ΔΙΕΘΝΗΣ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΗΛΕΚΤΡΟΝΙΚΗ ΕΦΗΜΕΡΙΔΑ ΠΟΙΚΙΛΗΣ ΥΛΗΣ - ΕΔΡΑ: ΑΘΗΝΑ

Ει βούλει καλώς ακούειν, μάθε καλώς λέγειν, μαθών δε καλώς λέγειν, πειρώ καλώς πράττειν, και ούτω καρπώση το καλώς ακούειν. (Επίκτητος)

(Αν θέλεις να σε επαινούν, μάθε πρώτα να λες καλά λόγια, και αφού μάθεις να λες καλά λόγια, να κάνεις καλές πράξεις, και τότε θα ακούς καλά λόγια για εσένα).

Δευτέρα 31 Μαρτίου 2014

14 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW


1) helloworld CEO Rob Gurney resigns

Rob Gurney has announced he’s stepping down from his position as Managing Director and CEO of helloworld, with current CFO Elizabeth Gaines taking over with immediate effect.  “Rob indicated to the board that as the helloworld business transformation is now at an advanced stage, he wishes to pursue a new opportunity with an international focus,” according to a statement from helloworld Limited.  helloworld Chairman Tom Dery said together with the helloworld executives, Mr Gurney had overseen the development of the helloworld brand, engaged key stakeholders and concluded major commercial agreements.

2) High costs close Baillies Sydney Plans

Increased construction costs and regulatory constraints have put a stop to the planned Baillies Sydney development.  The luxury accommodation group Baillie Lodges confirmed the suspension of its planned nine-suite luxury hotel.  The development was to be within heritage buildings in Sydney’s Rocks precinct and had been scheduled for completion in 2015..

3) Time poor tourism industry puts marketing research on back seat

Opportunities to capture the travel and tourism market are being wasted, as marketers are unaware of research available to them to make better choices in marketing.  Smaller, provincial and upcountry destinations and operators are not armed with the insight and tools that they need to implement strategic and tactical marketing.  Each year tourism departments in governments, companies and associations spend millions of tax payer dollars on market research and insights relating to the travel and tourism industry, however this effort is often wasted.  

4) AAT Kings rolls adventure brands together

Touring company AAT Kings has expanded their offerings with Aussie Adventures as the Downunder Adventures brand is folded into the company’s main budget product.  AAT Kings Managing Director Anthony Hayes said re-branding the Downunder Adventures product to Aussie Adventures was the next important step in growing the Aussie Adventures story in Australia.  “Aussie Adventures continues to go from strength to strength and is now represented in the Top End, Sydney and Kangaroo Island,” Mr Hayes added.

5) NZ to benefit from better technology

Enhancing visitor experience through improved technology is a critical enabler, according to Tourism Industry Association New Zealand (TIA) Policy and Research Manager Simon Wallace.  A new report from the Innovation Partnership revealed more effective business use of the internet could add as much as $34 billion each year to the New Zealand economy, further backing up the findings back up the Tourism 2025 growth framework.  Mr Walllace said it can be a powerful sales tool, “those businesses that can attract customers with an engaging website and make it easy for them to book and pay at the same time are going to reap the rewards.”  TIA welcomed the new digital tool Digital Journey, which will be able to help small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) assess their digital maturity and put together an action plan to make better use of online services.

6) HotelsCombined builds Asia presence

Australian company HotelsCombined has partnered with Zodio to further expand their offerings in Asia. The Thai-based iPhone search app Zodio provides tips and reviews on a variety of different businesses ranging from nightclubs to spas.  The alliance will see Zodio allowing HotelsCombined to power a hotel price comparison aggregation platform.  This will allow users to search for hotels, browse ratings and read reviews.  From here, Zodio will also show a ‘Book Now’ button to allow users to complete their booking.  The feature is currently only available in the iPhone app with potential future integration into other platforms.

7) VA 4 million members and growing

Virgin Australia is feeling the love in Australia as they continue to grow their Velocity frequent flyer membership numbers. Recently welcoming their 4 millionth frequent flyer member, a Virgin Australia spokesperson told KarryOn that the average number of joins per day continues to increase, with a record breaking 4,500 members joining in one day last week.  The airline continues to focus on enhancing and growing the program, giving members more ways to earn points.  In recent months, Velocity membership has seen a number of enhancements including the ability for members to book an upgrade on more fare types and a market first ability to earn on reward seats, family pooling and rewarding points in accordance with the fare you pay.

8) EK capacity boost for LGW

Emirates will increase the capacity of travellers in and out of London Gatwick (LGW) by 15 percent with the launch of their A380 flights. Following on from London Heathrow, the airline will be the first to service London Gatwick with the A380 aircraft. Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President Commercial Operations West Hubert Frach, said “six years after launch the Emirates A380 is still a customer magnet, with airports the world over are eager to have the Emirates A380 on their roster and today’s launch to London Gatwick is representative of that demand.”  Meanwhile, Emirates received a double, double-decker delivery, as their 46th and 47th A380 aircraft arrived in Dubai in the early hours of Friday.

9) NZ supports AKL airport growth

Auckland International Airport Limited’s announcement of a development plan aimed at growing visitor numbers from 14 million to 40 million in the next 30 years has been welcomed by the national airline Air New Zealand.  Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Christopher Luxon recognises the importance of Auckland airport as a key piece of national infrastructure and says the plan offers enormous potential benefits to tourism.  The announcement comes days after the launch of national framework Tourism 2025.

10) MH flying family to Perth

Malaysia Airlines has released a statement saying they will fly family members from fatal flight MH370 to Perth once it has been authoritatively confirmed that the physical wreckage found is that of MH370.  This will also be after relevant government agencies have provided clearances for Malaysia Airlines to bring family members to the site where aircraft wreckage will be kept.
Ready to meet family members will be a Family Assistance Centre (FAC) in Perth which will become the focal point for all activities that have been planned for the families including briefings, religious and prayer services.

11) Tahiti treats at TravelMart

From the picture perfect shores of Bora Bora and Moorea to Huahine’s Garden of Eden, a group of 10 Australian travel agents were treated Tahitian style for the annual TravelMart conference. Held in Tahiti last week, the agents enjoyed a week-long busy but blissful tour of Tahiti. Held at the Radisson Plaza Resort Tahiti, the Tahiti TravelMart provided agents with a valuable opportunity to familiarise themselves with the latest products, providers and offerings in the region.  Tahiti Tourisme Australia Director Robert Thompson said the annual meeting was also a great way to promote visitation beyond Tahiti’s well-known destinations of Bora Bora, Moorea and Papeete.

12) TravelManagers sales sky high

It has been a positive start to 2014 for TravelManagers with their personal travel managers producing a new high in monthly sales revenue and a record number of new managers signing up.  January sales were 29 percent higher than last year, followed by an 11 percent increase in February.
TravelManagers’ Executive General Manager Michael Gazal said “our consistent increase in sales further cements TravelManagers’ standing in the industry and naturally we are seeing more interest from travel agency owners and managers to join our business model.”  Recruitment increased by 120 percent in January and 20 percent in February compared to 2013.

13) Scenic Tours $200 OBC offer

Guests who book on Scenic Tours Russia River Cruising program for 2015 can enjoy a $200 on board credit with the pre-release offer.  This deal is in addition to securing the date and cabin of choice from the entire cruising season, the very best Earlybird offer and any special upgrades released in the full Europe River Cruising (including Russia) 2015 brochure.  Scenic Tours Russia River Cruising will feature the boutique small ship, Scenic Tsar, which is the first new ship to be registered in Russia in 25 years.  The Scenic Tsar will take a maximum of 112 guests from St Petersburg to Moscow through Russia’s hidden imperial
jewels, The Kremlin, Red Square, Peterhof Palace and St Basil’s Cathedral, and will visit Kizhi Island, Goritsy and two of the ‘Golden Ring’ cities.

14) Wicked witches at Wotif.com

Travel website Wotif.com is bringing spellbinding Sydney travel packages to Aussies as they partner with Broadway musical WICKED.  The bewitching Sydney travel packages combine flights, hotel and theatre tickets.  Wotif.com is the official travel partner for the Sydney season of WICKED.  Set to thrill audiences at the Capitol Theatre from 20 September 2014, WICKED is based on the untold story of the Witches of Oz.
Was sourced from carryon