Sale with Sunsail

Sunsail, the world's largest yacht charter company shall have its strongest presence at the Sydney Boat Show – 28 Jul-02 Aug 11.

Newly appointed Head of Distribution, Mark Windsor announced ‘We see the importance of being present at the largest boat show in the country and as such we shall have senior members of the organisation present including our COO, Cheryl Powell from the USA; our new Sales Manager, Sarita Wait; Yacht Operations Manager, Graham Black & Sailing School Principal, Jon Croft.

In addition we shall also have on display the Sunsail 53. Now the largest monohull in the Sunsail fleet, the 53 built by Jeanneau, is perfect for larger groups and families, looking for a combination of sailing performance and comfort. Above and below deck, her layout allows for plenty of room for socialising, but also offers practicality and performance where required. The 53 is a pleasure to sail and is responsive to touch, her electric winches and bow thrusters make her surprisingly easy to handle. This yacht is part of Yacht Ownership programme, and David Flynn frommSunsail Yacht Ownership will be on hand to answer questions, more details can be found at http://www.sunsail.com.au/yacht-sales/yacht-partnership/about-us

Windsor went on to say, ‘We plan to have lots of fun over the 5 days showcasing the sailing holidays, destinations and fleet of Sunsail. A Boat Show special will be available for bookings, plus we’ll have giveaways and the chance to win a 5 day charter in The Whitsundays.’

For more information contact Sunsail on 1800 803 988 or visit www.sunsail.com.au.

LAN launches speedy new connections to Rio from Australia and New Zealand

LAN Airlines has introduced speedy new connections from Santiago, Chile, to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for passengers arriving from Australia and New Zealand.

Flight LA800, LAN's daily service from Sydney and Auckland, arrives in Santiago at 11.40am.

It connects quickly with new flight LA 772, an Airbus A320 service departing Santiago at 12.25pm and arriving in Rio at 5.35pm – a journey of 4 hours, 10 minutes.

The return flight, LA 773, departs Rio at 6.25pm, arriving in Santiago at 10.05pm, a flight of 4 hours, 45 minutes.

This connects smoothly with LAN flight LA 801, which departs Santiago at 10.50 each night, bound for Auckland and Sydney.

"Brazil is the largest country in South America, and one of the fastest growing in terms of both business and leisure travel," said Patricio Aylwin, LAN's General Manager Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

"Rio de Janeiro is the best-known and most iconic city in Brazil, and one of the most exciting not only in South America, but in the world," said Mr Aylwin. "We are confident that this new connection will provide not only faster access to Rio, but the opportunity for visitors to experience even more of South America."

LAN operates more flights from Australia and New Zealand to South America than any other airline.

Within South America, LAN flies to almost 60 destinations in 10 countries, and continues to build its operations on the continent, one of the world's fastest growing travel markets.

To accommodate the continuing growth in visitor numbers, the LAN group has placed orders for in excess of 100 new aircraft, including new Airbus A320-family jets to help build frequency on existing routes in South America and to open new markets.

LAN is a member of the oneworld global airline alliance.

For more information or to make a booking contact travel agents or visit www.lan.com

AGGIE GREY’S GETS THUMBS-UP – AGAIN – FOR FAMILY HOLIDAYS

FOR the third time in four years, Samoa's Aggie Grey's Lagoon, Beach Resort and Spa has been voted by Australian guests one of the South Pacific's Top Five family resorts.
 
It was also the only Samoan resort to make the Top Five, with others in the list being located in Vanuatu, the Cook Islands (two properties) and Tahiti; Fiji had its own separate winners, with ten properties due to its larger size.

Family-travel specialists, Holiday with Kids invited readers of its print and online magazine to vote for their favourite resorts in Asia, Australia, the South Pacific and the USA, and with the assistance of Club Med, Ubid 4 Rooms and Take a Break, reached a database of nearly 500,000 holidaymakers.

Participants registered their votes for the Top Ten winners in the larger regions and destinations, and Top Five in others

Readers who voted Aggie Grey's Lagoon, Beach Resort and Spa into the Top Five "Rest of the South Pacific" gave it the thumbs-up for its fun and educational facilities for children, including its Dolphins Kids Club that is open from early morning to late at night with healthy supervised activities, and programs that involve children in learning about and understanding the culture and lifestyle of the Samoan people.

The Dolphins Kids Club was also popular for allowing parents quality-time to themselves to enjoy the resort's many facilities, knowing their children were in safe hands.

For details about holidaying at Aggie Grey's Lagoon, Beach Resort and Spa, that is set within 90ha of tropical gardens looking out to the picturesque island of Savaii, see travel agents.

FORMULE 1 METAMORPHOSISES WITH NEW COCOON ROOMS

Formule 1, the brand that revolutionized budget travel, has introduced its new "Cocoon" room concept into Australia, with F1 hotels in Canberra, Campbelltown and Wentworthville the first to showcase the new rooms. F1 Campbelltown was the very first Formule 1 in Australia, and its refurbishment is well timed as Accor celebrates its 20th anniversary this month.

The Cocoon Room provides a more stylish, more restful room with soft colours, rounded edges and soothing lighting, as well as extra storage space. With wood-look floors, flat screen TVs with extra channels, internet connections and a strong focus on sustainability, the Cocoon Room won Best Interior Design at the European Hotels Design Awards and represents a real metamorphosis for the brand, which was first introduced in 1984.

The new rooms have strong environmental credentials, with water-efficient showers and toilets, recyclable materials used throughout and energy efficient lighting.

"The Formule 1 brand really revolutionised budget travel by offering ensuite rooms that could comfortably sleep one, two or three people at an affordable price," said Simon McGrath, Vice President Accor Australia. "The introduction of the Cocoon Room concept is another revolution for the brand and highlights how much the brand has upgraded to meet the increasingly sophisticated needs of today's travellers.

"With these new rooms, we believe Formule 1 offers the best value for money sleep in the market."

The Cocoon Rooms will be rolled out to all 20 Formule 1 hotels in Australia over the next few years.

Popular with families, sporting groups and couples on a budget, Formule 1 hotels cost less so you can spend more on the attractions, restaurants or events in your destination. They are typically located near airports or key transport hubs and increasingly in major cities, with more than 80 hotels across five continents including Australia, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan and South Africa.  In Europe, the Formule 1 brand concept comes under the ETAP brand which includes a network of 420 hotels.

An Accor budget brand, Formule 1/ETAP Hotels offer customers the best in low-cost hotels with well-designed rooms for one, two, or three people, round-the-clock room access and an all-you-can-eat breakfast. Located near major roads and airports – and increasingly in cities – the hotels deliver highly competitive value for money.

www.accorhotels.com

THAI Announces Direct Flights from Bangkok to Brussels, Belgium

On 27 June 2011, Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI) announced the introduction of direct flights to be operated three times a week non-stop on the route Bangkok – Brussels v.v., utilizing Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, with services commencing on 17 November 2011.

Mr. Pandit Chanapai, THAI Executive Vice President for Commercial, said "THAI is pleased to introduce Brussels as its newest destination to serve the European Union (EU), as the only Southeast Asian carrier to operate non-stop flights on the route Bangkok-Brussels and vice versa.  Flights to Brussels will serve business travel among the international community from Thailand and the European Union conducting state travel.  Leisure passengers from Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France will also take advantage of direct flights into Bangkok, with passengers traveling beyond Bangkok to Thai domestic destinations and other parts of Southeast Asia."

THAI will operate a total of three flights per week from Bangkok to Brussels.

THAI's direct service on flight TG934 will depart Bangkok on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 00.30 hours and arrive in Brussels at 07.00 hours.  On the return, flight TG935 will depart Brussels on the same day at 13.30 hours and arrive in Bangkok at 06.20 hours on the next day.  Total flight time on the Bangkok-Brussels route is 12.30 hours and 10.50 hours on the return from Brussels-Bangkok.  Brussels is THAI's 72nd destination.

Flights from Australia's on-line cities : Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth will offer direction connections to/from the new Brussels services giving Australian travellers one-stop flights to a choice of 14 major cities in Europe.  Sydney and Melbourne offer connections to/from Brussels 3 flights a week; Brisbane has outbound connections to Brussels with a day in Bangkok on the return; Perth has a weekly outbound connection to Brussels with a stopover required on the return.

THAI will utilize Boeing 777-200ER aircraft on the Bangkok-Brussels v.v. route and can carry a total of 292 passengers with 30 seats in Royal Silk Class and 262 seats in Economy Class, with seats in all classes of travel equipped with personal screens and the latest in-flight entertainment system.  All flights to/from Australia also offer personal entertainment systems for all passengers.

Brussels is the capital of Belgium and the European Union.  As Brussels is within close proximity to the Netherlands, THAI's direct flight serves state travel conducted by officials from the International Court of Justice in The Hague as well as other international organizations headquartered in Brussels such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Flights on the route Bangkok-Brussels v.v. may be booked from 1 July 2011 onwards via travel agents or on-line at www.thaiairways.com.au.

For more information, contact travel agents or THAI on 1300 651 960 or THAI's Bangkok Call Center on (662) 356-1111, 24 hours.

Official programme and website for the Centenary of Machu Picchu's rediscovery released

The official programme of Machu Picchu's Centenary celebrations has been released and Australian travellers can enjoy various events this July whilst on holiday visiting the mystical Incan citadel.

The website www.machupicchu100.org.pe, detailing all the centenary events, has recently been launched containing information about the citadel and details of events taking place. You can also take a virtual panoramic tour of Machu Picchu by following this link.

On 07 July the official celebrations and ceremony will be taking place at Machu Picchu, and the city of Cusco will be a hive of festivities with many cultural and artistic shows.  Also, Cusco's Main Plaza will become a focal point as a big screen will be showing the main ceremonies taking place at Machu Picchu, ensuring everyone can take part in the celebrations.  Also, a concert by famous Peruvian musician Micky Gonzales will entertain audiences in the Main Plaza with his fusion rock.

After the main celebrations on 07 July, the festivities continue as throughout July many events will be held including street dancing, a photographic exhibition, gastronomy fairs and competitions, cocktail contest and concerts.

Peru's Tourism Board coordinator for Asia Pacific, Rosana Guinea, asserts that the centenary celebrations will be a very proud and vibrant occasion for everyone in Peru. "Travellers visiting Peru at this time will be taking part in an historic and momentous occasion for Peru.  Many events will be taking place throughout the month so visitors will have a unique insight into the Peruvian culture and history," she said.

For more information on Peru, please visit www.peru.travel

BUSINESS TRAVEL MAKES GOOD BUSINESS SENSE

Business travel is a driving force behind building new customers and expanding into international markets according to an international report into the role of business travel in today's tourism market.

The report, recently released by the World Travel & Tourism Council and undertaken by Oxford Economics, found a clear relationship between business travel, corporate performance and economic growth, through a survey of business travellers and executives from the US, UK, Germany, Brazil and China.

ATEC Managing Director, Felicia Mariani, said the report Business Travel: A Catalyst for Economic Performance revealed Chinese businesses in particular, valued the opportunity to make face-to-face connections.

Chinese business people prefer face-to-face meetings

"Nine out of ten Chinese executives found face-to-face business meetings were essential to their organisations success and improved their chance of increasing sales," Ms Mariani said.

"This finding has significance for Australian businesses in particular, as almost every industry is looking to China as a booming market for their products.

"The report found a clear relationship between business travel and corporate performance as well as economic growth with business travel not only helping the bottom line, but contributing to the growth in economies, raising incomes and creating jobs."

The report found global corporate productivity yielded a return on investment of 10:1 with one unit of new business travel spending producing ten units of industry sales.

"In a global environment where the value of business travel may be questioned, this report shows just how important it is to have face-to-face contact with potential customers, estimating that around 50% of prospective new customers are converted to new customers with an in-person meeting.

"In fact, more than 1/3 of those surveyed said they thought their customers would switch to a competitor without an in-person meeting."

Other key findings from the report include:

·         Around one third of growth in global trade in the past 10 years has come from international business travel
·         Attendance at trade shows is estimated to generate 15% of annual revenue
·         Executives say 29% of their company's new sales depend on business travel
·         Three quarters of executives believe business travel increases profits, sales, partnerships and innovation

"This report reveals two key issues for the tourism industry; the benefit of business travel to international trade and the value of face-to-face meetings in establishing strong business connections with conversion into sales.

"With Business events travel, a major and high yielding component of our $25 billion tourism industry, Australia has the capacity to benefit significantly from embracing the opportunities the business travel sector brings to the tourism market."

The World Travel & Tourism Council report is available at http://www.wttc.org