Tuesday 28 February 2017 Issue 3490

I n c o r p o r a t i n g Ta b s o n Tr a v e l

News.......................... p1, p2, p3, p5, p7Jetstar ............................................... p4Hawaiian Airlines ............................ p6APT .................................................. p8

8 Pages This Issue

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Holiday Memories Fading? Make New Ones.Global ‘Make New Memories Sale’ on now.Visit qantas.co.nz/agents.

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Dr Seuss At LAXChildren will be entertained with Dr Seuss stories at Los Angeles Inter-national Airport this Thu, as part of Read Across America Day. Dr Seuss Hour is 1000-1100 (local time), and will see airport police officers, LAX PUPs (Pets Unstressing Passengers) and Cat in the Hat characters read Green Eggs and Ham to children. Travel bags with copies of the book, and goodies will be handed out.

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L o c a l c r u i s e e x p e r t s h a ve welcomed Cunard’s decision to base its Queen Elizabeth liner in Australia for two months in 2019—a move they say offers Kiwi travel agents a fantastic opportunity to sell and upsell a more traditional type of cruise product.It’s the longest deployment to this region for any of Cunard’s current fleet of Queens, and the cruise line expects the local programme will double the number of Australians and Kiwis travelling on Cunard, compared to previous years.The Queen Elizabeth will have re-cently undergone a refit when she sets sail down under and Cunard says its youngest ship will be looking her most luxurious for the total of 27 combina-tion local itineraries on offer.“This is going to be quite a game changer in the local market and very popular,” say helloworld’s cruise mar-keting manager Jacqueline Unsworth. “Cunard is an iconic brand that is well loved by many New Zealanders and for those who don’t wish to take a long-haul flight they can experience the Cunard brand close to home”. The Queen Elizabeth will operate seven cruises from Australia, includ-

ing two round trip New Zealand voyages (one ex Sydney and one ex Melbourne) and will bring back a little glamour to cruising.“It will give the local market a com-pletely different cruise experience to what is already on offer and there won’t be a waterslide or zip line in sight...just elegant traditions and gorgeous white star service,” adds Unsworth.Another cruise expert says the Austra-lian deployment is a shot in the arm for cruising in this region ‘as it clearly demonstrated Cunard has noted the growth from this market and expects it to continue’.

. . . Jolly Good GrowthCunard says it’s seen ‘tremendous growth’ in the number of Australians and New Zealanders cruising with the line since the Queen Mary 2’s maiden voyage to Sydney in 2007. “Whenever Cunard’s itineraries have included roundtrip options from Aus-tralian ports and visits to New Zealand the growth has always been tremen-dous,” says Cunard’s vp international development David Rousham, adding that he expects similar strong interest in the 2019 local cruises.

Cunard Move A ‘Game Changer’

Space Tourism Launch?As the race to send tourists into space continues, Elon Musk’s SpaceX says it will send two people on a private mis-sion around the moon in 2018. The pair has paid for the week-long mis-sion in the Dragon 2 capsule, which is used to bring supplies to the Inter-national Space Station. Meanwhile Virgin Galactic this week resumed testing of its second SpaceShipTwo after a two-month break, and plans to carry out tests this year, but hasn’t said when commercial flights will begin.

Discover America In AKLThe Discover America is on in AKL tonight and those attending are urged to dress up to be in the draw to win US travel prizes. See diary for details.

Fri 15 May 15 P3Tue 28 Feb 17 p2

News & Product

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SEE PAGE 4

EUROPE 2018 PRE-RELEASE

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Colouring Book WinnerCongratulations to Shirley Watson of the Private Travel Company, who has won the Lonely Planet World’s Cutest Animals colouring in book. If you missed out on the book but are in need of some colouring-in therapy, Travel Today readers can ac-cess Lonely Planet titles at 20% off at traveltoday.co.nz/lonely-planet

Viva Expeditions has been authorised to provide Cuba Tourist Visas (tourist cards) in New Zealand—and says it’s the only travel agency in New Zealand that’s le-gally authorised to do so.This means Kiwis can now apply for their visa either directly with the Cuban Embassy in Wellington, or with Viva and Chimu. Viva says it offers a ‘much simpler’ application process and is working on making the process fully automated.“We are excited to be offering this

Viva Now Handling Cuba Visas

service and to be sup-porting grow th in travel to Cuba,” says Viva’s Rachel Wil-liams, who is pictured with Cuban Ambas-sador Mario Alzuga-ray Rodriguez.The visas cost $110, or $100 if clients have their Cuba arrange-ments booked with

Viva or Chimu. The visas are non-commissionable. See vivaexpeditions. com/cuba-tourist-visas

SQ, TAT Team UpSingapore Airlines and the Tourism Authority of Thailand will work to-gether to promote travel to Thailand in priority markets including New Zealand.The pair have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Tourism Cooperation which will see them carry out joint activities including branded advertising and promo-tional campaigns, tactical and digital marketing, famils, joint roadshows and product development. The MoU is effective from now until 31 Mar 2019.“We look forward to working with TAT on many exciting activities to promote Thailand as an attractive tourist and business destination to the world,” says SQ chief executive Goh Choon Phong. “Combined with SQ’s wide global network and dedica-tion to excellent customer service, we are confident we can increase visitor arrivals into Thailand.”TAT is targeting 34.1 million inter-national visitors in 2017, including a 7.35% increase from the Oceania region.

Customs Drug HaulCustoms made a record 4165 drug seizures in 2016, including over 413kg of methamphetamine and 1.1 tonne of its precursors which could have yielded up to 809kg of meth, says Customs Minister Nicky Wagner. The seizures were made on passen-gers at the border, as well as found in cargo and in the mail.

HA’s US Fare SaleHawaiian Airlines has return fares to its 11 mainland US points, priced from $1279 inclusive, for sales to 06 March. Destinations include LAX, SFO, SEA, LAS and NYC. A stopover in HNL is permitted at no extra charge, while a stopover at Maui’s OGG airport is an additional $100.

LH Agent EventsLufthansa is inviting agents to attend a series of training events around the country for full updates on Lufthan-sa/SWISS/Austrian Airlines fares and products. See industry diary for details.

EI Baggage ChangeEffective immediately, Aer Lingus has increased the YR charge which is collected as a bag fee in exchange for 20kg of baggage allowance on the carrier’s short-haul network, advises local GSA World Aviation. This ap-plies to bookings made via the GDS and group bookings made with the carrier’s groups department. The YR will increase by EUR4 from EUR19 to EUR23 euro for all new bookings.

Kenya Meets StandardsKenya’s civil aviation authority has been assessed as complying with international safety standards by the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).Kenya has been granted a Category 1 rating under the FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme, meaning it meets In-ternational Civil Aviation Organiza-tion (ICAO) standards. This means Kenyan carriers can establish service to the US and carry the code of US carriers. The FAA had not previously assessed Kenya’s CAA for compliance with ICAO standards.

Fri 15 May 15 P3Tue 28 Feb 17 p3

News & Product

APPLICATIONS CLOSE 5pm, 08 March 2017

Send your CV and covering letter to:

Toni Leonard, HR and Development Manager

Orbit World Travel Tauranga & Hamilton

P 07 856 9009 | E tonil@hot.co.nz

www.orbit.co.nz

Orbit World Travel is seeking an experienced group

consultant to join our team in either Tauranga or

Hamilton.

QAt least 2-3 years’ experience as a group travel

consultant

Q Excellent communication skills

Q High level of administration and computer skills

Q Exceptional time management and attention to

detail

The portfolio is diverse with a combination of

corporate groups and includes tours under our

Marathon Tours brand.

This is a challenging, rewarding and fast paced role, in

an intensely customer focused environment.

GROUP TRAVEL CONSULTANTORBIT WORLD TRAVEL TAURANGA & HAMILTON

Selfridges Pop-upSelfridges in London is hosting a pop-up restaurant on its iconic rooftop which will see chefs create meals out of unwanted ingredients, or food waste. The wastED pop-up will run until 24 Mar, with options including lunch, dinner and high tea. Reservations are open now at selfridges.com/wastedlondon

Innovative RoadshowI n n ov at ive Tr ave l i s h o s t i n g information evenings for agents and their clients, covering Ancient King-doms, the Safari Company and the newly launched TravelCompanions.Club.Guests can hear about the new 2017 Ancient Kingdoms holidays; and the Safari Company’s Kiwi guide Andy Kibby will speak about the small group safaris available throughout Africa.The events will take place in Mar in Hamilton, Auckland, Wellington, Palmerston North and Christchurch. See industry diary for details and RSVP to info@innovativetravel.co.nz

Win With AulaniAulani, Disney’s Hawaii resort located in Ko Olina, Oahu has noted an increase in visitation from the Kiwi market—and to celebrate the resort is giving away some Disney Aulani collectibles (pictured). To be in the draw to win a Hawaiian-themed Mickey-Minnie, collectible Aulani pin and special edition Moana branded macadamia nuts agents must cor-rectly answer two questions.1 What is the name of Aulani’s

new luau? 2 Approximately how long is the

drive between Waikiki and Aulani in Ko Olina?

Email answers by 1700 03 Mar to giveaways@traveltoday.co.nz

Canada Event In AKLWorld Expeditions is celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary by host-ing an event in Auckland with Great Canadian Trails expert Keri May. Agents and clients are invited to the event and hear about what the coun-try has to offer, including its out-door spaces and trails. The Celebrate Canada evening will take place 1830 on 07 Mar in Parnell. The event is free to attend, agents are encouraged to register. For details CLICK HERE

New Airpoints PartnersRanstad, MoleMap, The Economist and Exeed Limited are the latest part-ners to join the Air New Zealand Airpoints programme. NZ says the number of businesses in the Airpoints coalition has more than doubled in the past two years, with 59 companies now offering Airpoints Dollars. “This increased earning power has re-sulted in an impressive 894,000 flights taken by members using their Air-points Dollars in the past year alone,” says NZ’s gm loyalty Mark Street.

Flooding In ChileThere’s been flooding in parts of Chile, including Santiago and San Pedro de Atacama, advisesViva Expeditions. Due to rain at the weekend the San Pedro river has grown and some roads around San Pedro are blocked, says Viva. Some rooms of the Hotel Altip-lanico were flooded and passengers were changed to other hotels (no Viva or Chimu passengers were affected). Some excursions are suspended but it’s hoped the situation will return to normal in the coming days.Santiago has been affected by the suspension of its water supply due to flooding, and the water is coming back slowly. Hotels have been operat-ing normally and so there’s no major effect on passengers.

See page 6

Australia’s top attractions, events, tourism operators and accommo-dation were named at the annual Qantas Australian Tourism Awards in Darwin over the weekend.Some 181 tourism products and experiences took part in a ‘rigorous evaluation process’ for the awards, which named winners across 25 categories.Voyages Ayers Rock Resort and the Old Woolstore Apartment in Tasma-nia were both inducted into the Hall of Fame after winning their respec-tive categories three years in a row.Winners on the night included Major Tourist Attraction: Sovereign Hill; Tourist Attractions: Questacon in ACT; Major Festivals and Events: Toowomba Carnival of Flowers; and Festivals and Events: Mount Isa Mines Rotary Rodeo.Major Tours and Transport Operators was won by Ocean Rafting in QLD; and the Tour and Transport Opera-tors category went to Fun Over Fifty, also in QLD. WA’s Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures won the Adven-ture Tourism category.Seppeltsfield Estate Winery won the

Tourism Wineries, Distilleries and Breweries award; while Excellence in Food Tourism went to Margan Wines and Restaurant in NSW.Accommodation category winners included Caravan and Holiday Parks: BIG4 Deniliquin Holiday Park; Host-ed: The Beach House at Bayside; Unique: Taronga Western Plains Zoo; Self Contained: The Frames, SA; Standard: Moama on Murray Resort; Deluxe: Yondah Beach House; and Luxury: Saffire Freycinet.For a ful l l ist of w inners see australiantourismawards.com.au

Best In Aussie Tourism Named

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Travel Today, Tuesday 28 February 2017 Page 4

Fri 15 May 15 P3Tue 28 Feb 17 p5

News & Product

www.orbit.co.nz

Orbit World Travel is seeking an experienced short

haul consultant to join our team in Hamilton.

QExperience as a travel consultant

QExcellent communication skills

QHigh level of administration and computer skills

QExceptional time management and attention to

detail

Join our team!

Be challenged and rewarded delivering outstanding

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SHORT HAUL TRAVEL CONSULTANTORBIT WORLD TRAVEL HAMILTON

APPLICATIONS CLOSE 5pm, 08 March 2017

Send your CV and covering letter to:

Toni Leonard, HR and Development Manager

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P 07 856 9009 | E tonil@hot.co.nz

A trip to Rottnest Island is seen as a must-do for many visitors to Perth, so it was only fitting that the Qantas/Tourism Western Australia famil group headed straight there for their first day on the ground.

The group is experiencing some of the highlights of WA after winning a place on the famil in a QF incentive.Complete with bike and Segway rid-ing, (mandatory) quokka selfies and a late afternoon swim, the island was a hit with everyone in the group, largely thanks to its laidback feel—though there was plenty on offer to keep everyone entertained. At just 11km long and 4.5km wide, and with virtually no cars, recom-mend clients hire a bike for their visit the island, making it easy for them to explore at their own pace. And for those who are up for it, a Segway tour provides a great way to see some

Rottnest: Quokkas & Segwaysof the island’s highlights, such as WWII artefacts, and learn about its history while traversing both off and on-road tracks with a guide. Segway Tours WA operates year-round, how-ever, clients are encouraged to book in advance to secure their chosen time slot. See segwaytourswa.com.auPerfect as a day trip for those who are short on time, or a longer stay for those who wish to spend a few days relaxing, Rottnest Island can be reached in about 30 minutes by ferry from Fremantle. Ferries depart regularly from Perth’s Barrack St Jetty, Fremantle and Hillarys Boat Harbour. See rottnestexpress.com.au

Pictured enjoying a day in the sun at Rottnest Island is: 1 helloworld Masterton’s Shari O’Connor practising her Segway skills. 2 Orbit Wellington’s Jess Hancox and House of Travel on Victoria’s Kyla Strahl getting ready to explore. 3 Rottnest Island. 4 House of Travel Northlands’ Siobhan Bull and House of Travel on Victoria’s Kyla Strahl. 5 Qantas’ Zoe Fowler gets a must-have quokka selfie on Rottnest Island. 6 Orbit Wellington’s Jess Hancox, Qantas’ Zoe Fowler, Tourism WA’s Kate Wright, YOU Travel Ferrymead’s Tanya Cross, House of Travel Northlands’ Siobhan Bull, House of Travel Burnside’s April Ten-nant and House of Travel on Victoria’s Kyla Strahl taking in the views. 7 The Qantas/Tourism Western Australia famil group is pictured with Segway Tours WA guide Rusty.

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News & Product

Industry DiaryWellington, 1700-2000. Palmerston North: Wed 22, Distinction Hotel, 1700-2000. New Plymouth: Thu 23, Novotel Hotel, 1700-2000. Tauranga: Tue 28, Tauranga Yacht Club, 1700-2000. Hamilton: Wed 29, Novotel Tainui, 1700-2000.

Lufthansa Agent Training DaysAuckland East: Wed 08, Waipuna Conference Suites Highbrook, 0830.Hamilton: Tue 14, Distinction Hotel & Conference Centre, 0830.Tauranga: Wed 15, Trinity Wharf, 0830.Auckland Central: Tue 21, Wintergarden Pavillion, Auckland Domain, 0830.Auckland North: Thu 23, The Spencer on Byron Hotel, 0830.

Tourism Fiji RoadshowNelson: Mon 27, Grand Mercure Monaco Hotel, breakfast.Wellington: Mon 27, Rydges Wellington, evening.Christchurch: Tue 28, Addington Raceway & Events Centre, evening.Auckland, CBD: Wed 29, Pullman Hotel, evening.Hamilton: Thu 30, Ferrybank Reception & Conference Centre, evening.Auckland, North Shore: Fri 31, QBE Stadium Albany, breakfast.

APRILTourism Fiji RoadshowTauranga: Mon 03, Club Mt Maunganui, 1730-1930.Rotorua: Tue 04, Novotel Rotorua, 0700-0845.Taupo: Tue 04, Lonestar Taupo, anytime between 1200-1400.Napier: Tue 04, Crowne Hotel, 1730-1930.Palmerston North: Wed 05, Distinction Hotel, 1730-1930.Wanganui: Thu 06, Stellar Restaurant and Bar, anytime between 1200-1400.New Plymouth: Thu 06, Novotel New Plymouth, 1730-1930.

Avalon Waterways 2018 Launch Lower Hutt: Tue 04, The Dowse Art Museum, 1745.Wellington: Tue 04, Lone Star, 1745.Pukekohe: Tue 04, Townmouse Cafe, 1745.Blenheim: Wed 05, Watery Mouth Cafe, 1730.Whangarei: Wed 05, Dickens Inn, 1730.Palmerston North: Thu 06, Distinction Palmerston North, 1745.Nelson: Thu 06, Bacco Restaurant, 1730.Hamilton: Mon 10, Hamilton Gardens Cafe, 1745.Christchurch: Mon 10, Dux Central, 1745.Auckland East: Mon 10, Pakuranga Golf Club, 1745.Tauranga: Tue 11, Macau, 1745.

FEBRUARYBrand USA’s Discover America Trade ExposAuckland: Tue 28, ANZ Viaduct Events Centre, 1700-2130.

MARCHInnovative Travel WWI Travel & Information EveningChristchurch: Thu 02, Papanui RSA, 1730-1900.Auckland: Wed 01, Point Chevalier RSA, 1730-1900.

2017 Adventure World Roadshow Auckland: Mon 06, Heritage Hotel, 1800.Bay of Plenty: Tue 07, Mills Reef Winery Tauranga, 1800.Wellington: Wed 08, Mac’s Brewbar & Restaurant, 1800.Christchurch: Thu 09, Novotel Christchurch, 1800.

JAWS Roadshow 2017Dunedin: Mon 06, Kingsgate Hotel, 1700-2000. Christchurch: Tue 07, Rydges Latimer Hotel, 1700-2000. Nelson: Wed 08, Rutherford Hotel, 1700-2000. Whangarei: Tue 14, Forum North, 1700-2000. Auckland North: Wed 15, Spencer on Byron, Takapuna, 1700-2000. Napier: Mon 20, Napier Sailing Club, 1700-2000. Wellington: Tue 21, Rydges

Auckland North: Tue 11, Takapuna Boating Club, 1745.Timaru: Tue 11, Mocca Cafe, 1730.Napier: Wed 12, East Pier Hotel, 1745.Dunedin: Wed 12, Luna Bar, 1745.Auckland West: Wed 12, The Falls, Henderson, 1745.New Plymouth: Wed 19, Waterfront Hotel, 1745.Queenstown: Wed 19, Mercure Hotel, 1745.

MAYLufthansa Agent Training DaysWellington: Wed 03, Intercontinental Wellington, 0830.Nelson: Thu 04, Rutherford Hotel, 0830.Christchurch: Tue 23, Ilex Botanic Gardens, 0830.Dunedin: Wed 24, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, 0830.

2017 Amazing Thailand RoadshowAuckland: Mon 08, Sky City Convention Centre.

Asia Now RoadshowWellington: Wed 10.Christchurch: Thu 11. Tauranga: Mon 15.Hamilton: Tue 16. Auckland Central: Wed 17. Auckland North Shore: Thu 18. Venues, times tba.

JUNELufthansa Agent Training DaysQueenstown: Thu 22, Double Tree by Hilton Hotel, 0830.

Hyatt has officially opened the Hyatt Regency Andares Guadalajara, the fourth Hyatt Regency hotel in Mexico. Located in Zapopan in the Andares shopping area, the property features 257 guestrooms, including 25 suites, a number of F&B spaces, and indoor pool and fitness centre as well as plenty of event space. See hyattregencyandaresguadalajara.com

Tattoo History On ShowFor clients interested in all things tattoos, more than 250 works are on in display in New York through to 30 Apr as part of Tattooed New York. On show at the New York Historical Soci-ety, the exhibition traces the history of tattooing in New York City, from historic Native American practices to today’s tattoo parlours, advises NYC & Company. For more, CLICK HERE

Aman China AdditionWorld Journeys advises agents that Aman’s fourth property in China is due to open later this year, and for bookings in the com-ing months. Amanyangyun, located just out-side downtown Shanghai, will offer 24 club suites and 13 villas, as well as a spa, six dining venues, varied event spaces and more. E-mail info@worldjouneys.co.nz for further details.

The US hotel industry opened the year with positive results in the three key performance metrics, according to data released by STR.In a year-over-year comparison with Jan 2016, occupancy was up 0.5% to 54.1%; average daily rate was up 3.2% to USD120.72; and revenue per available room was up 3.8% to USD65.33. STR’s Jan Freitag added that while the 54.1% occupancy level matched Jan 2016 as the highest on record for the month, with 150,000 more rooms, ‘you can argue that this was the best Jan on record’. He adds that Jan 2017 also marked the industry’s 83rd con-secutive month with a year-over-year increase in RevPAR. Among the top 25 markets, Washing-ton DC reported the month’s largest increase in RevPAR, with overall performance driven primarily by a 38.3% spike in ADR to USD171.12, while occupancy in the market rose 9.4% to 56.4%. Freitag believes that DC ‘no doubt benefitted from the presidential in-

auguration’, adding that the number of rooms sold in the CBD eclipsed any other inauguration day in STR’s database. The widely publicised Women’s March is also believed to have had an impact, he says.

New Hyatt Mexico

US Hotels Set New Jan Record

Virtual ScotlandClients can virtually experience Scot-land’s highlights, such as flying over Edinburgh Castle or walking through the prehistoric Skara Brae, via a new virtual reality app from VisitScotland.The app, which aims to educate and inspire more people to book a Scottish holiday, features 360˚ imagery and footage. Users start their journey in a virtual glen from which they can jump into a map of Scotland and experience 26 attractions across the country, with more to be added.The free app can be experienced in 3D when using a Google Cardboard virtual reality headset, in 360˚ view using gyroscope phone technology or by touchscreen also in phone mode. See visitscotland.com/app

*Conditions apply. Prices are per person (pp), NZD, twin share and include port charges where applicable. Prices are correct as at 21 February 2017. Price based on EUMC15: 10 November 2018 (Cat. E). DEPOSITS: A first non-refundable deposit of $1,000 pp is due within 7 days of booking. A second non-refundable deposit of $2,000 pp is due by 31 October 2017. Final payment due 100 days prior to departure. ALL OFFERS: All offers are available until 30 April 2017, unless sold out prior. Limited suites/cabins/staterooms on set departures are available and are subject to availability. AIRFARE OFFERS: All offers are subject to availability of airline and booking class. Once class is sold out surcharges apply. Flights must be booked by APT. All airfare offers are in wholesale economy class with Singapore Airlines (W class) depending on routing (or another airline of APT’s choosing). Airfare offers are valid ex. AKL/WLG/CHC. FLY FREE: Offer includes return economy class flights to Europe, with air taxes up to $250 pp. Surcharges will apply if air taxes exceed this amount. Australian Pacific Touring Pty Ltd. ATAS accreditation #A10825. APT5440

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Travel Today, Tuesday 28 February 2017 Page 8