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    Barbados Announces Plans to Host Inaugural Event During Legends Tour

    Barbados is poised to welcome a thrilling addition to its golfing calendar with the inaugural ‘Barbados Legends hosted by Ian Woosnam’ this year.Scheduled to unfold from May 3rd to 5th, this prestigious tournament promises to draw esteemed golfers and their families to the picturesque Apes Hill Barbados, under the stewardship of golf legend, Ian Woosnam, the 1991 Masters Champion.During Tuesday’s launch event, which took place at Apes Hill Barbados, the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) announced that they were principal sponsors for the event.
    Craig Hinds, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the BTMI, said the organisation was proud to align itself with this esteemed tournament.
    “It is fitting that the Legends Tour will unfold against the stunning backdrop of Apes Hill, one of Barbados’ top golf courses. The Legends Tour, an integral part of the esteemed European Tour Group, has chosen Barbados as the stage for this inaugural event in May. This is not merely a golf tournament; it is an opportunity for Barbados to showcase its allure to affluent individuals, hailing from North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa,” he said.
    Jody Addison, Director of Golf at Apes Hill, confirmed that the venue was fully equipped to welcome top-tier golfers from around the world, such as Michael Campbell, the distinguished 2005 US Open Champion celebrated for his remarkable two-stroke triumph over Tiger Woods.
    Executive Chairman of Apes Hill Barbados, Sunil Chatrani, revealed that the team at Apes Hill set out to create a course that both world-class players and amateurs would want to experience time and time again.ADVERTISEMENT“That is why hosting an event on the Legends Tour is a hugely exciting step for us, and we look forward to welcoming iconic players of Ian’s calibre to play our golf course this spring,” said Chatrani.
    Barbados Legends – an inaugural eventWith golf icon and Apes Hill Ambassador, Ian Woosnam at the forefront, the tournament will see an array of golfing greats tackle one of the sport’s most acclaimed new courses – a picturesque par-72 layout that reopened in 2022 following a major redesign by legendary course architect Ron Kirby.
    Phil Harrison, CEO of the Legends Tour, said, “The Caribbean has been high on our list since rebranding as the Legends Tour in 2020, and we are delighted to have agreed to host a tournament on this stunning new golf course.”
    The event is one of the first stops on a record-breaking schedule for the Legends Tour in 2024 – much of which is still to be fully unveiled. Aside from the competitive action, there will be a unique ‘Legends Experience’, which gives passionate golf fans the opportunity to tee off alongside their heroes in tournament play in front of the TV cameras and crowds, as well as two pro-am tournaments on May 1st and 2nd.
    “It is an honour to welcome the Legends Tour to Barbados and an even greater honour to host an event at Apes Hill Barbados as an ambassador for the resort. It will be great to welcome the guys back to Barbados after 15 years. The course is simply breath-taking, serving up a series of stunning holes with views over the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Knowing many of the players on the Tour, I can say first-hand how much they will love the course and it promises to be one of the most anticipated tournaments on the Legends Tour schedule for 2024,” said golf legend, Ian Woosnam.
    Positioning Barbados as a Golf DestinationThe BTMI continues to work to showcase the diverse aspects that destination Barbados has to offer. The strategic timing of this tournament aligns with the organisation’s vision to attract high-net-worth individuals from the United Kingdom and the United States, two key markets where Barbados has enjoyed robust visitation.
    In addition to this event, the BTMI has partnered with PGA TOUR as the Official Tourism Sponsor of the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions.
    “The Legends Tour, coupled with our partnership with the PGA TOUR, serves as a beacon, illuminating Barbados as an investable destination. It showcases not just the excellence of our golf courses but also the warmth of our hospitality and the richness of our culture,” said Acting CEO, BTMI, Craig Hinds.
    Hinds emphasized that the international attention garnered by events of this magnitude will undoubtedly attract investors and further elevate Barbados’ reputation as a top-tier destination.

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    ETIHAD BECOMES ONE OF THE FIRST TO ENABLE PILOTS TO FLY BOTH A350 AND A380 AIRCRAFT

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    Gen-AI in travel in 2024: game-changer or hype?

    Speculation about the transformative powers of generative AI for our travel industry were everywhere you looked in 2023, but real-world working examples were few and far between.
    So as 2024 advances will the world slowly lose interest as the technology doesn’t deliver results?  In fact some top analysts are already calling the technology ‘overhyped’, even predicting it will get a ‘cold shower’ in 2024 because of unrealistic expectations, high costs and regulatory challenges.
    We asked technology experts from across the travel industry for their thoughts on whether or not generative AI will really change the travel experience in 2024, or whether we are getting too excited, too soon.
    Mike Coletta, manager of research and innovation at Phocuswright, disagrees with the analysts who are negative about the potential for generative AI. “The travel industry in on the cusp of massive change, and there’s huge potential for AI to transform the travel experience for both travelers and the travel provider ecosystem. Phocuswright research shows that nearly half of travelers in most countries would be extremely or somewhat comfortable using a GenAI tool to help them plan a trip. Between 13-22% of total traveler populations have used GenAI in some capacity. As the industry moves beyond the initial hype, 2024 will be all about leveraging what has been learned so far to focus on the most beneficial use cases – and avoid wasting resources on those without a clear ROI. Travel companies in 2024 are expected to accelerate investment in generative AI applications. But separating the winning use cases from the losers will be an ongoing process of trial and error. At this juncture, a results-based approach is needed to highlight the most relevant and impactful use cases in travel.”
    The initial success of AI is likely to depend on the challenges people are applying it to.  As Haluk Kayhan, CEO & Co-Founder of B2B accommodation booking platform Bedsopia – which is powered by global distributor PrimeTravel – points out:  “AI could be hugely transformative for travel in 2024, but the industry needs to work out where it is most needed and avoid trying to solve problems that no one knows they even have.  Focus on the real headaches or high-cost / low return areas of your operations like staff shortages, flight disruptions, sudden waves of cancelations, payments processing and operational inefficiencies generally.  These are areas where AI could catalyze the most change, most quickly – perhaps even meaningfully in 2024.  AI technology needs to be essential at this stage, not just a gimmick.  Let’s be realistic – it’s not going to change the whole world overnight – people aren’t ready for that.”  ADVERTISEMENTAccess to data is a key consideration and one of the most impactful use cases for travel.  “The main way we’ll see AI make an impact on travel in 2024 is around data,” says José Arozarena at from Tour Review, a platform for tours & activities providers to manage their online reviews.  “Companies with the largest amounts of data available – or who offer services to clients who in turn have large data sets – will benefit most and the most quickly too.  AI will be able to make sense of that data more effectively, offering insights that result in them making services to travelers better and more personalised. Think of it like the revolution in consumer market research from the 1950s onwards, just happening over a few years and not decades.”
    According to Sami Doyle from TMU Management, a data-driven insurance intermediary specializing in travel, generative AI could transform how financial institutions service the travel industry. “The travel industry is inherently risk based and that risk extends to consumers paying for goods in advance of service and to financial institutions providing services to travel companies for future delivery products. AI could be a powerful tool to assist financial institutions in providing services such as credit card acquiring and financial protection in a sustainable manner that alerts stakeholders to potential exposures before they happen. This has a knock on effect on the cost of these services and their continued provision to the sector, which would mean lower costs to consumers and comfort that financial protection is in place to cover failures.”
    As with any new technology, the most valuable benefits aren’t always immediately obvious. Adam Harris, CEO of Cloudbeds – the provider of hospitality technology solutions to independent property owners – believes that hoteliers will see accelerated efficiencies in their internal operations. “In a perfect world, advanced AI would fine-tune revenue management for hoteliers and work on their behalf as a 24/7/365 GM. This year that’s the direction we’ll be moving in as forward-thinking vendors like Cloudbeds continue innovating on products that drive and streamline internal efficiencies. Technology companies like ours are already using advanced AI and machine learning to make guest communication tools more intelligent and help hoteliers quickly develop web pages and high-performing ad copy. Over the next year, hoteliers will continue to benefit from intelligent AI solutions that help them make better decisions and execute them.”
    Meanwhile, Sergio Mendoza, CEO of pricing and airface intelligence firm Airnguru, believes the real game-changer for AI in travel has been the emergence of cloud technology. “Machine Learning techniques have long been used by airlines to forecast demand for Yield Management. However, the cloud revolution provided cost-efficient, democratic access to unprecedented, virtually unlimited storage capacity and processing power. The cloud catalyzed the use of big data for improving machine learning models and business intelligence, and the emergence of new breakthroughs such as generative AI. The cloud has empowered us to leverage off-the-shelf AI tools at a scale unimaginable a decade ago. Airlines already rely on artificial intelligence applications in several areas of their business. Generative AI is poised to substantially amplify the breadth of business functions for AI applications, increasing its impact across the enterprise. In particular, this revolution is enabling carriers to improve their pricing and overall commercial strategies substantially, driving revenue growth.”
    As a final thought, the industry shouldn’t get too carried away with new ideas that are too futuristic warns Alex Barros, Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer at leading hotel revenue management platform BEONx. He believes that instead we should focus on what can be done right with this this new technology, “for AI to be transformative in travel, we need to start with how it can be applied to the things we’re already doing.  For example, we’re seeing many hotels use it to generate enticing and accurate hotel descriptions, leading to instant increases in conversation rates.  This is demonstrating real impact, and plays to consumer behaviour; the chances of a hotel offer being purchased will be much higher with AI, as there will be better and more attractive levels of personalisation and engagement.”

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    Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ selects Mews as a preferred PMS partner

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    Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ selects Mews as a preferred PMS partner

    Mews, the industry-leading hospitality cloud, is now a preferred PMS partner for Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ (SLH).
    SLH is a collection of over 560 luxury boutique hotels spanning 90 countries around the globe. Although the collection is bound together by a shared spirit and high service standards, each property provides a unique, intimate guest experience in a beautiful and characterful space.
    “We selected Mews as a preferred PMS partner due to its guest-centric platform and innovative approach,” said Richard Hyde, Chief Operating Officer, Small Luxury Hotels of the World. “By incorporating automation and streamlining processes, hotels can reduce administrative burdens during stays, enabling guests and staff to fully immerse themselves in their surroundings.”
    With over 1,000 free-to-connect integrations, each hotel can build a tech stack best suited to its operational needs.
    SLH guests can book accommodation at any SLH property via their central website, facilitated by the SynXis booking engine, so it is essential that Mews has a robust and reliable two-way connection in place. This is one of the many integrations that are easily accessible through the Mews Marketplace.ADVERTISEMENT“We are delighted to be working with Small Luxury Hotels of the World to bring unforgettable experiences to guests,” said Richard Valtr, Mews Founder. “This incredible community of hotels and hoteliers embodies the type of hospitality we try to champion: immersive, unique, and truly remarkable.”

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    Active Travel Group publishes its first annual sustainability report

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    Active Travel Group publishes its first annual sustainability report

    Active Travel Group (‘ATG’) has published its first annual sustainability report as it outlines ambitious plans to accelerate action on climate change, working towards a 50% reduction in carbon emissions across the Group by 2030.The ATG approach to sustainability focuses action in three key strategic areas: Climate, Conservation and Community.
    ATG brands which include the Wilderness Group, Ski Solutions and Cycling for Softies were founding signatories to the Glasgow Declaration, announced at COP26 in Scotland. Building a baseline understanding of the Group’s Scope 1, 2 & 3 carbon emissions has been a key climate priority over the last two years, and the Group publishes the results of this audit within the report, alongside reduction targets for 2024 and beyond.
    The report reveals that Wilderness’ Scope 1 & 2 carbon emissions reduced by 16% over the period, supported by the introduction of a pilot fleet of electric vehicles to support tours from its Aviemore base in Scotland.
    ATG’s sustainability report also highlights efforts the company is making to support conservation and community campaigns relevant to each of the Group brands. At the heart of these efforts is the Wilderness Conservation and Community Fund (WCCF). Founded in 2010 by The Wilderness Group, this initiative allows travellers to give back to those environments and communities at the heart of the travel experience.
    Since its launch in 2010, The Wilderness Group has raised over £100,000 for grass roots environmental and community organisations dedicated to making the world a better place. In addition, the Wilderness staff team has the goal of committing 800+ hours of volunteering time per annum to those projects, supported as part of their “Big 100” volunteer programme in 2024.ADVERTISEMENTATG Chief Sustainability Officer, Paul Easto who authored the report said:
    “By taking the significant step of publishing The Active Travel Group’s first annual sustainability report, we are making an ongoing commitment to providing greater insight and transparency on our sustainability performance, sharing progress against the goals and targets we have set.”
    Commenting on the report, Group CEO Craig Burton said:
    “Our ambition at ATG is to provide industry leadership and action across our key sustainability focus areas.  Whilst we recognise the scale of the challenge the industry is facing and the need to intensify our own efforts, all of our teams across the UK and Ireland can be rightly proud of their achievements in recent years.”
    Championing Lower Carbon Holiday Choices
    Cycling for Softies has been promoting low-impact travel for over 35 years. Having measured the brand’s carbon footprint in 2022-23, the data revealed that the average Cycling for Softies holiday has a footprint of 126kg CO2e per trip, or 18kg CO2e per day.
    With over 30% of guests now choosing to travel by train to their destination (on average 30kg CO2e return), Cycling for Softies offers one of the lowest carbon holiday options for exploring Europe. A seven-day bike tour in Provence staying in 4-star hotels and including return train travel from London would be 157kg CO2e which equates to a 75% reduction in emissions compared to taking the same trip by plane. Cycling for Softies publishes CO2e data on its website alongside tour details allowing customers to make an informed choice.
    Supporting Grass Roots Conservation Projects
    For nearly two decades, The Wilderness Group has supported the conservation charity, the John Muir Trust in their work to protect and preserve the wild places of Scotland.
    Over the next three years, Wilderness will be supporting the John Muir Trust on a Mountain Woodland project on the slopes of the iconic Perthshire mountain of Schiehallion. The project aims to create a varied habitat linking low-level woodland to the alpine zone bringing biodiversity, aesthetic, and carbon benefits.
    Financial support delivered via the Wilderness Conservation & Community Fund (WCCF) will be bolstered by regular volunteer work groups from the Wilderness team to provide resources to undertake groundwork and assist with tree planting.

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    AFRAA predicts 2024 will see an increase in airline revenues

    Regarding cargo, 149.6 million Kgs moved to/from Africa in November 2023, among which African airlines represented 30.8%.
    At some major African airports (Johannesburg, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Lusaka, Cairo, Casablanca, Abidjan and Lagos), intra-Africa connectivity reached or exceeded pre-Covid level since December 2022.
    AFRAA predicts that 2023 will see an increase in airline revenues and the narrowing of revenue gap compared to 2022. The full year 2023 revenue shortfall of African airlines will be around US$200m or less, compared to 2019 full year. The 2022 full year passenger’s revenue gap was US$3.5 billion for all African airlines combined, compared to 2019.
    Jet A1 price continues to fluctuate marginally from week to week. The global average jet A1 price ended the week of 19 Jan 2023 up 2% at $108.92/bbl.
    Regulatory/Industry AffairsADVERTISEMENTSomalia: Somalia has taken back control of its airspace management from Nairobi where it was airspace control was reassigned in 2018., reflecting its commitment to sovereignty and self-governance. The transition of Somalia’s airspace from Class G to Class A marks a significant milestone in the country’s aviation sector. The class upgrade means Somalia will now provide Air Traffic Control Services, a crucial step in enhancing safety and operational efficiency.
    Zambia has adopted the use of electronic cargo manifests, a forward-looking approach aimed at modernising cargo processing and aligning with international trade standards. The move will expedite cargo handling processes, foster smoother operations, and support the objectives of the trade facilitation agreements.
    A similar digitisation move in Cameroon has seen the innovative use of a “Customs Cmr” or “Douane Cmr” mobile app in air passenger processing. This will streamline customs procedures and embraces digital transformation in passenger handling. The result will be efficiency and convenience for both passengers and customs authorities.
    Tunisia increased tourism tax for economy and business class travellers to enhance revenue generation for the tourism sector. The increase which was without consultation with industry stakeholders could negatively affect the anticipated tourist arrivals in the country.
    On a positive note, Tunisia has deposited its instruments of ratification of the Montreal Protocol 2014 (MP14) with the effective date of Jan 2023.  Tunisia has become the 47th party to MP14 which addresses jurisdictional gaps that allow unruly and disruptive passengers to avoid prosecution AFRAA encourages all African states to ratify this protocol as a deterrent to unruly behaviour on flights and at airports.

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    Little Gems by My Second Home stages weekend Valentine’s party exclusively for small dogs

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    Little Gems by My Second Home stages weekend Valentine’s party exclusively for small dogs

    My Second Home, Dubai’s first and largest luxury pet resort, is inviting owners of small dogs to celebrate the month of love at a Valentine’s party for pets, taking place this weekend at Little Gems. Bring your petite pooch along to Little Gems, My Second Home’s newly opened facility exclusively for small dogs, for Valentine’s themed events, including prize competitions and photo opportunities. Open to both members and non-members, the event takes place from 4pm to 6 pm on Saturday, 17 and Sunday, 18 February. Saturday’s Valentine’s ‘pawty’ is for miniature breed weighing less than five kilogrammes, with dogs weighing up to 10 kg welcome on Sunday. Dress to impress for Little Gems’ Cupid Cutest Canine Contest, with prizes for the best owner-dog Valentine’s outfits. Plus, pucker up at the Smooch-A-Pooch photo booth and take away a Valentine’s pic to treasure forever. To book your spot, WhatsApp 054 247 1945, or email [email protected]Non-members must show their dog’s up-to-date vaccination record and a successful VacciCheck test on arrival. Little Gems, opened in December as part of My Second Home’s US$10 million expansion. With three facilities across Dubai and over 220 members, My Second Home offers unrivalled dog park, day care, boarding and pet grooming services, with a fully trained team on board to ensure pets are socialised in clean, safe surroundings. For more information on My Second Home, visit the website, email [email protected] or call 04 881 8002. 

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    Priceline Debuts New AI-Powered Trip Intelligence Features To Save Consumers Time and Money

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    Priceline Debuts New AI-Powered Trip Intelligence Features To Save Consumers Time and Money

    Priceline, the pioneering travel innovator, today unveiled its Winter 2024 Product Release featuring a new generative AI-powered slate of features, including major upgrades to Penny, its AI-powered travel assistant. The latest additions to Priceline’s Trip Intelligence suite make it the travel industry’s most comprehensive array of AI tools – including more than 30 new features to dramatically streamline the travel planning and booking process.At a time when overwhelming choice and options mean consumers spend an average of two full work days – 16 hours – on trip research and booking,1 Priceline’s smarter, faster, and more proactive tools can significantly reduce the time a customer spends on travel planning. The upgraded Trip Intelligence suite builds upon six months of real-world conditions and proprietary marketplace intelligence accumulated from Priceline’s millions of customers since the technology debuted in Priceline’s hotel category in June. The response has been overwhelmingly positive; the company estimates that travelers who used Penny saved an average of nearly ten minutes per trip compared to those who called customer support. Priceline is now rolling out Penny across all categories: hotel, flights, car rental and vacation packages.
    The enhanced Priceline Trip Intelligence suite debuts at a time of changing consumer demands and behavior. More customers seek ways to reduce the time and complexity in researching and booking trips, and they’re increasingly looking to AI to help them solve these challenges. Priceline’s study found that more than half of travelers say they’d use AI tools to cut down on time, eliminate hours of onerous research and secure the best deals. Of those familiar with generative AI, the vast majority (73%) said they’re receptive to using generative AI and believe it will streamline travel planning and booking. And further, 65% said it would make traveling easier and more enjoyable.1
    For its Winter Release, Priceline’s dedicated team of AI experts, prompt engineers, product developers and data scientists built integrated technology atop Google Cloud’s Vertex AI and OpenAI’s GPT-4 Turbo to significantly expand Penny’s capabilities and trip-planning impact sitewide. Penny can now save customers precious time by planning and modifying their trips – whether they need assistance with destination recommendations, finding the best deal or accessing always-on, personalized customer service. Priceline is also introducing personalized GenAI itineraries within its iOS App. No need to do lengthy research making plans – the upgraded App will now generate a suggested itinerary for you down to dining and activity options for your stay. Other time-saving features include a new wallet for organizing deals and coupons, ways to enable customers to skip check-in lines, and more.
    “After six months of expert, on-the-job training, Penny is ready to deliver an even more cohesive and personalized booking experience that saves people time and hassle,” said Brett Keller, CEO, Priceline. “This is a continuation of Priceline’s tradition of revolutionizing travel with pioneering technology. We began fully integrating generative AI early last year, and our tools and features will only get better as customers and partners engage with them more and more.”
    Priceline customers can expect to find over 30 new features and upgrades starting today, including:ADVERTISEMENTPenny: Increasing its remit beyond the hotel category to flights, car rentals and vacation packages, Penny, the GenAI-powered travel assistant, is now ready to greet travelers on the Priceline home page, taking them from inspiration through planning, booking and even modifying their dream trip after they’ve booked.Discover with Penny: Discover new destinations directly from the Priceline home page, with Penny intelligently suggesting relevant properties and travel packages reflecting specific needs and personal travel styles as customers search for the right match. For example, “suggest sunny and family-friendly destinations within a three hour flight of NYC.”Troubleshoot with Penny: Quickly modify itineraries, connect with live help agents, check the status of a refund, and access important travel information – available all in one place by chatting with Penny.GenAI Itineraries: Leveraging GPT-4 Turbo, Priceline iOS app users can automatically craft in-depth itineraries for their entire trip, including can’t-miss activities, restaurants and nearby attractions.Priceline Wallet: A one-stop portfolio feature enabling Priceline customers to save coupons, monitor expiration dates, and track airline credits in a single location.Price Watch: To ensure customers never miss a deal, they can now track desired flight itineraries (including flexible options and multiple airports for fare comparison) in the Priceline App, and receive prompt notifications when prices change.Cabin Comparisons in Search: Results for all domestic flight searches are enhanced with cabin and seat comparisons, enabling customers to quickly evaluate cabin attributes, pricing, upgrade options, and other enhancements.Skip the Counter and Online Rental Car Check-In: Priceline customers can skip the rental car counter or significantly reduce counter wait times by checking-in online ahead of time with select partners.Multi-Passenger Cancellation and Rebooking: Bypass speaking with an agent and rebook tickets for select airlines for the whole family with airline credit, directly with Priceline. (Coming Soon)Priceline App Experience: Major design improvements implemented across all platforms, including overhauls for iPad and Android. The inclusion of Trip Timeline also affords users an at-a-glance view of all upcoming travel dates in one place. Beginning in March iPhone users will receive Live Activity updates on their lock screen containing useful real-time information about their flights. Additionally, a new iOS integration allows users to begin searching for hotel deals and car rentals from the convenience of Spotlight Search.Offers in the PayPal App: Priceline has joined forces with PayPal for the upcoming launch of their new offers platform. Beginning later this year, Priceline expects to provide personalized cash-back offers to consumers in the PayPal app for use when purchasing their travel on Priceline and checking out with PayPal – helping them get to their happy place for a happy price.Priceline continues to swiftly travel into new territories of customer satisfaction, propelled by their data-driven, technology-powered philosophy of innovation. With Penny’s new feature set and category defining Trip Intelligence suite, Priceline promises to get their customers to their happy place at a happy price even faster – and with more confidence – than ever before.
    “Booking with confidence and saving time are absolutely key for our customers,” said Kevin Heery, Chief Product Officer. “Our expanded Trip Intelligence suite will enable Priceline to further anticipate travelers’ needs, helping them book their trip with ease and peace of mind seamlessly and faster than ever before.”
    To celebrate the launch of the new Trip Intelligence features, Priceline is offering a 10% discount on Express DealsⓇ, exclusively through Penny.  Simply ask Penny, “can you get me a deal?” to reveal the code and book by February 27th to take advantage of this special offer.
    The new features are now live across Priceline.

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    LEGOLAND® New York Resort Soars into the 2024 Season by Partnering with Local Ski Mountain

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    LEGOLAND® New York Resort Soars into the 2024 Season by Partnering with Local Ski Mountain

    LEGOLAND® New York Resort is giving guests a fun way to groove while they move when visiting the Park this summer with the addition of its newest attraction: The Minifigure Skyflyer. Opening this summer, the new gondola-style ride – a first for LEGOLAND® Resorts – offers an interactive new way to travel between themed lands of the Park.
    In anticipation of the new ride, LEGOLAND New York Resort has partnered with Belleayre Mountain to give families an early taste of what’s to come and bring the same party-in-the-sky experience to life via two specially-themed ski gondolas. Starting today through April (weather permitting), skiers can catch a lift on two special gondola pods on The Catskill Thunder Gondola wrapped in the image of the LEGOLAND New York Minifigure Skyflyer Pirate Party Pod as an immersive and fun-filled way to ride to the top of the ski mountain.
    Belleayre skiers who catch a ride on the LEGOLAND New York Minifigure Skyflyer gondola pods can scan a QR code and receive exclusive access to “Kids Go Free” tickets, with the purchase of an adult ticket, so families can return to LEGOLAND New York this summer and be one of the first to ride the real Minifigure Skyflyer.
    It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane! It’s the Minifigure Skyflyer!
    LEGOLAND New York guests can expect a fully immersive, interactive experience on the Minifigure Skyflyer from queuing to disembarking. Prior to boarding, guests can help “charge” the cable car batteries through hand-powered cranks then follow the rainbow road before reaching the boarding platform’s disco-themed dance floor. Complete with LEGO® brick disco ball lights, the dance floor invites families to show off their most imaginative dance moves to help the Minifigure Skyflyer truly fly!ADVERTISEMENTBefore boarding, guests are greeted by the Resort’s famous minifigures who tell the story of how they designed and built the new Minifigure Skyflyer – but they need guests’ help to make it fly. Once in flight, families can use their imaginations to help “power” the ride through movement as they dance while traveling across the Park with the best views over MINILAND and more – all from the sky!
    Once aboard one of seven individually themed Party Pods, ranging from pirates to space to disco, it’s time to partake in the in-flight interactivity features. Guests will learn how to speak like a pirate, talk in a space alien language or participate in a sing-along all while flying through the sky. All pods are ADA accessible and seat up to ten people.
    “There’s a lot to enjoy at LEGOLAND New York, but it’s a big Resort and our fans asked us for more ways to move easily from the upper and lower levels of the Park,” said Divisional Director of LEGOLAND New York Stephanie Johnson. “We take our guests feedback seriously and the Minifigure Skyflyer gives them a way to do exactly that while igniting creativity, sparking imagination, and inspiring movement through disco and dance.”
    Family flyers who enjoy the Belleayre gondola party pods are encouraged to snap, post and share their experience tagging @LEGOLAND.NewYork as you party through the sky. To learn more and buy tickets for the upcoming season, visit https://www.legoland.com/new-york/.

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