Aussie appetite for Haggis grows

Aussie appetite for Haggis grows
By admin


Scotland remains the number one performer across the Haggis, Shamrocker and Busabout programs with its popularity set to keep rising, according to boss Graeme Ward.

With Australia still by far the number one market for the three brands, Ward highlighted the Haggis brand as a particular success story. He anticipated more growth for the Scottish program on the back of a series of major promotions this year and next.

"There are a lot of very good cultural touch points," he told Travel Today. The destination provided the backdrop for movies Brave and Skyfall last year and is this year being promoted by Visit Scotland's "Year of Natural Scotland" campaign.

The tourism body is also preparing to "welcome the world" in 2014 with its "Year of Homecoming" when the destination will host the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup.

Meanwhile, Haggis has also taken the promotion of Scotland as a destination into its own hands, implementing the highly successful Blogmanay event that took 26 international bloggers to Edinburgh and beyond for a two-week period over new year. The campaign generated more than 80 million impressions in Twitter from 9,000 tweets, 70 separate blog posts and 1,300 Instagram snaps.

The firm is already planning "Blogmanay 2.0", Ward revealed.

The social sphere continues to be an important avenue for the marketing of the three youth-focused brands. This year, they will once again enlist the help of video bloggers known as "vloggers' to help spread the word, but this time on a larger scale.

"Rather than just one person, we want to do something a bit more community-based," Ward said. More details will be revealed in coming weeks.

Meanwhile, the firm expects to start really seeing the benefits of London's hosting of the 2012 Olympic Games this year.

"Last year, Australians booking flights were avoiding London," he said. "With airfares and accommodation through the roof, London was not a cheap destination."

The avoidance of London created issues for its Scotland and Ireland programs with many Aussies transiting through the UK capital to reach those destinations. On the plus side, its Busabout program benefited from a rising number of Aussies flying into mainland Europe.

"In the long-term it's a positive, the amount of press and focus on the UK in general," Ward said, stressing the Olympic campaign had always been seen as a three year strategy.

But, despite any issues last year, the business emerged unscathed.

"We've been consistently in double digit growth for the last four years and we're on track for the same in 2013," he said.

 

 

Latest News

  • Appointments

Rail Europe appoints Sandy Battle to new sales development manager role for APAC  

Rail Europe has appointed Sandy Battle as its sales development manager for APAC in a newly created role for the Perth-based travel doyen. Battle will work closely with key account managers James Hooper and Grant Robertson in ANZ to ensure all sales partners are well connected, supported and rewarded for selling European train journeys, while […]

  • Aviation
  • Breaking News

Heavy turbulence kills one with dozens injured on Singapore Airlines flight

A British grandfather is dead and dozens are now in hospitals in Bangkok, including eight Australians, after a flight from the UK to Singapore hit severe turbulence, plunging 1,800 metres (6,000 feet) in a few minutes. Passengers onboard the Singapore Airlines plane told of the “dramatic drop”, which launched those not wearing a seatbelt into […]

  • Tourism

Tour Guides Australia backs Queensland Government Department of Tourism’s $2 million business capability subsidy

Tour Guides Australia has offered its full support for the Queensland Government Department of Tourism and Sport’s $2 million Tourism Business Capability Subsidy. The subsidy program is designed to boost the growth of Queensland’s tourism industry, offering up to $2,000 per eligible business to undertake targeted training and accreditation programs. “It is a significant opportunity […]

  • Tourism

Club Med Musandam is newest addition to the resort group and a first for the Middle East

Club Med has announced the newest addition to its Exclusive Collection portfolio with the opening of Club Med Musandam, the first Club Med resort in the Middle East. Set to be unveiled in 2028, the development of Club Med Musandam marks a significant investment milestone, surpassing the $100 million mark. A ground-breaking development as a […]

  • Luxury
  • Products

Louis Vuitton champions travel in campaign featuring Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal

Louis Vuitton has relaunched its iconic Core Values Campaign with a new chapter that sees tennis champions Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Shot by industry legend Annie Leibovitz, the campaign features the tennis icons summiting a mountain together in the Dolomites of Italy with the tagline ‘There are Journeys that turn into Legends’. Together, they […]

  • Aviation

Garuda and Singapore Airlines to offer reciprocal benefits to frequent flyers, plus explore revenue sharing arrangements

Garuda Indonesia and Singapore Airlines will deepen their commercial partnership and offer reciprocal benefits to their frequent flyer program members, plus explore revenue sharing arrangements for flights between Indonesia and Singapore, subject to regulatory approvals.  The frequent flyer program agreement was signed by Garuda Indonesia CEO Irfan Setiaputra and SIA CEO Goh Choon Phong in […]

  • Hotels

My Fiji announce an exclusive deal with new Crowne Plaza Fiji Nadi Bay Resort & Spa

My Fiji have announced an exclusive deal with the new Crowne Plaza Fiji Nadi Bay Resort & Spa, Fiji’s newest premium resort experience, offering exclusive packages for a limited time. Situated along the shores of Wailoaloa Beach, the resort offers 324 modern rooms, immersive amenities and world-renowned Fijian hospitality, Crowne Plaza Fiji Nadi Bay Resort […]

  • Cruise

Sydney Swans greats announced for Crown Princess cruise

Princess Cruises has partnered with the Sydney Swans to offer fans the first-ever AFL Member cruise aboard Crown Princess. This four-night voyage to Tasmania departs January 25, 2025 and guests will be able to immerse themselves in a once-in-a-lifetime Sydney Swans experience featuring special events and activities dedicated to fans. The cruise will feature Sydney […]

  • Destinations

Listening to whales, followed by Ales and Prawn Tails on the Sunshine Coast

Queensland’s Sunshine Coast is preparing to welcome more than 40,000 humpback whales that are making their way up the Australian east coast on their annual migration. The Sunshine Coast is one of Australia’s premier whale tourism destinations, built on its long-established whale watching cruises and Sunreef’s pioneering Swim with Whales experience, which celebrates its 10th […]

  • Aviation
  • Travel Agents

Webjet relaunches partnership with AirAsia with a huge Asia flights sale

Online travel agency Webjet has have relaunched their partnership with AirAsia with a huge Asia flights sale, available until 2 June. To give customers a greater breadth of choice and price point, hundreds of new flight options to Aussie favourite destinations have been added, including Bali, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok via AirAsia, AirAsiaX, Thai AirAsia […]

  • Luxury

Why luxury clients are opting for immersive experiences over material items

The Luxury Travel Collection’s (LTC) inaugural business owners Soiree took place on Hayman Island last week. The event saw luxury leaders gathering to find out more about the key trends shaping the industry. The Immersion Day, held on Thursday 16 May 2024, followed the growing luxury client trend of valuing immersive experiences over material items. […]

  • Conferences

Empowering underserved communities: Expedia Group’s drive for more inclusive travel

Expedia Group has used the EXPLORE conference at the Aria Resort in Las Vegas to highlight initiatives that empower underserved communities worldwide.   In a groundbreaking move towards fostering diversity and inclusion within the travel industry, Expedia’s Global Social Impact and Sustainability Team is dedicated to shaping a travel landscape that is safe, welcoming, and accessible […]

  • Cruise

P&O rescues Rotary volunteers after collapse of Air Vanuatu

P&O Cruises Australia has answered a plea for help from a group of young Australian Rotary volunteers, stranded in Vanuatu following the collapse of Air Vanuatu. The students, many of them teenagers from Albury, NSW, were volunteering for a youth project run by the Hive Rotary Club Australia when the airline abruptly cancelled all flights, […]

  • Destinations

Intrepid continues expansions with launch of first DMC in Jordan

Intrepid has increased its presence in the Middle East with the opening of its first destination management company in Jordan. Based in Amman, the local team will operate Intrepid’s range of nine experiential small group tours in Jordan from this summer, with a view to expanding the range for 2025 and beyond. Zina Bencheikh, managing […]

  • Appointments

Minor hotels appoints Puneet Dhawan to key Asia role

Global hotel owner and operator Minor Hotels has appointed Puneet Dhawan as head of Asia as the group plots its growth in Asia and India. From July, Dhawan will be responsible for the performance of all Minor Hotels properties in Asia, working in close collaboration with the Minor Hotels senior leadership team and will report […]