Agent wrap: Contiki Legends lowdown, Intrepid summit wraps up, Magellan Travel conference + MORE!
Today’s agent wrap is absolutely bursting with pictures of agents partying, travelling and living their best lives! Get inspired, or seethe with jealousy, right here.
Intrepid wraps up Adventure Summit in Buenos Aires with Argentinian party
FCTG Agents from Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada were treated to a special Argentinian experience following the Intrepid Group’s Adventure Summit. Agents were surprised to enter the event through one of the city’s restored tunnels, dating back from Argentina’s first settlement. They were then taken on a journey of Tango through the ages, which finished with an electric Argentinian drumming performance. The agents then partied alongside Intrepid Group’s sales staff from different regions, and leaders from South America.
Contiki unveils revamped Europe offering at Contiki Legends
Contiki launched its line-up of Europe Summer 2020 trips and experiences at its sixth annual Contiki Legends event. Celebrities and travel industry experts turned out including Jimmy Niggles, Josh Moss, Amelia Marni and Lincoln Lewis.
Sydney’s Max Watt’s venue was given a makeover with Europe’s favourite cities brought to life. The 300 guests got a taste of some of the new and iconic Contiki experiences in different themed rooms throughout the venue, perfectly setting the vibe for Contiki’s announcement of new European product.
The evening extravaganza included a Munich beer garden with plenty of fresh brews and pretzels on offer, Sydney’s first tapas train where guests dined on some of Barcelona’s best dishes and finest traditional red wine, before entering into a Tuscan feast room where Nonnas, Ceila and Gina of MasterChef fame, served pasta from giant cheese wheels.
Guests were put through their paces with a bar that came to life when powered by another guest pedalling a bike. Flamenco dancers were on foot to keep guests entertained and Perth’s renowned DJ Shann got the dancefloor hotter than a Sevillan summer night.
Networking, member sessions and Gala Dinner closes off a successful conference for Magellan Travel
Friday afternoon’s conference agenda saw Magellan members and industry partners alike actively participate in a Preferred Partner Exchange which included a mix of pre-assigned appointments and an expo-style working lunch.
On Friday evening, the Tjungu Ballroom at Uluru Meeting Place in Australia’s Red Centre was stunningly transformed to host Magellan’s night-of-nights, the 2019 Magellan Gala and Awards Dinner.
The event saw individuals from within Magellan member agencies recognised and awarded for their outstanding contribution in various award categories, namely:
- Abbey Alvin of Coopers Travel Centre was awarded the Rising Star of the Year.
- Julie-Anne Major of Epping Travel was awarded Leisure Consultant of the Year.
- Shareen Shepherd of World Corporate Travel was awarded Corporate Travel Consultant of the Year.
- Kathy Gambell of Encore Journeys was awarded Specialist of the Year.
- And the 2019 Loyalty Award was presented to Tracey Fidone, Hawthorn Travel & Cruise.
Abbey, Julie-Anne, Shareen, Kathy and Tracey will all enjoy a luxury/all-expenses paid trip flying premium class to New Zealand and will see them visiting Auckland, Christchurch and Queenstown. This luxury trip has been generously sponsored by Air New Zealand and will be personally escorted by Magellan Travel’s general manager, Andrew Macfarlane.
Agents discover Peru & the Atacama Desert with Eclipse Travel
Post-famil blues have been setting in this week for a lucky small group of Aussie & Kiwi agents who have just returned from a luxury 10-day famil to Peru and Chile’s Atacama Desert with Eclipse Travel in partnership with LATAM airlines. The itinerary started by exploring Cusco and the Sacred Valley of the Incas where the group saw historic sites, sampled local food and drinks and visited stunning luxury properties including. A visit to Machu Picchu was predictably a highlight of the trip for everyone as they were treated to perfect weather and expert education from Eclipse Travel’s local guides.
Next stop was a change of pace in Lima with a tour of San Isidro Market and local cafes hosted by Hotel B’s chef before a Pisco Sour making class and three-course cooking class at the award-winning boutique property. A private guided tour of Peru’s cosmopolitan capital provided a glimpse of the vibrant city including 17th Century architecture, stunning streetscapes and world-class restaurants. LATAM’s new Lima – Calama service enabled seamless access to Chile’s stunning Atacama Desert where the final three nights were spent discovering other-worldly landscapes and enjoying the facilities at the all-inclusive Alto Atacama resort.
Cruise STARS 2019 experience the beauty of Alaska!
The top 20 National Cruise consultants were lucky enough set sail for Alaska recently, on the exclusive Cruise STARS experience with Crystal Cruises!
The recognition program rewarded fifteen wholesale and five cruise line agents, taking consultants on the extravagant experience aboard Crystal Symphony, sailing from Vancouver to Alaska.
The lucky Cruise STARS reward recipients flew with Air Canada to Vancouver, and on arrival, enjoyed morning tea at the Pan Pacific Hotel before embarking Crystal Symphony.
The group of agents from Australia and New Zealand sailed Canada and Alaska for and amazing 10 nights roundtrip from Vancouver. They were hosted by Cathy Tees from Crystal Cruises and Catherine Allison from Helloworld Travel.
MTA out in force for Cruise360
MTA – Mobile Travel Agents has fielded one of its biggest ever delegations at Cruise360 with a team of close on 40 attending the event in Sydney last week.
The team size reflects MTA’s strength on the Australian cruise scene. A large percentage of Advisors are now CLIA affiliated with many of those having also achieved CLIA ‘Cruise Master’ status.
The company’s success in the sector is further compounded by three of its advisors – Sarah Fenton, Wendy Allen, and Tracey Flower – having taken out the prestigious CLIA ‘Home Based/Mobile Cruise Agent of the Year (Australia)’ award in recent years.
Journeys & Africa – Indian Ocean Islands & Africa Famil
Journeys & Africa recent trip to Mauritius visiting Constance Belle Mare Plage Resort. The group stayed at some of the most beautiful resorts around the island, experienced local cuisine, bartered in the markets, explored local villages by bicycle, visited Chamarel and Coloured Earth and was treated to a catamaran cruise to watch the Kite surfing competition.
TravelManagers’ pre-conference famil to Margaret River
The Margaret River region is renowned for its wineries, beaches and amazing natural beauty. It’s therefore not surprising that when TravelManagers offered a pre-conference famil to experience the many delights of this region, a total of 26 personal travel managers (PTMs) signed up.
The itinerary took the group first to the coastal town of Busselton, which serves as gateway to the region. After lunch and a walk along the town’s iconic, 1840-metre long wooden jetty, they continued to nearby Cape Naturaliste for a guided, interpretive walk and didgeridoo experience before heading to their base for the next two nights in the town of Margaret River.
Orbit World Travel team celebrates 25 years
Orbit World travel celebrated 25 years of successful travel management, with staff from around Australia joining Founding Director, Lisa Story and Chief Executive, Michael Chase-Smith at The Westin Brisbane on the weekend.
The celebration also marked the emotional departure of Wayne Swaysland.
The Orbit World Travel team were joined by key suppliers in a fun weekend of celebrations, which culminated in a “Back to the 90s” themed party on Saturday night.
Adelaide agents enjoy Thai night
Thai fun was had by 80 Adelaide Agents, thanks to Singapore Airlines, Tourism Authority of Thailand and ONYX Hospitality.
Retail Agents across the SA capital were treated with a delicious 3-course Thai dinner as well as an extravagant display of fireworks from the Rydges Adelaide Skyline on Tuesday the 3rd September.
Ashley Schlesinger, Sales Executive for Singapore Airlines, gave an update on SQ and Scoot product and fares to Thailand. Sherly Handjojo, TAT Marketing Manager, highlighted gastronomy tourism, local Thai experiences and updates on Chiang Mai and Koh Samui. Louise Barker from ONYX Hospitality gave updates on Amari and OZO hotels in Bangkok, Phuket and Koh Samui.
To wrap up, Ashley announced an Agent Incentive exclusive to those Agents attending last night. All they need to do is sell as many SQ tickets as possible from Australia to Thailand and enter the ticket numbers into the incentive form. The incentive runs for one month, and the agent with the most entries will win the Grand Prize.
The Grand Prize includes return flights from Adelaide- Koh Samui//Chiang Mai – Adelaide for two persons, 2 nights’ accommodation at the Amari Koh Samui including breakfast and private cycling tour including picnic lunch and Thai massage, as well as Lanna-style cooking class in Chiang Mai.
Runner up prizes range from 2 nights stay at the Amari Watergate Bangkok, 2 nights stay at the Amari Phuket, 2 nights stay at OZO Phuket to 2 x $200 Coles Myer vouchers for grabs.
Vanuatu Tourism Office wraps-up another successful Tok Tok
The Vanuatu Tourism Office (VTO) has just wrapped-up its annual travel trade industry event, Tok Tok, with the highest number and widest variety of local operators in attendance, making its 17th edition the most influential yet.
VTO, alongside more than 57 local sellers – including 15 new operators – welcomed buyers from across Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Fiji, Singapore, China, Europe and the United States as they descended on the nation’s capital, Port Vila, to answer the call of Vanuatu and discover all that’s new in the South Pacific Island paradise.
Latest News
Collette goes off the beaten track with Canyon Country tour
To be clear TW is not advocating actually walking off the beaten track. Avoid the coyotes. Stay on the beaten track.
Intrepid & Korean Tourism Organisation team up to give agents a cooking masterclass
These guys learnt that Korean cooking is more than just putting kimchi on 2-minute noodles (as we once thought).
Winner, winner! Intrepid reveals the 9 lucky agents that won $2k
Who won the incentive? Which Intrepid trip will they spend it on? What day of the week is it again? Where am I? Huh?
Corporate Traveller reports 42% increase in Easter traffic this year
Business travellers just love Easter! Expect plenty of chocolate stained documents returning to the office on Tuesday.
Turbulent year wiped $384m off Qantas brand value: Report
Meanwhile, eating tuna at your desk can damage your own personal office brand value by several thousand dollars.
FAMIL: Room-Res & Singapore Tourism Board shows agents the Lion City’s roar
Click this article to see a man very impressed by a 20-layer chocolate cake. We're not kidding, he loved it!
Oceania Cruises offers sailors free pre-cruise hotel stay
Looking for ways to make your holidays as long as possible? Look no further.
Bonza launches new website to compliment app, agent portal
Does news about an airline's website fill you with ecstasy, glee and joy? Get your hit of the good stuff here.
MTA agents attends ‘Lunch ‘n’ Learn’ with AMA Waterways
When organising the event, Lunch 'n' Learn beat out Dinner 'n' Divulge and Breakfast 'n' Banter. Understandably so.
Travelmarvel reveals 2025 South America tours
If you spot any typos in the newsletter today it is because TW became distracted Googling images of Machu Picchu.
Tourists from 5 countries could be BANNED from visiting Australia
Anthony Albanese's immigration laws could impact tourism from certain countries.
Just how many passengers will Qantas & Jetstar hop around this Easter?
Airline workers are ready for gleeful Easter travellers! Also prepared for sticky children with chocolate on their face.
Air New Zealand gets ready for bumper Easter weekend
Air NZ gears up for travelling passengers this Easter, while TW looks to beat our egg eating record. 117 here we come!
Four Seasons Yachts reveals first itineraries to the Caribbean & Mediterranean
These trips look so good we wish there were five seasons! Alright, we'll see ourselves out...
FAMIL: Travellers Choice treats top agents to the wonders of Rotorua
This one's got plenty of famil pics and no one looks shockingly hungover in them! Clearly no TW staffers were there.
European Waterways celebrates 50th anniversary with week-long founders cruise
Plan on celebrating your 50th anniversary with a bottle of Moët and fairy bread? European Waterways has better ideas.
100th route! Jetstar celebrates the launch of Brisbane-Avalon with 12 hour sale
Jetstar knocks a ton and celebrates with a sale while TW once scored a ton and celebrated with about 17 beers.
Record-breaking year for NSW as visitor expenditure soars past $50 billion
Enjoy running round the Opera House? Be prepared to elbow even more tourists out the way.
Norwegian Cruise Line makes play for solo travellers
NCL ensuring you don't have to go trawling Tinder to find a cruise partner. Thank goodness, we were sick of catfishing.
Entire Travel Group’s Canada and Europe 2024/25 brochures are out now
Entire's new brochure is bittersweet; it both informs your clients and makes you envious of the holiday they'll take.
Malaysia Airlines adds 3 new destinations & A330neo seats
More seats means cheaper airfares and more money to spend on overpriced airport sandwiches. Woohoo!
Two divine days onboard Crystal Serenity
It's only pure serenity onboard this ship. Anxiety, agitation and anguish have been rejected by the bouncer.
How the Globus Family of Brands elevates coach touring: Travel Weekly TV with Chris Fundell
Chris' here so you don't think coaches mean peeling your thighs off a sticky leather seat every time you stand up!
The Flight Centre Foundation gears up for massive 2024 with 3 new board members
The foundation looks to invest $200k this year, spurring the TW journos to figure out how to qualify as a charity.
Barking Owl Communications to head up Anantara & Avani in ANZ
Fellow PR competitors had been barking up the wrong tree even thinking of bidding for this job!
Amex GBT to purchase CWT for $871m
It's big deals like this that get a firm handshake - hence the sore hands over at the CWT and Amex GBT offices.
1000MTG’s second global conference reminds agents to ‘strive and thrive’
Alongside messages to 'strive' and 'thrive' were those to 'survive', 'drive', 'arrive' and 'jive' (when appropriate).
Qantas A330 makes “loud bang”, pilots forced to shut down one engine
Qantas refusing to let Boeing have all the headlines in aviation world today!
GX Community Tourism Summit 2024 location revealed!
The new location has arrived and it'll blow your socks off! Time for another trip to Target for more socks then.
Visiting the destination my Mum didn’t want me to
Yet again, this journo has been a stress to his mother. Discover how this trip spurred his mother's anxiety here.
Agents come out of their shells at P&O’s turtle hatchery event
For some, it's a few glasses of bubbles to lure them out of their shell. For these agents, it was a bit more literal.
Boeing cleanout: CEO, chair to go as safety crisis plagues the manufacturer
CEOs are falling thick and fast these days. We should have started up a bingo game with their headshots in the office.
Virgin looks to swap MAX 10 order for MAX 8s amid Boeing delays: Reports
Virgin has changed its order for something smaller. Much like we have to at Maccas following a worrying doctor's visit.
Club Med unveils newest luxury yacht for 2024/25 early bird sale
This yacht is preserved for the early birds! Night Owls may also get onboard depending how late they stay up.
Abercrombie & Kent 2024 Asia Portfolio is here
Round up the family and get planning an Asia jaunt. Or, if they're hard to handle, brush them all and go it alone!
Elevate your earnings: Final days to secure double commission with Inspiring Vacations’ March offer
What could inspire you to sell more Inspiring Vacations? Double commission of course! That's all the inspiration needed.