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    TUMI enters official partnership with Tottenham Hotspur

    Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and TUMI announced today a new partnership designating TUMI as an Official Partner of the Club’s pre-season tour to Korea this July. With this partnership, TUMI will outfit the team and the Club’s full travel delegation with its travel luggage and lifestyle accessories.
    TUMI, the international travel and lifestyle brand, specialises in products featuring elevated craftsmanship, durability and resilience. Each Tottenham Hotspur tour team member will receive personalised TUMI products to ease their journey, featuring a variety of gear, including the brand’s iconic Alpha Bravo Search Backpack and 19 Degree Extended Trip Expandable 4 Wheel Packing Case, both comprised with recycled materials.
    Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League Golden Boot winner, Son Heung-min, is already a TUMI brand ambassador.  As an Official Partner of Tottenham Hotspur, this expands TUMI’s relationship with Son and presents an opportunity to support his colleagues.  Speaking about his Club’s new partnership with TUMI, Son said: “I’m so happy that my partner, TUMI, is supporting my Club this summer for our tour.  I’m excited to have my teammates join me in my home country.  It’s perfect for them to arrive in style thanks to TUMI.”
    “We are committed to perfecting the journey and have been long inspired by Son’s unwavering dedication to be the best he can be, both for his team and representing his home country. We couldn’t be more thrilled to expand our partnership to support his full team on this momentous trip and look forward to welcoming them to Korea,” said Jay Jeong, Brand Head of TUMI Korea.
    In celebration of this partnership, TUMI Korea will launch a special initiative in-stores and on TUMI.CO.KR; visit online to learn more.ADVERTISEMENTTodd Kline, Chief Commercial Officer of Tottenham Hotspur added, “We are delighted to have entered into this partnership with TUMI.  The Club and TUMI share the same uncompromising standards and determination to drive excellence; we know our athletes and delegation lead active lifestyles and are constantly traveling, often carrying their most prized possessions with them while they’re on the go.  We wanted to equip the team with high quality travel and lifestyle products, offering them style and function, so they can keep performing to the highest standard.”
    In keeping with the company’s recent sports initiatives, the Tottenham Hotspur partnership is the second of its kind where TUMI will serve as an Official Partner. In 2019, TUMI announced a multi-year partnership with F1’s McLaren Racing Team, as the team’s Official Luggage Partner.
    TUMI is sold in-stores and online at http://TUMI.COM.  Visit the site for additional information about partnerships, capsule collections, excellence in design and more.
    Tottenham Hotspur’s Pre-Season Tour of South Korea includes two matches in the Coupang Play Series. Firstly against Team K League at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on July 13, and then against Sevilla FC at the Suwon World Cup Stadium on July 16, 2022. Both matches are already sold out.

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    CLIA launches ‘Love Bites’ for agents

    The Love Bites are free for CLIA members and will stream live from 9.30-10.30 on Thursdays, starting on July 14 and running to August 25.
    Sessions will include presentations, virtual ship tours and product updates from ocean, river, luxury and expedition cruise representatives. Industry experts will also be on hand to recommend sought-after experiences, and provide hints and tips to assist sales.
    The line-up is:
    July 14: AmaWaterways, Virgin Voyages, Azamara and Aurora Expeditions
    July 21: Amadeus, Royal Caribbean International, APT / TravelMarvel and Explora Journeys
    August 11: Carnival, Uniworld, Seabourn and Swan Hellenic
    August 18: MSC Cruises, A-Rosa Cruises, Silversea and Celebrity Cruises
    August 25: Avalon Waterways, Holland America Line, Oceania and CroisiEurope
    Andy Harmer, CLIA managing director for UK & Ireland, said: “Agents have done an amazing job of booking cruise holidays since our return, and have firmly re-established a holiday at sea and on rivers as a go-to customer option. As the positive momentum gathers pace, we have put on our ‘Love Bite’ sessions to provide further advice and insight, and help showcase the range of options that are on offer.
    “With speakers from across a range of cruise brands, and with sector specialists also attending, these bite-sized sessions are not to be missed for agents looking to capitalise on ever-increasing customer demand.”ADVERTISEMENT

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    GBTA: Companies should be rethinking their business travel programs

    Business travelers are taking to the roads and the skies again, but are corporate travel programs and policies keeping up with the way business travel happens now? With corporate travel and in-person meetings increasingly returning, businesses need to be thoughtful about how they’re implementing – or re-implementing – their travel programs, especially when it comes to their ground transportation.
    That’s the premise behind a first-ever ground transportation report – “The Corporate Travel Comeback: The Evolution of Ground Transportation and Other Trending Business Travel Topics” – which is based on a quantitative survey of corporate travel managers across the U.S. and Canada. From Uber for Business, Uber’s enterprise arm, and the Global Business Travel Association, the world’s largest association representing the pre-pandemic $1.4 trillion global business travel industry, the report uncovers pressing concerns and considerations from travel managers at some of the world’s biggest companies.
    “Corporate travel is on the rise. Uber saw airport rides represent 13% of Mobility Gross Bookings in Q1 2022, growing 166% from the past year,” said Susan Anderson, Global Head of Uber for Business. “As more and more companies shift to in-person and hybrid work flows, it’s important that businesses reimagine their travel programs and policies, so that they’re tailored to this new era of business that we’re operating in. Our hope is that this report’s findings can provide travel managers and others in the business travel space with the insights and data they need in order to roll out seamless and efficient travel programs that outpace the requirements of a changing world.”
    The report finds that travel managers emerging from the pandemic are laser-focused on a few key considerations when it comes to evolving business travel programs at their companies: traveler safety, policy compliance, and sustainability. Compared to two years ago, 75% of employers are more focused on traveler safety/well-being, 55% are more focused on sustainability/social responsibility, and 53% are more focused on travel policy compliance/enforcement.
    “As we’ve moved through the pandemic, business travel and travelers have changed and therefore company travel programs must evolve accordingly. This research puts a spotlight on some of the important and thoughtful considerations happening across companies and corporate travel departments when it comes to serving employees traveling for business moving forward,” said Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA.ADVERTISEMENTGetting business travelers from Point A to B and everywhere in between
    When thinking about their company’s current approach to managing ground transportation, survey respondents identified some of the top strengths of their travel programs – as well as notable areas for improvement.
    Rideshare and rental cars top the list. Most travel managers say their company’s employees “frequently” use rental cars (82%) and rideshare apps (70%) on work trips, but fewer than half (48%) say employees frequently use taxis.
    Going premium. Most travel policies at least sometimes allow chauffeured transportation/black car service (74%), premium ridesharing (68%), and premium/luxury rental cars (51%). Roughly one-third say their company’s employees “sometimes” or frequently” use chauffeured transportation (36%) or premium ridesharing (30%).
    Half of travel programs (49%) currently have a business account with a rideshare platform and one-third (35%) would consider it. The most important features cited by travel managers were reporting (76%), integration with expense platforms (69%), and ability to apply company policies (62%).
    Evolving business travel for people and the planet – despite the cost
    Making sustainability a priority. An overwhelming majority (84%) say sustainability is at least somewhat important in the design of their company’s travel program, with 50% saying it is very or extremely important.
    Of the companies surveyed, 73% are tracking or considering setting up tracking ground transportation sustainability efforts.
    Even though travel programs prioritize sustainability, not all are willing to incur significant additional cost in order to achieve more sustainable outcomes. Only 6% of respondents say their company currently allows employees to spend more on sustainable travel options, and an additional one-quarter (26%) are considering allowing employees to spend more.
    Work meets play, but how does travel policy follow?
    Business and leisure, better together. Ninety percent of respondents say employees are more (30%) or equally as interested (60%) in bleisure travel – adding vacation days to their work trips – compared to pre-pandemic times. And although 36% say their company’s travel policy expressly allows bleisure trips, 49% their policy does not, but employees are often allowed to take these trips in practice.
    A business traveler has to eat – but what are the rules now?
    Inflation’s impact on meals. Meal prices are rising because of high inflation. While almost one-third of respondents (29%) say their company has raised its spending limit or per diem for meals, a larger number (56%) say these are unchanged from last fiscal or calendar year.
    Food delivery is here to stay. More than half (55%) of travel managers say their company’s employees at least sometimes use food delivery apps on business trips and 32% expect employees to use them more than they do today.
    Most travel programs (52%) already have or would consider having a business account with a food delivery platform. Features important to travel managers are integration with expense software (74%), reporting (72%), ability to order group meals (66%), and ability to apply company policies (64%).

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    Scaling-up tourism action at UN Ocean Conference

    Tourism has the potential to lead the shift towards a circular and regenerative blue economy, the UN Ocean Conference has been told.
    UNWTO centred the discussions on tourism in a special Tourism Ocean Action side event of the Conference, held this week in Lisbon. Organised alongside the One Planet Sustainable Tourism Programme and in collaboration with the governments of Portugal and Kenya, the discussions highlighted the strong incentive that tourism provides for ocean conservation.
    Tourism’s role in coastal conservationAddressing the Conference, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “Our wellbeing depends on a healthy ocean. As part of its responsible recovery, tourism needs to play a more active role in protecting coastal and marine environments. That’s why we are taking steps to shift to a more circular and resilient tourism model, and the benefits of this will be felt far beyond the sector itself.”
    High level representatives from Portugal, Kenya and the Republic of Fiji including the Minister of Economy and Maritime Affairs of Portugal, H.E. Antonio Costa Silva; the Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife of Kenya, Hon. Najib Balala; the Minister of Commerce, Trade Tourism and Transport of the Republic of Fiji, Hon. Faiyaz Koya; presented frontrunning tourism policies and stressed the importance of finding a balance between the environment and the economy and jobs creation through tourism. The UN Resident Coordinator for the Maldives and UNEP’s Ecosystem Division Director also took part in the side event. 
    “As we implement the sustainable tourism action plan 2020 – 2023, we are promoting changes in consumption behaviour, looking at the circularity of materials and at the efficiency in the use of resources, while supporting tourism companies adopt ESG and connecting marine protected areas with tourism” said H.E. Antonio Costa Silva, Minister of Economy and Maritime Affairs of Portugal.ADVERTISEMENTKey ocean and climate initiatives outlinedIn particular, the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism, including its five pathways “measure, decarbonise, regenerate, collaborate and finance” and the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative, which supports the sector’s readiness to the upcoming international legally binding agreement to end plastic pollution, were put forward as effective tools to accelerate tourism ocean action and new signatories to the latter were announced.
    “The Global Tourism Plastics Initiative supports readiness of the tourism sector to meet upcoming regulations, especially in light of the upcoming international legally binding agreement to end plastic pollution. To meet the real need for strong mobilisation, the largest businesses need to also be engaged,” noted UNEP, Susan Gardner, Director, Ecosystems Division
    Turismo de Portugal recalled having signed the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism alongside the European Travel Commission. The Travel Foundation reminded of the need to build the knowledge of tourism stakeholders, especially small and medium enterprises. The need to trigger investments at scale in the protection and regeneration of ecosystems was highlighted by private sector representatives from Iberostar Group, which presented its coastal health strategy, and NOAH Regen, which presented an innovative finance model to protect and regenerate blue carbon ecosystems, building on the side-event on “Blue Carbon Ecosystems for Regenerative Tourism” organised on the previous day in collaboration with Forum Oceano.

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    Palmira Errico joins UKinbound as events manager

    Award-winning association UKinbound has welcomed seasoned events and project management professional Palmira Errico to its team as events manager.
    Joining from destination management company Premium Incoming UK and Ireland, where she held the role of project manager, Errico brings with her over nine years of client and management experience.
    Her previous roles include stints at both Miki Travel Ltd and EMS Destination Management. Errico also holds a degree in Cultural and Linguistical Mediation from the University of L’Orientale in Naples.
    Errico has been tasked with driving forward the association’s events calendar, alongside head of events Saara Vuorela-Valladares, which will include its 200 plus delegate Annual Convention in Aberdeen and the UK stand at World Travel Market.
    Additionally, she will be coordinating the association’s regular networking evenings, familiarisation trips, discover workshops, webinars, general meetings, and more.ADVERTISEMENTCommenting on her appointment Errico said “I am very pleased to have joined the UKinbound events team. I am really looking forward to working with the head of events Saara, and the rest of the team, to create many memorable moments for all our members, who I’m excited to meet at our future events.”

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    ALL-Accor Live Limitless sets out the next chapter with Paris Saint Germain

    After three highly successful years as a major partner and official jersey sponsor of Paris Saint-Germain, Accor has decided to extend its commitment with the French football giant, albeit in a different capacity, for a further four years to promote its lifestyle loyalty program. In the new partnership, ALL-Accor Live Limitless will now be visible on the sleeve of PSG’s training jersey, while a major focus of the collaboration will be on using Paris Saint-Germain assets to engage with and offer unique experiences to ALL – Accor Live Limitless members all over the World.
    The partnership was initially created in 2019 to launch ALL-Accor Live Limitless, the daily lifestyle companion that brings together and enhances all the brands, services and partnerships operating within the Accor ecosystem. It has been a great success in providing current and future members with unforgettable experiences while supporting and promoting awareness of what was a new brand. The sponsorship has enabled ALL to be established as a global brand.
    Over the last three years, members benefited from exclusive opportunities to meet the most high-profile players, from watching a match at home with them to discussing the sporting world while enjoying a different leisure activity like yoga, karting or music together, and even receiving their favorite player’s lucky shirt, at a time when the team was being strengthened with global stars such as Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr, Sergio Ramos and Marquinhos. These award-winning activities with players have facilitated the adoption of ALL as Accor’s booking platform & loyalty program.
    With more than 40 hotel brands Accor has been developing a hospitality ecosystem that attracts and retains the loyalty of guests around the world by offering meaningful experiences and a wide variety of rewards enabling members to work, live and play far beyond their hotel stays. The extended Paris Saint-Germain partnership will continue to be central to this.
    “We’re thrilled to extend our successful relationship with one of the most iconic sporting brands in the world. It helped launch our new lifestyle and travel loyalty program ALL- Accor Live Limitless – to a global audience and has been a magnet for our members who have enjoyed numerous “money can’t buy” Limitless Experiences with the club over the past three years.  We are looking forward to the next chapter and delivering even more value to our members and our business.” – Mehdi Hemici, Chief Loyalty and Partnerships Officer.ADVERTISEMENT“The destiny of ALL – Accor Live Limitless is intrinsically linked with Paris Saint-Germain. We have been partners from the very beginning, something that is unique in the history of a brand. By appearing on the emblematic jerseys worn by our teams and offering ever more innovative and exclusive experiences, ALL have won our fans’ hearts and have created a very strong bond with our supporters and the members of their loyalty program worldwide.  In three years, we have shared unforgettable emotions both on and off the pitch. Today, we are excited to continue our adventure in order to keep surprising and delighting the PSG x ALL family.” – Marc Armstrong, Chief Partnerships Officer.

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    85 sustainable companies listed on biosphere search engine

    The BiosphereSustainable.com website is now available, which allows people to learn about the good practices and sustainable efforts of companies and destinations around the world, showing how they contribute to the fulfilment of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda.
    85 companies from Thompson Okanagan that are part of the Biosphere Community can now showcase their sustainability efforts through the new website, which acts as a portal to make more responsible consumption decisions by showing entities and places around the world committed to sustainability and providing information about responsible tourism practices.
    Through the Biosphere system – an independent, objective, impartial, and transparent verification methodology – an external auditing team of professionals checks and validates the sustainable efforts implemented by each entity, based on the indicators, criteria, objectives, and sustainability goals of the United Nations, within the framework of the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
    With this new website, Biosphere manages to bring together all the verified information on the good practices of the member entities of its community and presents them on its profile in an adapted language, with clear and accessible explanations and distinctions that anyone can understand. Thus, through this portal, consumers around the world can quickly and easily find out how companies and destinations contribute to improving local life in their environment, their economy, employment, education, the well-being of ecosystems, and a whole range of sustainability issues.
    The website is very intuitive to use and is suitable for all types of mobile devices. It allows you to search and filter for places and companies committed to and certified in sustainability, from accommodation and restaurants to shops all kinds. You can even find out about the sustainable efforts of destinations and companies within, committed to being more sustainable.ADVERTISEMENTThe portal is adapted for those with general knowledge in sustainability, so that anyone can easily understand how the companies and destinations work their good practices; transparently showing information that has been previously checked and verified in the Biosphere system, in relation to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
    This new website, which is available in 7 languages, is the solution for those who want to make more ethical and sustainable choices about consumption. With more informed and aware societies, we make it easier for each person’s consumption decisions to reflect their values, achieving a real involvement on the part of society to act more responsibly and adopt more sustainable models.
    Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association is nominated as North America’s Responsible Tourism Award 2022 by World Travel Awards.

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    TUI repays further state aid to WSF

    TUI has again repaid state aid from the Corona programme and also further reduced its credit lines. On June 30, 2022, Silent Participation II of 671 million euros was repaid in full, plus interest due, to WSF (Economic Stabilisation Fund). The repayment was made with the proceeds from the successful capital increase in mid-May and from cash funds. Including interest, TUI repaid 725 million euros to WSF. Due to the continued very good operating business, the existing and currently undrawn KfW credit lines were also reduced from 2.4 to 2.1 billion euros as previously announced.
    TUI is gradually repaying the loans from the Corona period. With the repayment of Silent Participation II to WSF, we are continuing on the path of debt reduction as planned in order to strengthen the balance sheet and align TUI for the period after the Corona pandemic. Operationally, we continue to see a strong summer business. Therefore, TUI is on its way back to being a normal company. This was stated by Fritz Joussen, CEO of TUI Group, and Sebastian Ebel, CFO and designated CEO from October 1, 2022, in Hanover.
    After the repayment of the Silent Participation II and the reduction of the KfW credit lines, the following state aid still exists:
    WSF Silent Participation I: 420 million euros, convertible into 420 million shares.
    WSF warrant bond: 59 million euros, convertible into 59 million shares
    KfW credit lines: 2.1 billion euros, currently undrawn
    TUI Group is considered the Europe’s Leading Tour Operator 2021 by voters at the World Travel Awards.

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