in differentways. One of my favourite cities to live

would have to be Vancouver. It’s like asmall town with big city attributes.Although, if Madrid and Barcelona couldbe combined you would have my perfectcity.

If you were not doing this job, what would you be doing? I am a fully qualified massage therapist soI would most likely be doing that orsomething in the fitness industry.

What is your motto in life? I don’t really have one but I have alwaysliked ‘Work Hard, Play Hard’. I do thinkthat while at work, work hard but once

Mark CoulthartThe sales manager of One Stop Touring Shop saysthat his qualification as a massage therapist is a

handy skill to have…

it’s over it’s personal time and youshould enjoy every minute of that -whether it be weekends, evenings orholidays.

What is your favourite mode of travel? I love boats but flying gets you to allthese far flung places that would nothave been as possible without.

If you had a super power what would it be and why? I reckon it would have to be speed sothat you could get to places quicker andcomplete the boring things quicker andtake it slow on the good stuff!

How do you deal with stress? I very rarely get stressed. After a fewevents like a friend pouring water in tomy engine and locking myself out of aflat in Sydney on New Year’s Day, I havenow learnt to just laugh and take timeto sort each situation out calmly, stressdoesn’t resolve.

Is there anything that you dislike about the travel industry? I think we have some of the hardestworkers of any industry andunfortunately in some cases the paynever reflects that.

What special skill do you have? The aforementioned massage therapy isusually a surprise to most people, but it’sa handy little skill.

What’s your favourite movie of alltime? Legends of the Fall – great movie offamily struggles and Anthony Hopkins isjust brilliant.

What’s your favourite programmeon the TV right now? I hate to admit it but it has to be TheGreat British Bakeoff, all the deliciousfood and learning a few tricks.

Career path● 1999-2004: Restaurant manager in

Sydney suburbs ● 2004-2006: Freelance massage

therapist ● 2005-2007: STA Travel Australia –

sales consultant ● 2007-2008: STA Travel UK – travel

advisor● 2008-2010: Assistant manager● 2010-2012: Store manager x 4 Stores● October 2013-present: One Stop

Touring Shop, sales manager -London & Anglia

”My favouriteTV programme? I

hate to admit it but ithas to be ‘The Great

British Bakeoff’ for allthe delicious food

and learning afew tricks”

personalitybulletin


S03 TB2510 News 2_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:23

19

An evening to mark the industry's finest: Travel Bulletin's 2013 Star Awards

First prize was a Virgin Experience Daysuch as a Hot Air Balloon Flight orDriving a Racing Car. The winner wasAdelle Vanns of Baldwins Travel.

The second and third prizes were amixed case of fine wines and were wonby Sarah Redmond of Co-OperativeTravel, Kidlington and Pavia Collinsfrom Waltham Abbey Travel.

Putting you in the picture

Pictures of allthe winners andguests at thisyear's TravelBulletin StarAwards are

available to view online athttp://tbawards.fotoseeker.com. Todownload any images, users will firstneed to register on the site, which isfree of charge. Fotoseeker suppliesimage management and photo librarysoftware to the travel industry,including hotels, cruise lines, touristoffices and operators, who canshowcase their images online andbenefit from Fotoseeker's hugedatabase of the world's media andtravel professionals from as little as£95.00 per month. The site iscurrently used by 139 countries as ameans of showcasing and promotingdestinations and this figure continuesto grow on a daily basis. The sitefeatures more than 250,000 imagesand is currently used by 30,000registered users worldwide. Allimages are of an industry standardformat for publication and do notneed to be resized prior topublication, while Fotoseeker'sbespoke service offers customisedimage libraries integrated intoclients' websites. For more information [email protected]

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

All agents who voted in the Star Awards were entered into a free prize draw to win one of three superb prizes, courtesy of Jetset.

1st 2ND

Videos from Travel Bulletin’s StarAwards can be viewed at

www.youtube.com/travelbulletin

Travel Bulletin's 17th annual TravelStar Awards was certainly anevening to remember, but most

importantly, it was an evening dedicatedto recognising and rewarding theindustry's best, as voted for by you - thetravel agent.

The glittering ceremony took place atthe prestigious five-star Landmark Hotelin London and a total of 34 awards werepresented - divided into five industrysectors - Smooth Operators, Land Lords,High Fliers, Sea Captains and BestSupporting Acts. This year's event alsosaw the introduction of two new StarAwards - Star Tour Operator ForIncentives & Fam Trips and Star TourOperator For Online Training,Roadshows & Workshops.

The evening commenced with a pre-dinner drinks reception, followed by athree-course dinner and culminated in aspectacular After Show party in whichWest End Show, STOMP, entertained

guests with choreographed percussion,movement and physical comedy,sponsored by Encore Tickets. The AfterShow Party also included the popular'Green Screen', which made a return forthe second year running, and wassponsored by Titan.

Other sponsors of the Star Awardsincluded Attraction World, BourneLeisure, Jetset Flights, Expedia TAAPand Riviera Travel.

BBC Breakfast presenter, Bill Turnbull,was host of the awards presentation andentertained guests as he recalled storiesfrom his career and his time on StrictlyCome Dancing.

A huge congratulations to all of thisyear's deserving winners and finalistswho have triumphed in a difficulteconomic environment. Lastly, but by nomeans least, thank you to readers ofTravel Bulletin for your continuedsupport and feedback into making TravelBulletin the industry's favourite.

S04 TB2510 2013 SA Smooth Operators_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:11

First thing we wish to say is a bigTHANK YOU to everyone who votedfor us, supports us and continues tobook with us. It’s always amazing toreceive recognition such as thisfrom your industry colleagues,peers and friends.

As previous winners of the Travel

Bulletin Star Escorted ToursSpecialist award, it would be easy tobecome complacent, however, Titancontinually strives to introduce newproducts and initiatives to helpinspire and reward agents thatsupport us. We have recently expanded ourAgency Sales Team from threemembers to six, including an office-based support team and three full-time, dedicated area salesexecutives covering the whole of theUK and Ireland. Our on-the-road executives are ableto assist with in-store days, training,consumer events, brochure and POSsupplies, or even just a friendly chatto catch up. Our office team arethere to discuss all aspects ofmarketing, promotion, incentives,

bookings and anything else thathelps provide a better salesexperience for you and your clients. We believe that this new teamstructure will give all agents thetools and knowledge needed to growtheir Titan business even more.Once again, Titan wishes to send aheartfelt thanks to Travel Bulletinreaders and hopes 2014 is a happyand prosperous year for all. Please call 0800-988 5166 toarrange for one of the team tocontact you or visit www.titanagents.co.uk. To view ouragent incentives, special offers,order brochures, download POS andtraining packages. Alternativelyfollow us onTwitter@TitanAgencySale or like uson Facebook.com/TitanagentsUK

Star Adventure-Activity Holiday SpecialistWinner: Explore!Runner Up: Club MedFinalists: Exodus, Kuoni, Mark Warner, NeilsonHolidaysExplore is thrilled to have won the Travel Bulletin Star Award for ‘BestActivity/Adventure Specialist’ and would like to say a big 'thank you' to allthe agents who voted for us. We value our travel agents and work hard to provide you with all the toolsand support you need to increase your small group tour and adventuretravel markets. We endeavour to keep you updated with all our latestnews through e-shots, visits, trade shows and online trainingprogrammes, whilst at the same time offering excellent commissionrates and incentives. For your customers we have a 100% PriceGuarantee; therefore once your customer has confirmed their bookingwith us, we guarantee the price of their holiday will not change. We alsoensure that your customer will pay the same price booking with you asthey would if they had booked direct. Explore has been pioneering guided small group adventures for over 30years. Following the Explore philosophy, we want your customers toexperience authentic travel (mostly found ‘off the beaten-track’), anddiscover the places they have always wanted to see. We continue to workhard to carefully craft our itineraries, introduce new destinations andadventures to suit your customers’ travel needs. This year we are pleasedto announce we are launching over 80 new tours, offering your customerseven more fascinating, inspiring and affordable adventures across theworld. Call us on 0870-727 0491 or visit www.trade-gate.co.uk

20

Smooth Operators

It's a magic kiss from Explore's trade salesmanager, Philippa Baines, who picks up the awardfor Star Adventure/Activity Holidays Specialist.

Star Escorted Tours SpecialistWinner: Titan TravelRunner Up: Collette Worldwide HolidaysFinalists: Journeys of Distinction, One StopTouring Shop, Riviera Travel, Travelsphere

Edwina Coppock, agency sales manager ofTitan Travel, collects the award for StarEscorted Tours Specialist.


Smooth Operators

Star Specialist Operator to AfricaWinner: KuoniRunner Up: African PrideFinalists: Africa & Beyond, Africa Collection, SomakHolidays, Travel 2

From Kenya to Tanzania and Namibia toSouth Africa, Kuoni’s Africa programmehas grown to include ten differentAfrican countries, with exciting andvaried multi-centre options, safaris andtours. As well as best-selling Africandestinations including Kenya and SouthAfrica, the Kuoni programme hasevolved to include more tours for 2014,including wonders of Namibia, volcanosand gorillas in Rwanda, South AfricanExplorer and Kilimanjaro climbs. The itineraries can be as simple orsophisticated as clients wish and theKuoni programme has been designed toinspire travel to this stunning continent. Kuoni’s focus is always on first class

service - and there’s nothing like face-to-face contact to build strongerrelationships with agent partners. Thisyear, 20 staff from the Dorking-basedtelephone sales team were givenadditional responsibilities to get out andabout to meet agents face-to-face todiscuss training requirements, newproducts and joint sales and marketinginitiatives. This gives Kuoni morevisibility in front of travel agent partnersthroughout the UK, with its biggest everon-the-road sales team. Amanda Darrington, head of trade sales,said: “The team at Kuoni are thrilled tobe recognised by readers of TravelBulletin as the 'Star Specialist OperatorTo Africa'. We’ve invested in product

knowledge and our biggest ever fam tripprogramme this year. Our call-centreteam, dedicated to travel agents, havefantastic knowledge of our Africandestinations, accommodation range andtouring programmes and are highlyskilled in creating tailor-madeitineraries.” Thank you from Kuoni to all readers ofTravel Bulletin.

Lisa Eggleton (left), trade sales team lead,and Lucy Ellingham, trade relations co-ordinator of Kuoni pick up the award for StarSpecialist Operator To Africa.

VIEW OFFERS AND BOOK TODAY! Visit: www.hoseasons.co.uk/agents or call: 0844 847 1144

*Prize Draw is open to all UK resident Travel Agents over the age of 18 years. Prize is non transferable with no cash alternative. For the Promoter details and full Terms and Conditions of the prize draw visit www.hoseasons.co.uk/pdfs/hoseasonshottubs.pdf . Promoter: Hoseasons, Sunway House, Raglan Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR32 2LW

ABTA No. Y0662See booking conditions for

full details of our ABTA membership

Hot tubs

Hoseasons

Win a Hot Tub Break to Raywell Hall Country LodgesPlus 10 runners up will receive a Luxury Bathrobe*

To enter: For every Hoseasons Hot Tub booking you confirm between 23rd Sept – 3rd Nov 2013 email [email protected] the booking reference, along with your name and Abta number to be in with a chance of winning.

Thank You for voting us

Star Specialist Operator to the UK


We are delighted to have won the ‘Star Specialist Operatorto the Americas’ award, for the second year in a row.Without your votes we would not have been able to win thisaward, so THANK YOU to all of our High Street and homebased travel agent partners. By winning this award, you willsee just how committed we are to providing you withunbeatable value, unrivalled choice and unlimited flexibility. The entire Funway team has been working on a variety ofprojects, including improvements to our dedicated travelagent website – www.funway4agents.co.uk, the expansionof our brochure collection and more time and moneyspent through advertising and PR to give our travel agents‘hot off the press’ news, mind-blowing fam tripcompetitions and access to the best deals around! Plus,this year saw the launch of our MoneyCard loyalty scheme- a new incentive enabling travel agents to earn tax freemoney on each Funway booking made to the USA, Mexico,Caribbean (Sandals), Middle East & Far East.On top of the above we also have our sales and

reservations teams to be proud of – all holding a wealth ofknowledge and information on both Funway Holidays andthe products that we sell. Our business developmentmanagers cover the whole of the UK, helping travel agentsevery step of the way by providing face-to-face interactionand training. Our experienced travel advisors are UKbased and pride themselves on giving your clients theholiday of a lifetime to suit their individual needs –whether that be a single, twin or multi-centre option.

22

Smooth Operators

Thank youfor all your

support!

BOURNE

EXPERT

We are proud to have won the

Star HolidayParks Operator

award, for the fifthyear running!

Star Specialist Operatorto AsiaWinner:

Wendy Wu Tours

Runner Up: TravelIndochinaFinalists: If Only..., Inspired By Asia,Premier Holidays, Travel 2Wendy Wu Tours is the UK’s leading specialist touroperator to China, Southeast Asia and India, with over 15years’ experience in delivering best in class escortedgroup tour holidays, private tours and tailor-madeholidays to a growing range of destinations. We are proud to offer the most comprehensive range ofholidays to China in the UK market. It is our mission todeliver unique travel experiences, where our customersnot only see all the famous attractions but get anopportunity to really indulge in the country‘s culture,natural beauty and hidden treasures. Our wide range ofproduct, personal service and creative marketing hasseen us win a variety of prestigious trade and consumerawards over the past years. What’s more, we consistentlydeliver a 97% customer satisfaction level, recorded fromour post tour surveys. We have worked closely with our agent partners formany years and enjoy a great relationship. We investheavily in our trade partnerships, making sure agentshave everything they need to sell Wendy Wu Tours moreeffectively. We also see great value in providing a friendlyface to the Wendy Wu Tours brand, which is why we offerUK wide roadshows every year in September. This inaddition to our dedicated team of ‘on the road’ BusinessDevelopment Managers, helps us to maintain a closerelationship with agents, making it as easy as possiblefor agents to contact us.

It's a big thumbs up from themanaging director of Wendy WuTours, Laurence Hicks, as hecollects the award for StarSpecialist Operator To Asia.

Star Specialist Operator to the AmericasWinner: Funway HolidaysRunner Up: Virgin HolidaysFinalists: 1st Class Holidays, Jetset Holidays, North America Travel Service, USAirtours

Star Specialist OperatorTo The Americas went toFunway Holidays.Pictured is thecompany's marketingmanager, Nick Talbot.


Smooth Operators

Just over a week ago at the annualTravel Bulletin Star Awards, Travel 2 wonthe award for ‘Star Operator Incentives& Fam Trips’. Having operated in thetravel industry for over 30 years Travel 2has always specialised in creating highquality, value for money, tailor-madeholidays worldwide. After the awardsGordon McCreadie, sales and marketingdirector for Travel 2 told us what thisaward means to Travel 2: “I would firstlylike to thank all of our travel agents andpartners for voting for us; without yourcontinued support this award would notbe ours. We like to reward our agents fortheir support and ensure that we arecontinually encouraging them to activelylearn and develop their product

knowledge. As Travel 2 is a B2Bbusiness, our only focus is our agentsand how important it is that our agentsare knowledgeable and are passionateabout our destinations. Fam trips are anextremely important vehicle for this as itencourages continued professionaldevelopment and gives our agentsfirsthand knowledge of the products theywork with on a daily basis, which in turnallows them to confidently providequality service to their clients. Goingforward, Travel 2 will continue to ensurethat we deliver quality educational famtrips and incentives for our agents, toallow us to continually deliver the bestpossible service to the end clients andplan to offer more in 2014 and beyond.”

Winner: Travel 2

Runner Up: Caribtours

Finalists: Classic CollectionHolidays, Cyplon Holidays,Funway Holidays, JetsetHolidays, Sandals Resorts

Star Tour Operator for Incentives & Fam Trips

Gordon McCreadie, sales & marketingdirector of Travel 2, collects the awardfor Star Tour Operator For Incentives &Fam Trips.


24

Smooth Operators

Star Specialist Operator to EuropeWinner: Classic Collection HolidaysRunner Up: Kirker HolidaysFinalists: Cresta, Olympic Holidays, Prestige Holidays

Since Nick Munday took the helm atClassic Collection Holidays in 2002 hehas pursued excellence in all aspectsof the business and is proud ofClassic’s exceptionally high servicelevels both in the UK and overseas -99% of the operator’s customersconfirm that they would definitely bookanother Classic holiday and wouldadditionally recommend the company’sluxury short-haul holidays to familyand friends. The operator’s Sussex-based reservations team is comprisedof highly motivated experts who knowthe importance of delivering the righttailor-made holiday to matchcustomers’ expectations, and it is theflexibility of the product (departureairport, duration, choice of board basis

and room type) coupled with theknowledge and expertise of the staff,plus a robust price promise guarantee,that has led to Classic’s success withagents. Increasing in size from fourdestinations in 2002 to more than 27 in2013, Classic’s on-the-road team areavailable to train agents and an equallyimportant role is for them to reportback to the marketing team aboutholiday trends and ‘what the agentsexpect from Classic’. It is the strengthof these relationships together withthe company ethos to treat others(customers, agents and suppliers) aswe wish to be treated ourselves thatensures Classic stands apart from itscompetitors. Collectively, as acompany, we loathe the 'computer-

says-no' culture and, because weknow we can offer a superior yes-service over the telephone, we featurean informative but non-bookablewebsite, instead providing a freephonenumber 0800-008 7288 for agents tocontact us.

Vanda Bauer, head of marketing & PR forClassic Collection Holidays, picks up theaward for Star Specialist Operator ToEurope. She is pictured with TravelBulletin's Simon Eddolls.

Star Tour Operator forOnline Training,Roadshows & WorkshopsWinner: Classic Collection Holidays

Runner Up: Jet2holidaysFinalists: Attraction World, Kuoni,Sandals Resorts, Wendy Wu Tours

The Star Tour Operator For Online Training, Roadshows & Workshopswas Classic Collection. Vanda Bauer, the operator's head ofmarketing & PR, collects the award.

Star Specialist Operatorto the MediterraneanWinner: Cyplon HolidaysRunner Up: Anatolian SkyHolidaysFinalists: Classic Collection Holidays,Jet2holidays, Olympic Holidays, PrestigeHolidaysA massive THANK YOU toall the agents that votedfor us once again andequally to all the agentsthat have supported Cyplonover the last 41 years . Towin this a second time isawesome. We are ecstaticto see that the award wehave just won, matches ournew branding with thestrap line, “The Home ofMediterranean Holidays".To further strengthen thisstatement we will be offering quality holidays toTunisia, Morocco, Malta, Sicily, Sardinia, Egypt, Cyprus,Greece & Her Islands. A big thank you to The Cyprusand Greece Tourist offices in London for theirsupport."Jayne Scott, national sales manager, Cyplon Holidays

Tass Anastasi, sales &marketing director of CyplonHolidays, celebrates his awardfor Star Specialist Operator ToThe Mediterranean with TravelBulletin's Jeanette Ratcliffe.


In the Picture

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1.) ENCORE, ENCORE!...JohnWales (right) from Encore gets inthe mood with the cast of STOMP.

2.) READY, STEADY, EAT...Picturedready to enjoy the scrumptiousthree-course dinner are, from theleft: Alex Fairford, InternationalTravel; Joseph Grimley, RivieraTravel; Paula Campbell, Jetset;Darren Mussell, Riviera Travel;and Sue Mercer, Ashdown Travel.

3.) STAIRWAY TO STARDOM...From the left are: Lisa Barrington,Sea World Parks; AdrianaJimenez and Zoe Prophet, OTT;and Nick Hughes, AttractionWorld.

4.) TOP TABLE...BBC presenter,Bill Turnbull (middle) chats withJeanette Ratcliffe, and PaulScudamore from Travel Bulletin.

5.) TRIO TRIUMPH...The winner ofa business card draw for twotickets to see STOMP was PaulBunce (left) from RIU Hotels &Resorts. Pictured with Paul issponsor of the award, John Bond(middle) from Jetset, with host ofthe Star Awards, Bill Turnbull.

6.) TEAM EXPEDIA...Checking outthe event programme are, fromthe left: Richard Moore, CindyGirard and Rob Grover fromExpedia.

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To view a selection of images from Travel Bulletin’s StarAwards evening visit

www.travelbulletin.co.uk/awards


for voting Wendy Wu ToursStar Specialist Operator to Asia NEW

China brochure OUT NOW

0844 310 7816 wendywutours.co.uk/[email protected]


Smooth Operators

CALL 0800 008 7288www.classic-collection.co.uk

Classic Collection Holidays Star Specialist Operator to Europe

Star Specialist Operator for Online Training, Roadshows & Workshops

(twice in one night . . . we’re a little overwhelmed)

Thankyou!

We really value your support

for voting

Star Holiday Parks OperatorWinner: HavenRunner Up: HoseasonsFinalists: Butlins, Keycamp Holidays, PontinsHaven is ecstatic to have won the award for Star Holiday Parks Operatorof the Year at this year's Travel Bulletin Star Awards for the fifth yearrunning! We are extremely grateful to all of our travel agent friends fortheir continued support, investment of time and hard work, and for votingfor us of course! At Haven our trade partners are an invaluable extension of our team andwe recognise that the contribution travel agents make in selling ourholidays is integral to our ongoing success. Last year we invested £40min making our 35 award-winning holiday parks the best in Britain throughupgrade projects including enhanced pools and entertainment venues,food and drink outlets, landscaping, infrastructure and modernaccommodation; giving agents the assurance that we continue to focus ondelivering the best possible value for money holiday experience to ourmutual customers. As well as being committed to offering our customers the best possibleholiday experience, we are also dedicated to supporting our travel agentswith the very best tools to ensure they have the latest product knowledgeand training so they are best placed to maximise every sales opportunity. Winning this award is a fantastic accolade and one that the whole Haventeam are very proud of.

Collecting the award for Star Holiday ParksOperator is Haven's head of retail sales, AllanLambert.


Smooth Operators

THANKSA MILLION!

To all the agents who voted for us as their

STAR ESCORTED TOURS SPECIALIST

2013

www.titanagents.co.uk

TB 103x297 Award Ad 161013.indd 1 16/10/2013 16:42

Star Specialist Operatorto the UKWinner: HoseasonsRunner Up:

SuperbreakFinalists: Butlins, Haven, ShearingsHolidays, Warner HolidaysHoseasons is thrilled to have won the ‘Star SpecialistOperator to the UK’ award for the second consecutiveyear running, given the awards are voted for by the travelagents themselves. Zena Calderbank, the operator's head of sales, said: “It’sa real pleasure to receive recognition of the incredibleeffort the entire team puts into supporting the traveltrade as well as a reflection of the strong partnerships wecontinue to develop with the agents. We are committed tosupporting and encouraging agents which is whyHoseasons has a dedicated sales team out on the road.This year so far we have visited more than 3,280 agenciesto offer training, merchandising support, competitionopportunities and advice."We believe there are a number of contributors whyHoseasons has again been successful at this year’sTravel Bulletin Star Awards, but the most important beingthat people still love to holiday in the UK – somethingwhich we express massive enthusiasm for. The fantasticweather we experienced over the summer providedagents with a huge opportunity to really boost the UKoffering and acted as a further incentive for those last-minute undecided customers. Another factor is having ahuge choice of accommodation in locations to suiteveryone, from traditional seaside breaks to luxury lodgeescapes in the countryside."

Hoseasons will continue to lead in their approach to self-catering UK holidays with product concepts improvingand increasing with the likes of Daisy Door, Evermore,Go-Active and Autograph. 2014 will see the launch ofanother fantastic offering so watch this space…..

The Star Specialist Operator To The UK award went to Hoseasons.Pictured celebrating is the operator's head of sales, ZenaCalderbank with Simon Eddolls from Travel Bulletin.


In the Picture

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1.) DRINK DATE…Catching up at the reception drinks are, from the left: Tony Byrne, Great RailwayJourneys; Jeanette Radcliffe, Travel Bulletin; Nina Farrimond, South African Tourism; and WayneDarrock, JTA.

2.) WE’LL DRINK TO THAT…Emma McLeese (left) from Attraction World hooks up with Iain Bailliefrom Carnival Cruise Lines and Louise Sword, Titan.

3.) BALLOON BUDDIES…Getting ready for some disco fun are, from the left: Phil Norris and EmmaRyan from A2B Transfers with Simon Garrido, Monarch.

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THANK YOU FOR VOTING SILVERSEA

‘Star Luxury Cruise Company’7 YEARS IN A ROW

For more information or to book please contact Silversea on 0844 770 9030 or visit Silversea.com

• All ocean-view suites – up to 95% with private veranda

• Butler service for all suites

• Voyages to all seven continents

• Complimentary beverages served throughout the ship

• In-suite refrigerator stocked with your preferred choice

of beverages

• Up to 6 open-seating restaurants with gourmet menus by

Relais & Châteaux

• Complimentary in-suite dining and 24 hour room service

• Onboard gratuities included

• Superlative service – staff to guest ratio of almost one to one

• Complimentary transportation into town in most ports of call

HERE ARE SOME OF THE REASONS WHY YOU MAY HAVE VOTED FOR US


Star Luxury CruiseCompanyWinner: Silversea CruisesRunner up: Celebrity CruisesFinalists: Crystal Cruises, Cunard,Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Seabourn

Star River CruiseCompanyWinner: VikingRiver CruisesRunner up: Riviera TravelFinalists: AmaWaterways,APT River Cruises, AvalonWaterways, River CruiseLine

Sea Captains

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Laurent Ferros andMelissa Todd fromViking River Cruisespick up the awardfor Star River CruiseCompany

We would like to take thisopportunity to say a big thankyou to all agents who, onceagain, voted Silversea 'StarLuxury Cruise Provider' for theseventh successive year. We aredelighted with this award andfeel this demonstrates thesuccess and strength of therelationships we have built withthe trade over the years. As the luxury cruise industryexpands year on year, Silversea continues to focus oninnovation and offering superlative European service. Withthe introduction of our third expedition ship, we now travelto more destinations than any other cruise line. Manyunique elements are woven together to create anextraordinary holiday experience for our guests. Theseinclude intimate, all suite ships that can call in the mostremote destinations and dock in ports that are inaccessibleto larger ships. We offer luxurious amenities, superbcuisine, amazing worldwide destinations, including bothPolar Regions, and the ability for our guests to personalisetheir experience with bespoke land adventures, plus optionsfor customising their suites with a range of luxuryamenities, a choice of pillows and a selection of beverages. We look forward to even stronger relationships with you, thetravel trade and to continue building our reputation as thebest luxury cruise line.

At Viking, we are thrilled to have been voted the winner ofthe Travel Bulletin Star River Cruise award for the fourthconsecutive year – a BIG thank you to all the agents whovoted for us. Having the support of our agents is so important to us. Ourexcellent commission levels, dedicated Trade support andprofessional and knowledgeable reservations team are allreasons why booking with Viking is a rewarding experience. With the phenomenal growth of river cruising, the launch ofthe ten Viking Longships in 2013 – and another 16 in 2014,Viking is moving from strength to strength. The Longshipsfeature the unique Aquavit Terrace for alfresco dining,deluxe staterooms and suites, as well as two stunningExplorer Suites. The recent launch of our ocean cruises is another reason tocelebrate – and to recommend Viking to your clients. VikingStar is a smaller, more intimate ocean ship that is elegantand stylish, with an informal, relaxing atmosphere. Home tojust 930 guests, the ship sails to more inspiring destinations,where guests can enjoy enriching excursions and more timeashore. For inclusive ocean cruising at its best, take a lookat our exciting ocean itineraries. Award-winning ships, inspiring destinations, fantastic valuefor money – it’s no wonder Viking continues to be the world’sleading river cruise line – here’s to a successful 2014!

It's victory for MafaldaBarreto, national accountsmanager of SilverseaCruises, who collects theaward for Star LuxuryCruise Company.

I’m thrilled that Royal Caribbean International has beenhonoured by agents across the country in Travel Bulletin’sannual Star Awards. It’s a great reflection of the hard workcarried out by the teams across the business and a truerecognition of the dedication and commitment of ourwonderful crew. We are so very proud of all our peoplewho make the experiences on-board such a hit. I want toextend a massive thank you to all of the agents who havevoted in the Travel Bulletin Star Awards. Our loyal trade partners are vital to our brand’s continuedgrowth and we are committed to supporting them withtraining, ship visits and innovative marketing. Consistent

trade feedback on our various initiatives has been fantasticand the investment in training to bring our ships to lifecontinues to convert yet more agents to be great RoyalCaribbean International ambassadors. Royal Caribbean International is a global cruise brand with22 innovative ships, calling on more than 270 destinationsin 72 countries across six continents. The Royal CaribbeanInternational fleet features the world's largest and mostinnovative cruise ships, and feature activities such as rockclimbing, surfing, zip wiring and ice skating, all at sea. Steve Williams, head of sales, Royal CaribbeanInternational

Star Family Cruise CompanyWinner: Royal Caribbean InternationalRunner up: Carnival Cruise LinesFinalists: Disney Cruise Line, P&O Cruises, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line

James Neal,brand managerof RoyalCaribbeanInternationalpicks up theaward for StarFamily CruiseCompany.

S05 TB2510 2013 SA Sea Captains_Layout 1 23/10/2013 12:59

Star Specialist CruiseCompanyWinner: HurtigrutenRunner up: Swan HellenicFinalists: Azamara Club Cruises, DisneyCruise Line, Star Clippers, Swan Hellenic,Voyages of DiscoveryWe are absolutely delighted to have won the Star Awardfor 'Best Specialist Cruise Operator' for the second yearrunning; it is even more special knowing it was voted forby our travel agent partners. We have continued to see our business grow through thetrade with continuing investment, including increasedmarketing spend, successful campaigns, improvedcommunication and agent fam trips and incentives. Our Northern Lights programme continues to sell welland there is no better time to book your customers withHurtigruten. Not only will they experience the breathtakingfjords at this beautiful time of year, with increased solaractivity predicted in 2013 & 2014, they will also have morechance of seeing the magical Northern Lights....and allavailable from an airport near you!

We are excited with what lies ahead, demand for specialistcruising continues to grow, coupled with the desire forunique experiences. Our partners with their knowledgeand experience will play a vital role in ensuring thesedemands are met. All that leaves me to say is “TusenTakk” from us all at Hurtigruten. Your support is verymuch appreciated.

Sea Captains

Hurtigruten collects the award for Star Specialist Cruise Company.Pictured celebrating is the line's regional sales manager, Lucy Hone(left) and sales manager UK & Ireland, Maxine Dunsdon.

A different kind of cruise

T: 020 8846 2666 E: [email protected] W: www.hurtigruten.co.uk/agents

Thank you for voting Hurtigruten‘Star Specialist Cruise Line’ at the 2013 Travel Bulletin awards! It’s ahuge honour to win an award that’s decided solely by travel professionals like you.

So if your customers are looking for a voyage along the Norwegian coast at any time of year (Northern Lights in Winter, Midnight Sun in summer, especially!), or something more adventurous to Greenland, Spitsbergen or Antarctica, we look forward to offering them more ofour award-winning service. In factwe look forward to giving them our star treatment.

WE WON AGAIN!..

OUR STAR IS SHINING!


THE WORLD’S BEST RIVER CRUISE LINE

JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTERThank you to everyone who voted us Travel Bulletin Star River Cruise 2013

Find out what makes us the world’s favourite at www.vikingrivercruises.co.uk or call us on 020 8780 7900


High Fliers

TA!*Leeds Bradford Airport would like to thank all our travel trade partners for voting us Star Regional Airport 2013.

*

Emirates flies 16 times daily toDubai from a choice of six UKairports, offering convenient onwardconnections to more than 130destinations. Onboard, passengerscan enjoy world-class service,regionally inspired gourmet cuisineand up to 1,500 channels of award-winning entertainment – plusphone, SMS and email connectivityfrom every seat. On the ground,First Class and Business Classpassengers can take advantage of acomplimentary Chauffeur-driveService, expedited check-in,dedicated baggage handling andluxurious lounge access – ensuringa seamless journey from start tofinish. On five daily flights from

Heathrow and on a daily servicefrom Manchester, travellers canexperience the Emirates A380. Therevolutionary superjumbo featuresPrivate Suites and onboard ShowerSpas in First Class, an OnboardLounge and flat-bed seats withdirect aisle access in BusinessClass and room to stretch out andrelax in Economy Class – plusonboard WiFi throughout.Laurie Berryman, Emirates' vicepresident UK, said: “It is an honourto be awarded the Travel BulletinStar Business Airline Award as itemphasises our ongoingcommitment to our valued tradepartners, without whom our successwould not be possible.”

Emirates currently serves 135 citiesaround the globe with a young andtechnologically advanced fleet of 194wide-bodied passenger aircraftequipped with industry-leadingcomforts. Additionally, Emirates has188 aircraft on order worth morethan $71billion and is the leadingcustomer of the Airbus A380 with 37in service and a further 53 on order.Renowned for its excellence inservice and innovation, bothonboard and on the ground,Emirates holds an impressive arrayof prestigious awards includingSkytrax 2013 ‘World’s Best Airline’,‘Best Middle East Airline’ and for arecord ninth year in a row, ‘World’sBest Inflight Entertainment’.

Star Business AirlineWinner: EmiratesRunner up: Etihad AirwaysFinalists: British Airways, Lufthansa,Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic

Rashid Nazir, sales executive at Emirates,collects the award for Star Business Airline.

S06 TB2510 2013 SA High Flyers Landlords_Layout 1 23/10/2013 12:58

Star Charter Seat-Only CompanyWinner: AvroRunner up: Jet2.comFinalists: Thomas Cook Airlines, Thomson Airways

High Fliers

35

It's thumbs up fromMichael Vinales,managing director atAvro, as he picks upthe award for StarCharter Seat-OnlyCompany.

Star Regional UK AirportWinner: Leeds Bradford InternationalAirportRunner up: London Luton AirportFinalists: Bournemouth Airport, Bristol Airport, East Midlands Airport, Southampton Airport

Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) has beennamed as Star Regional UK Airport atthis year’s Travel Bulletin Star Awards,which took place at the prestigiousceremony in London. The awardsrecognise excellence within the travelindustry, with votes cast by travelagents. LBA was recognised as theleading regional airport for the high

level of support it has given agents overthe year, and comes shortly after theairport celebrated a series of othermilestone achievements includingsurpassing three million passengers forthe first time, and celebrating its busiestyear so far. James Broughton, LBA’s marketingmanager said: “We are delighted to be

recognised by our peers within theindustry, and support the ever growingnumber of airlines and tour operators.We look forward to continuing to workclosely with our travel trade partnersand ensure the awareness of ourincreased destination choice andenhanced facilities from Yorkshire’sgateway airport across the region.”

It's smiles all round as James Broughton,sales & marketing manager at LeedsBradford International Airport, picks upthe award for Star Regional UK Airport.

Star Scheduled Flight ConsolidatorWinner: Jetset FlightsRunner up: The Holiday TeamFinalists: Gold Medal Travel, JTA Travel, Major TravelJetset would like to thank all the travel agencies who voted in these awardsand supported this opportunity to congratulate the many companies who havehelped them win business over the past year or more. For Jetset as a tradeonly wholesaler, winning the Travel Bulletin Star Scheduled FlightConsolidator Award demonstrates that all our efforts have been appreciatedand recognised by travel agents nationwide. As such I would like to thank allour staff for their hard work and consistent service and our airline and hotelpartners for the fantastic product they provide. I’m also grateful to TravelBulletin for organising the awards as well as their unique punchy news style.Finally, we really appreciate and thank every travel agent using Jetset ... wenever forget you have a choice and strive to provide you with an easy andenjoyable booking process.

Jetset Flights won the Star ScheduledFlight Consolidator. Pictured is thecompany's chairman, John Bond,collecting the award.

All of us across the Monarch Travel Group are delighted thatour seat-only company Avro has won the 2013 Star CharterSeat-Only Operator Award. Especially, as this year’s winmarks the 15th time in the 17-year history of the awards, Avrohas won this accolade. Next year will mark 30 years of Avroproviding flight seats to the UK travel trade so this is awonderful way to start the celebrations. To win this award for the 15th time, voted for by travel agentsin a highly competitive market is very encouraging and showsthat Avro is still the agents’ favourite, and the No. 1 seat-onlyoperator amongst the travel trade. Since 1984, the flight-only market has changed beyond

recognition and the support available to the trade for flight-only product has continued to change and, in many cases,diminish. However, Avro has retained its trade focus andcontinues to offer a genuine point of difference to includedeposits, excellent customer service, commissionableancillaries and ATOL protected flights. We strive to provide our partners with the flexibility, range ofdestinations and durations to sell to their customers byoffering both scheduled and charter flights from 13 UKairports to 45 destinations worldwide. Once again, a huge thanks to you all for your continuingsupport!


High Fliers

Avro has won the Travel Bulletin‘Star Charter Seat-Only Operator’

Award

The team at Avro would like to thank all of our valued trade partners for voting

A Huge Thank You!A Huge Thank You!

We’re delighted to have won thisaward and are equally pleased thatwe have received recognition as thenumber one airport in the UK andwe’d like to thank the readers whovoted for us. Here at London Gatwick, ourpassengers and the experience thepassengers receive while travellingthrough our airport is of paramountimportance to us. Since beingbought by GIP in December 2009, weset targets of banishing queues,getting you away on time andtreating you as our guest – and weare proud to see this effort comingthrough in the shape of this award.We have spent more than £1bn inthe last three and a half years onimproving facilities for a wide range

of passengers, from families to thebusiness traveller. We have adedicated family and assistance lanethat offers a separate and spaciouszone for families who want to taketheir time to sort their bags andchildren out in a stress-freeenvironment. Equally, we have aseparate premium lane for thebusiness traveller who wants to getthrough security and in to one of ourmany lounges.We also offer a front-of-houseconcierge service that has 27languages between them so visitorsand passengers flying out can talkto someone in a fluent and friendlyenvironment. All of this, along with our greatoffering of shops and restaurants

and dedicated children’s play areas– goes to show we are doingeverything we can to be the UK’sbest airport and receiving thisaccolade shows good reward for ourprogress.

Star Major UK AirportWinner: London Gatwick AirportRunner up: Birmingham AirportFinalists: London Heathrow Airport, Manchester Airport, Stansted Airport

Pictured collecting the Star Major UK Airportaward is Simon Eddolls from Travel Bulletin,on behalf of London Gatwick Airport.


Landlords

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The company's CEO, Angela Day, said:“The fact that the Travel Bulletin StarAwards are voted for by agents makesour success even sweeter. Sinceforming the business nine years ago wehave focused on making it easier forour travel agent partners to sell carhire by investing in training, marketingand product development. We wouldlike to thank all those agents who votedfor us.”Travel agents will now find it easier tobook car hire and compare pricesbetween models after Affordable CarHire launched a new website featuringa range of innovative time-savingfeatures.The upgrade has been part of thecompany's ongoing commitment toinvesting in technology in order toprovide a premium service for agents,

and the new site now offers a series ofenhanced features that allow webusers to find more easily on the carresults pages details about fuel policy;excess policy; airport location; andavailability. New filters also enableagents to search for car hire accordingto free additional drivers, number ofpassengers, supplier, car group, andGPS availability. Informative fact guidesand car fleet guides also help agentsadvise their customers on the bestoptions for them.Day, said: “The new website retains theinvaluable live chat feature, so thatagents can contact us quickly if theyhave any queries, and they can stillemail for a quote. And of course, theagent training academy, incentives andcompetitions pages, which are alwaysvery popular, are still there."

Star Accommodation-only ProviderWinner: Getabed.co.ukRunner up: bedsonline.comFinalists: Expedia TAAP, Medhotels,Superbreak, TravelCubeGetabed are absolutely delighted to have won the award forthe UK’s 'Star Accommodation-Only Provider' at theprestigious Travel Bulletin Star Awards. It was a fantasticnight, seeing so many great companies awarded for all theirhard work. Getabed remain 100% committed to the traveltrade, and encourage feedback and work in partnership withthe trade to ensure that our product and service levels arewhat agents require, so winning the Star award purely byagents voting is the icing on the cake! Managing director, Matt Stuart, said: “I am so proud that we have won this awardonce again. Competition was fierce and it’s testament to the hard work of the teamthat we triumphed over rivals. Thank you to all our agents and supplier partnersfor their continuing support for Getabed.co.uk, we wouldn’t be where we are todaywithout you.” Getabed.co.uk is the longest established accommodation provider for the UK trade- it was the first ‘bed bank’ for agents when it launched in 1991. It remains anindependent, privately-owned business, so the team personally keep a close eye onits breadth of product and service levels to its trade partners. Getabed.co.uk boasts a portfolio of more than 100,000 hotels in 7,000 destinationsworldwide, all of which are able to be easily and efficiently booked via its award-winning in-house online system.

It's a big kiss fromMark Hopper, salesdirector atGetabed.co.uk, as hecollects the award forStar Accommodation-Only Provider.

Star Car RentalCompanyWinner: Affordable Car HireRunner up: HertzFinalists: Alamo, Avis, Europcar, Your Car Hire

Kirsty Bachelor, partnershipmanager at Affordable Car Hire,collects the award for Star CarRental Company.

Star RailOperatorWinner: Great RailJourneysRunner up: EurostarFinalists: FfestiniogTravel, Orient Express,Rail Europe, Virgin TrainsThank you from Great RailJourneys! Everybody loves to winan award, but to win an awardvoted for by travel agents for thesecond time is really special. Weare delighted to have won theprestigious best Rail Operator atthe Travel Bulletin Star Awardsagain this year. At Great Rail Journeys we valueour trade partners and hope wecan continue to give you theservice, products and great choiceof escorted rail holidays that willkeep us as the market leader ofescorted rail holidays in the UK.For 2014 we have a great selectionof rail holidays across the globe,from UK breaks to journeys acrosscontinents. So if your customersare looking for an adventure byrail, we will have a holiday to suitthem. More agents than everbefore are now selling railholidays and we are alwayspleased to help agents withsupport and advice on how to sellin this lucrative market. If youwould like to discuss selling ourrange of escorted rail holidays,please get in touch [email protected] again for all your support!

Collecting his award for Star Rail Operatoris Great Rail Journeys' national salesmanager, Tony Byrne.


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Landlords

Disneyland Paris is proud to win‘Best European Theme Park’ Awardat the Travel Bulletin Star Awards.This family destination has somethingfor everyone. Discover fun forchildren, teens and adults with over50 world-class Disney attractions,shows and parades and not forgettingsome of your favourite DisneyCharacters. Experience two fantastictheme parks -Disneyland Park; hometo Sleeping Beauty Castle and classicattractions such as Dumbo the flyingElephant, it’s a small world andPirates of the Caribbean and nextdoor Walt Disney Studios Parkfeaturing; Toy Soldiers ParachuteDrop, Cars Race Rally and thethrilling Twilight Zone Tower OfTerror and RC Racer. Add in deliciousdining experiences, themed hotelsand a lively Disney Village to keep thefun going till late and you have a

dream holiday destination. Plus don’tmiss the award winning DisneyDreams! show that currently takesplace in front of the Sleeping BeautyCastle in Disneyland Park – at the

end of each day until September 2014an exciting breathtaking show withmusic, fountains, lasers andfireworks brining Disney stories tolife.

Star European Theme ParkWinner: Disneyland Resort ParisRunner up: PortAventuraFinalists: Alton Towers, Legoland Windsor, Siam Park, Thorpe Park

Suzanne Sharples,sales executive fromDisney DestinationsInternational,collects the awardfor Star EuropeanTheme Park.

We are delighted that UniversalOrlando Resort has won the ‘StarWorldwide Theme Park’ award atthe 2013 Travel Bulletin Awards.This is the fifth consecutive yearwe have won this award anddemonstrates the strength of therelationship between UniversalOrlando and our travel agentpartners. We thank you for yourcontinued support. To berecognised by such a prestigiousawards programme is an honourand highlights our commitment toprovide outstanding customerentertainment and experiences.With two amazing theme parks,three magnificently themed on-sitehotels and an incredible night-timeentertainment complex, Universal

Orlando is the only place whereyou can turn spending time withyour family into spending time as afamily. This year has been thrillingwith the opening of the muchanticipated Transformers: TheRide - 3D, where guests joinedOptimus Prime in the fight to savemankind, along with theintroduction of the immersiveSpringfield area – complete withDuff beer! – keeping UniversalOrlando at the forefront of popularculture and entertainment. Withthe opening of our fourth on-sitehotel - Cabana Bay Beach Resort –and The Wizarding World of HarryPotter - Diagon Alley next year,2014 promises to be just asincredible.

Star Worldwide Theme ParkWinner: Universal Orlando ResortRunner up: Walt Disney WorldResort FloridaFinalists: Disneyland ResortCalifornia, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment

Winning the Star Worldwide Theme Park is ClaireJames, marketing manager at Universal OrlandoResort. Pictured with Claire is sponsor of the award,Nick Hughes from Attraction World.

Sponsored by

Attraction World

Sponsored by

Attraction World


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Thank youIt’s the little things that make us great. Helping us to win the Travel Bulletin Star Worldwide Hotel Group Award 2013. It’s all down to our clients’ loyalty, the work and support of travel agents and, of course, the professionalism and commitment of our entire team. Once again, many thanks to all of you.

IT’S THE SMALL TOUCHES THAT MAKE US BETTER

MAJORCA • FORMENTERA • CANARY ISLANDS • ANDALUSIA • ALGARVE • MADEIRA • MEXICO

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC • JAMAICA • FLORIDA • BAHAMAS • ARUBA • COSTA RICA • CUBA

PANAMA • CAPE VERDE • MOROCCO • TUNISIA • BULGARIA • TURKEY


Landlords

Star Worldwide Hotel GroupWinner: RIU Hotels & ResortsRunner up: Iberostar Hotels & ResortsFinalists: Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts,Radisson Hotels, Starwood Hotels & ResortsWe would like to express our thanks to all our travel agent partners who have voted us StarWorldwide Hotel Group 2013. It is a real pleasure to receive a Travel Bulletin Star Award for thetenth consecutive year, during which time our presence in the UK market has grownconsiderably alongside agents’ knowledge of our properties. Our ever popular Riu PartnerClub scheme rewards agents every time they make a customerbooking to any Riu Hotel in the world, meaning that agents can reap the benefits of their hardwork by experiencing our hotels either free of charge or at extremely attractive discounted rates. We believe that our continued support of the trade through our UK sales team, as well as training events and incentives,has helped agents get to know our product better and has given them the confidence to recommend Riu Hotels andResorts as the world’s number one hotel chain to both colleagues and customers alike. At present, the company’s portfolio consists of more than 100 hotels - located in the best beach resorts of the Balearicand Canary Islands, the Iberian Peninsula, Caribbean, Mexico, North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean. We have recognised the strong growth in demand for all-inclusive hotels and as a consequence the majority of ourproperties are now offered on this basis. Additionally, we have introduced an adults-only concept as well as investingsignificantly in the refurbishment and upgrading of our existing hotels ensuring that our renowned standards of qualityand service are maintained throughout our product range. RIU has hotels in Spain,Portugal, Turkey, Tunisia,Morocco, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Jamaica,Aruba, Bahamas, Costa Rica, Panama and Florida. New openings are also planned for 2014 in Berlin and 2015 in New York.

Paul Bunce, head of marketdevelopment - UK & Irelandat RIU Hotels & Resorts,celebrates his award forStar Worldwide Hotel Group.


TRANSFORMERS™: THE RIDE-3D

HARRY POTTER, characters, names and related indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Harry Potter Publishing Rights © JKR.(s13)

© MARVEL. TRANSFORMERS and its logo and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2013 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved. © 2013 DreamWorks L.L.C. and Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Shrek 4-D © 2013 DreamWorks Animation L.L.C. Hard Rock Hotel ® Hard Rock Cafe International (USA), Inc. Universal elements and all related indicia TM & © 2013 Universal Studios. © 2013 Universal Orlando. All rights reserved.

THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER™

THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF SPIDER-MAN®

DESPICABLE ME MINION MAYHEM

HARD ROCK HOTEL® Universal Orlando® Resort wishes to thank

everyone who voted us the winner of the

Star Worldwide Theme Park Award for the fi fth

year running in the 2013 Travel Bulletin Star Awards.

The award is testament to the strength of the relationship between Universal Orlando and the travel agent community. We are delighted to receive this award and we thank you for your continued support! This has been an exciting year with the launch of TRANSFORMERS: The Ride–3D; an ultra-immersive sensory experience that puts you on the front lines of an intergalactic war between the Autobots and Decepticons. 2014 promises to be another great year at Universal Orlando Resort – Where Your Holiday Becomes an Adventure!

Thanks formaking us No. 1

TRANSFORMERS: THE RIDE-3D

S07 TB2510 2013 SA Supporting Act_Layout 1 23/10/2013 13:20

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Best Supporting Acts

Star Tourist Office (Overall)Winner: Spanish Tourist OfficeRunner up: Moroccan National Tourist OfficeFinalists: Canadian Tourism Commission, Barbados TourismAuthority, Dubai Department of Tourism and CommerceMarketing, Saint Lucia Tourist Board, South African TourismSpain has been the Brits’ favourite destination for well overtwo decades and has continued to grow in popularitythroughout tough economic times with this year set to be oneof the best ever years for tourism. Not only are the many different regions of Spain easilyaccessible from the UK, but they offer a comprehensive rangeof holiday products appealing to all demographics atcompetitive prices. The tourism infrastructure in Spain is alsoexcellent for all holidaymakers and new products continue tobe innovated meaning that Spain is now as well-known foradventure, luxury, sport, gastronomy and wine, cutting edgeart and culture as it is for its sunshine, beaches, legendarynight-life and fabulous hotels. Over the last year we have been busy developing our socialchannels via the launch of our Spain in UK Facebook andTwitter feeds and our unique social news hub. We hope toattract more attention across the social media landscape in

the coming months when we announce the launch of anexciting new project (watch this space!)The Travel Bulletin Star Awards recognise, reward andcelebrate excellence in the travel industry and we believetravel agents have voted for us because of the way in whichwe continue to keep this important destination fresh, excitingand at the forefront of people’s minds, despite facing difficulteconomic times. Moving into next year, we hope to build on this success withinthe trade, maintaining our position as the UK’s favouriteholiday destination, whilst also building on cultural heritage,wine and gastronomy, and our outstanding natural resources.Our focus is on qualitative over quantitative growth, which willappeal to the standard of our holiday products.

The SpanishTourist Officewon the awardfor StarTourist Office(Overall).Picking up theaward is thetourist office'sdeputydirector, NuriaGuzmán.

3

Star Trade Facing WebsiteWinner: ott.travelRunner up: jetsetflights.comFinalists: attractionworld.com, classic-collection.co.uk,completecruisesolution.com, kuoni.co.ukOnline Travel Training (OTT) wasannounced as the winner of 'StarTrade Facing Website' at TravelBulletin's Star Awards. Thecompany's managing director, JuliaFeuell, said: "Competition was toughas we were up against amazingcompanies such as Attraction World,Classic Collection, Complete CruiseSolution, Jetset and Kuoni, and wegreatly appreciate the support andthe votes from the agents and lookforward to further enhancing theirexperience on our site." We at OTT are looking at strong numbers as we moveforward. With more than 60,000 agents taking more than120 courses covering all areas of the industry that includeairline, hotels, destinations, tour operators, attractions andso much more we are sure to have a product that suits anyneed for training that you can find by visiting our site atwww.ott.travelCongratulations to all of our clients that won categorieslast night, and we are honoured for agents to visit our siteand learn about what these amazing companies have tooffer your clients, but also to come and enjoy the incentiveseach one of these courses has to offer.

The award for StarTrade Facing Websitewent to ott.travel.Pictured celebrating isthe company'smanaging director,Julia Feuell.



Star Tourist Office for Incentives & Fam TripsWinner: Visit CaliforniaRunner up: South African TourismFinalists: Barbados Tourism Authority, Brand USA, CyprusTourism Organisation, Dubai Department of Tourism andCommerce Marketing, Tunisian National Tourist OfficeThank you! We here at VisitCalifornia are absolutely delighted tohave won this year’s Travel BulletinStar Award for Tourist Office ForIncentives & Fam Trips. This awardmeans so much as it’s voted for byyou, the travel industry staff fromacross the country.We have just returned from thisyear’s California Superfam, wherewe took 60 agents to see the verybest that California has to offer. Inthis, our sixth Superfam year, ouritineraries were centred aroundthemes for the first time, allowingagents to experience the diverserange of destinations, activities and

attractions that the Golden Stateprovides. From luxury to outdoor adventure,family to culture & entertainmentand culinary, our itineraries reallyshowed the range of holiday optionsthat California can offer your clients.From skiing to wine tasting, spas tocamping, rollercoasters to beachesand pretty much everything inbetween, where else offers so muchin just one destination?We are already looking ahead to nextyear and hope that some of ournewly introduced trade initiativessuch as regional training roadshowsand a re-launch of the online

training programme will hopefullysee us winning further awards in2014. Thank you for all your supportand we look forward to seeing younext year!

Bethany Schuh, travel trade director of VisitCalifornia, collects the award for StarTourist Office For Incentives & Fam Trips.

We take the hassle, you take the holiday

To start selling Travel Insurance with Holiday Extras please visit

www.holidayextras.com/startselling or telephone 0871 360 2312

Thank you for voting us…

STAR TRAVEL INSURANCE PROVIDER at the Travel Bulletin Awards 2013

“We value your continued support!”


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Star Trade Sales TeamWinner: One Stop Touring Shop

Runner up: AttractionWorldFinalists: ClassicCollection Holidays,Jetset Holidays, TheHoliday Team, Travel 2

One Stop Touring Shopwere the winners of StarTrade Sales Team. PRmanager of the company,Caroline Calvert, collectsthe award.

One Stop Touring Shop: The name says it all because when itcomes to escorted tours, we do it all. One Stop Touring Shopgives our travel agent partners access to the unique brandsof Trafalgar and Insight Vacations. Not only do we have the best sales team in the UK whosupport and add value to all our relationships, we alsoprovide outstanding products that our agents feel confidentwill exceed their customers’ expectations every single time.Don’t just take our word for it. Both Trafalgar and Insighthave satisfaction ratings of 98% and above. Trafalgar: Guided Travel has been our passion for over 67years and we love to share our exclusive insider’s view of theworld. We are your friend in every destination, so whereveryou travel, you’ll feel like a welcomed guest, not a tourist.Trafalgar’s guests enjoy authentic Insider Experiences inNorth America & Europe that immerse them in the localculture and customs. Insight Vacations: For over 35 years Insight has provided theworld’s finest premium and luxury escorted touringitineraries. We offer supremely high standards and perfectlyplanned trips to guests travelling to Europe, where we visit44 European countries - the most of any operator - NorthAmerica, India and Nepal. Our luxury and premium escortedjourneys are designed with immense care and an unwaveringcommitment to exceed our guests’ expectations.

Star Technology SupplierWinner: Vertical SystemsRunner up: Travelport Finalists: Amadeus, Comtec, SabreEstablished back in1982 and a part of theVertical Group, VerticalSystems is one of thelongest established andlargest suppliers oftravel technology to theUK travel industry.Today, Vertical Systemsprovides services to10,000 travel agentdesktops in the UKfrom single branchindependent agents tomultiple groupsincluding ThomasCook, one of the largesttravel companies in theUK. Vertical prides itself on its ability to meet the totalrequirement of today’s travel agent, large or small witha cost-effective solution that enables agents toconcentrate their efforts on selling holidays.Most recently, Vertical Systems has been developing anew suite of integrated travel technology productsaimed at and allowing you to gain the competitive edgein this ever evolving industry. The suite of productsincorporates everything needed to be able to run asuccessful travel business, from back office andaccounts all the way through to front office softwarethat is so responsive it can really help you gain thatcompetitive edge. Use the products independently,integrate them together to form one seamless suite orcombine with existing third party systems.

Mike Russell, CEO of VerticalSystems, collects the award for StarTechnology Supplier.

Star Holiday Add-Ons ProviderWinner: Attraction WorldRunner up: Holiday ExtrasFinalists: A2B Transfers, bedsonline.com, DoSomethingDifferent.com, TravelCube

Attraction World wonthe Star Holiday Add-Ons Provider.Pictured is thecompany's head ofsales, Nick Hughes.

Attraction World is the leading supplier of theme parktickets, experiences and worldwide attractions to the UKtravel trade. With over 8,000 attractions in 50 countries ouraim is to have something for everyone! So wherever yourcustomers are going on holiday – make sure you check outour website! We always strive to provide our agents with the best possiblereasons to sell to their customers. Whether it’s anunbeatable value for money ticket option, a UK exclusiveticket that cannot be purchased in resort, or a value-addedbenefit to pre-purchase, we do our utmost to provide theperfect reasons to sell our products. Don’t forget sellingadd-ons is an excellent means to earning additional revenue

– so not only do agents increase their customer service buttheir bottom line profit too – a win/win situation!As a B2B business, Attraction World is 100% committed tothe trade and as such fully understands how important it isto be nominated and indeed short-listed for such importantannual events in our industry’s calendar, such as The TravelBulletin Star Awards. The Star Awards are also quite specialas not many travel industry awards’ events fully focus ontravel agents' own votes/opinions which we truly believe tobe the most important element in any trade related awardsevent. So to win such an accolade as Star Holiday Add-OnsProvider for the fourth year in a row is just fantastic – bigthank you to all our agents out there!


Star Tourist Office forOnline Training,Roadshows & WorkshopsWinner: Saint LuciaTourist BoardRunner up: MoroccanNational Tourist OfficeFinalists: Canadian TourismCommission, Oman Ministry of Tourism,Texas Tourism, Tourism Authority ofThailand, Visit CaliforniaSaint Lucia strongly believes that the trade are the key toour success. A large part of our efforts target the trade -from the online training at www.saintluciaexpert.com andquarterly rewards, to those who log their bookings on thewebsite, the 13 fams trips we have for 2013, the listing ofSaint Lucia Specialists on our website www.stlucia.org(so that consumers can speak directly to knowledgeableagents), and our inaugural showcase for agents held inJuly 2013. We really enjoy working with you and exploringways to increase business to the Caribbean island thathas it all. If you don’t receive our fam trip invitations,please register at www.saintluciaexpert.com. Next year will see more incentives for bookings logged,the second Saint Lucia Showcase for Agents (June 2014),eight fam trips and the launch of an online refreshercourse in January 2014. Unless you do the annualrefresher course, you cannot be considered for fam tripsand will not be listed on our website. We now have 13direct flights a week from the UK, so 2014 is going todemand a lot from our partnership. Thank you for your continued support; my team and Ilook forward to hearing from you.

The Saint Lucia Tourist Board were the winners of Star TouristOffice For Online Training, Roadshows & Workshops. Collectingthe award is the tourist board's director of marketing UK andEurope, Jean-Marc Flambert.


Europe 2014 on sale nowContact your award-winning

Sales Manager today

1STS would like to thank you for voting us

Star Trade Sales Team 2013


46


We asked our staff the fol-lowing question this week:

What award would yourfriends or family

nominate you for?

Publisher: Jeanette [email protected] Parking Award!

Editor: Lauretta [email protected] Organised Desk Award

Assistant Editor: Jill [email protected]

Contributing Editor: Paul [email protected] Achievement Award from Guinness

Sales Director: Simon [email protected] Nick Knowles Impersonation

Advertisement Manager: Tim [email protected] grumpy when I wake up

Online Sales Manager: Nick [email protected] Obscure Memory King

Account Manager: Bill [email protected] to look like Elvis before he died Award

Sales Executive: Chris [email protected] Rear of the Year

Sales Executive: Matt [email protected] Enthusiastic!

Senior Designer: Genaro [email protected] Eater Award

Assistant Designer: Nicky [email protected]

Production: Nick Salt [email protected] of the year

Circulation Manager: Jim [email protected]

Crossword:Across: 1. STYLE, 4. GMT, 6. SZG, 8. ORINOCO, 9. HAN, 10. ESTEFAN, 13. ELEGANT, 16. NED, 17. ANDORRA, 18. YEN,19. KOS, 20. LORDSDown: 1. SARAH BEENY, 2. YAOUNDE, 3. ELITE, 4. GHOST, 5. TSO, 7. GRENADINES, 11. SUN, 12. FINNAIR, 14.ANDES, 15. TYROL, 17. ANK.

Highlighted Word: SOFIA

Travagrams: (top) Hurtigruten (bottom) Cornwall

Where Am I?: Cheddar

puzzlesolutions

Travel Bulletin is published by Alain Charles Publishing (Travel) Ltd - University House, 11-13 Lower Grosvenor Place, London,SW1W 0EX, Tel: 020-7834 6661 Printed by: Wyndeham Grange LimitedSubscriptions are £105 p.a. £155 overseasISSN: 0956-2419

Follow us on Twitter!@TravelBulletin

Star Travel Insurance ProviderWinner: Holiday ExtrasRunner up: Rock InsuranceFinalists: Allianz Global Assistance, Journeys TravelInsurance, Staysure, Travel & GeneralHoliday Extras offers a wide choice of holiday add-ons including airportparking, airport hotels, lounges and travel insurance. The company is thrilledto have scooped Travel Bulletin’s Star Award for Best Insurance. Our expandedproduct portfolio insurance includes Latitude, designed to make travel hassle-free for those with pre-existing medical conditions.Together with new underwriter, Allianz Global Assistance, Holiday Extraspledge to offer the very best service - with frozen insurance rates until April2015!We also offer the flexibility to tailor insurance to suit clients’ holiday needs:Cruise insurance offers up to 90 days of cover for delayed and misseddepartures, with baggage and cabin confinement cover for passengers up tothe age of 85.Booking insurance with Holiday Extras can also benefit coach holidaytravellers, with policies available for the UK and further afield; all availablewith flexible pricing where you determine the margin.Agents who work with Holiday Extras benefit from the support of a dedicatedteam of insurance experts, just a phone call away between 8am - 9pm Mondayto Friday and 8.30 - 5pm Saturday & Sunday – call on 0871-360 2590 or [email protected] anytime.Thank you to all the agents who voted for us!

Holiday Extras' head of insurance, Andrea Clayton (left), and partnership developmentmanager for the south, Clare Purvis, pick up the award for Star Travel InsuranceProvider. Pictured celebrating with them is Travel Bulletin's Chris Gascoine.


A Star is won!

Thanks for the memories!

Thanks to everyone who voted for us to win Star Holiday Add-Ons Provider at this year’s Travel Bulletin Star awards! We’ll remember it always!

Our Star man!Everyone’s a winner!!


EIGHT RESORTS.

ONE CLICK.

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travel bulletin 25th october 2013

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