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      dnata and Banyan Tree grow partnership

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      dnata Representation Services, part of the dnata Travel Group, is growing its partnership with the Banyan Tree Group across Thailand as the country emerges as one of the most popular international travel destinations from the GCC countries this year.
      dnata Representation Services has acted as exclusive sales representative in the Middle East for the Banyan Tree Group’s Maldivian properties since 2016. dnata will now provide support for a range of its popular hotels and resorts across Thailand, offering regional travellers exclusive holiday packages and dedicated local support.
      Its representation will cover ever-popular Banyan Tree Bangkok in the capital, and multiple properties across the country’s largest island, Phuket. This includes Banyan Tree Phuket, which recently launched a new wellbeing resort – Banyan Tree Veya Phuket – as part of its cluster; Angsana Laguna Phuket, opening this year a highly-anticipated new restaurant, ATOLL, set amidst a lagoon; alongside the Homm Bliss South Beach Patong and Cassia Phuket.
      dnata Travel, based across the GCC, recently announced that Thailand is the most popular holiday destination for UAE travellers for summer 2022, while the brand records a surge in popularity for travel to the country across its wider regional operations including in KSA.
      Sébastien Doussin, DVP – Global Ground Services & Destination Management at dnata Travel Group, commented: “As one of the Middle East’s longest-standing travel providers, we remain at the forefront of latest traveller trends across the region. Our enhanced partnership with the Banyan Tree Group, owner of some of the world’s most renowned luxury resorts, enables us to support our travellers with excellent hotel packages in some of the most sought-after travel destinations from this part of the world including Thailand and the Maldives.”ADVERTISEMENTdnata’s enhanced coverage of Banyan Tree Group properties in Bangkok and Phuket, two areas of Thailand proving most popular with GCC travellers for summer 2022, comes in addition to its exclusive representation of its three signature hotels in the Maldives, including Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru, Angsana Velavaru and Angsana Ihuru.
      The Maldives islands, which opened to tourists in July 2020, have remained ever-popular with travellers across the Middle East pre-pandemic and ongoing, offering easy access to paradise islands at a short flight time.
      Benjawan Meksakul, Regional Director of Sales & Marketing – Thailand & Laos of Banyan Tree Group, added: “We are pleased to appoint dnata Representation Services, a well-known industry company as our Global Sales Agent – Middle East. Having created successes for different hotel brands in the luxury and premium space, dnata’s expertise and rich experience will see them implementing innovative sales and marketing strategies for our Thailand hotels post-COVID and create greater awareness for the global multi-brand ecosystem of Banyan Tree Group in the Middle East market.”

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      “Sorrento call to action”: Youth to play an active role in tourism’s future

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      The first Global Youth Tourism Summit concluded with the launch of the Sorrento Call to Action, a bold and ground-breaking vision for young people to be active participants in tourism’s restart and growth as a pillar of sustainable and inclusive development.
      The Sorrento Call to Action was adopted on the final day of the landmark summit, during a simulation of the UNWTO General Assembly and signed by 120 participants from 57 countries and aged between 12 and 18. It was drawn up based on the discussions of a series of webinars where young participants learned and shared their thoughts on some of the key issues facing tourism right now, among them innovation and digitalisation, plastic pollution and the growing relevance of sport, culture and gastronomy for destinations. The document goes beyond recognising that the voice of youth must be consulted in policymaking and instead states that young people now need to active participants in every stage of the decision-making process across the whole of the tourism sector.
      The final text was adopted with 52 favorable opinions during the simulation of a UNWTO General Assembly. The General Assembly simulation opened with high-level interventions both in person and via video messages from His Holiness Pope Francis, Italian Minister for Tourism Massimo Garavaglia, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili, Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Luigi Di Maio, Italian Minister for Youth Policies Fabiana Dadone, and the UN Envoy for Youth Jayathma Wickramanayake. 
      Zurab Pololikashvili, mentioned that “The Global Youth Tourism Summit is a hugely important first, for UNWTO and for our sector, and that young talent from every region will be supported to give them a stage to voice their ideas about tourism’s future.” 
      Massimo Garavaglia emphasized Italy as being the proud hosts of this first ever event and encouraged the young people present to become the responsible travelers of tomorrow and to keep their optimism for making their dreams a reality.ADVERTISEMENTJayathma Wickramanayake highlighted the importance of promoting the active engagement of young people as agents of transformational change, challenging the status quo, and realizing the Agenda 2030.
      People, planet and prosperityThree pillars are enshrined in the Sorrento Call to Action: People, Planet, and Prosperity. For people, for example, the young signatories call for the safeguarding of human rights, especially of persons with disabilities through adequate tourism strategies and policies. For the planet, the issues of food waste, plastic pollution, climate change mitigation, and biodiversity preservation are flagged up. Finally, for prosperity, poverty reduction, upgrading digital skills, and creating more employment opportunities are voiced by the young participants.
      The Call to Action states that “decision-makers must empower the youth, providing them with opportunities to voice their concerns” while also working to it “stimulate education to ensure responsible travelers and professionals.” At the same time, it recognizes the historic significance of the first Global Youth Tourism Summit and calls on UNWTO to hold annual summits and to work with its Member States on national events.

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      Travel & tourism jobs in Nigeria to double over the next decade

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      The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has revealed the Travel & Tourism sector in Nigeria is expected to create 2.6 million new jobs over the next decade, doubling the number of those employed within the sector by 2032.
      The forecast from WTTC’s Economic Impact Report (EIR) shows an average of nearly 260,000 new jobs will be created every year for the next 10 years, to reach more than 5.1 million.
      According to the report, Nigeria’s Travel & Tourism’s contribution to GDP is forecasted to grow at an average rate of 5.4% between 2022-2032, significantly outpacing the 3% growth rate of the overall economy.
      This will catapult the sector’s contribution to GDP to nearly ₦12.3 trillion by 2032, representing 4.9% of the total economy.
      The global tourism body’s report also provides optimism for the short-term recovery, as the sector’s contribution is set to reach near pre-pandemic levels by next year, just 3.5% behind 2019 levels.ADVERTISEMENTBy the end of this year, the Nigerian Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to GDP is expected to grow 10.4%, to reach more than ₦7.2 trillion (3.9% of the total economy), while employment in the sector is set to grow by 4.3% to reach more than 2.5 million jobs.
      Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said: “The pandemic was catastrophic for Nigeria’s Travel & Tourism sector, wiping billions from the economy and affecting millions of livelihoods.
      “Following two years of severe and highly disruptive travel restrictions which decimated the sector, the outlook for the future is much brighter, with our sector expected create more than 2.5 million jobs over the next decade.”
      Before the pandemic, Nigeria’s Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to GDP was 4.5% (₦8 trillion) in 2019, falling to just 2.8% (₦4.9 trillion) in 2020, which represented a shocking 39.3% loss.
      The sector also supported nearly 3.4 million jobs in 2019, falling to just below 2.2 million in 2020, when the pandemic devastated the sector.
      The global tourism body’s latest EIR report also reveals that 2021 saw the beginning of the recovery for Nigeria’s Travel & Tourism sector.
      Last year, its contribution to GDP climbed 35.1% year on year, to reach nearly ₦6.6 trillion.
      The sector also saw a recovery of 240,000 Travel & Tourism jobs, representing a positive rise of 11.3% to more than 2.4 million.
      The sector’s contribution to the economy and employment could have been higher if it weren’t for the impact of the Omicron variant, which led to the recovery faltering around the world, with many countries reinstating severe travel restrictions.

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      Costa Rica appoints new Tourism Minister

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      The newly elected President of Costa Rica, Rodrigo Chaves Robles, has chosen William Rodríguez as the country’s new Tourism Minister, replacing Gustavo Alvarado as head of the department. As well as becoming Costa Rica’s new Tourism Minister, Rodríguez will also be head of the Costa Rica Tourism Board (ICT) from now on.
      Rodríguez, 71, is well known in both the public and private national tourism sectors, where he has worked for more than 49 years holding a variety of positions. These include being the general manager of the Aurola Holiday Inn in San Jose; country manager of United Airlines in Costa Rica and Guatemala, and being marketing director at ICT (Costa Rica Tourism Board). Together with tourism, the new minister has experience in international relations, business and economics. He holds a degree in Political Science and a Master’s degree in Business Administration and Marketing.
      Rodríguez mentioned that his main priority at the moment is to completely reactivate international tourism and to achieve the same visitor figures as in 2019, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. In this regard, he said: “Destinations around the world are saying that they will be meeting the 2019 visitor arrival figures in 2024 or 2025. However, our aim is that Costa Rica gets full back on track sometime in 2023.” For this reason, air connectivity with the UK and Europe are amongst Rodríguez’s main priorities.
      Getting repeat visitors to Costa Rica is also key for the new Tourism Minister, who claimed that Costa Ricans are the best asset to achieve that. “Visitors come to Costa Rica because of the wildlife, nature, adventure and wellness; but we know they return because of the warmth and friendliness of the locals, who are always willing to give visitors a hand.” The average length of a holiday in Costa Rica increased from 12.6 to 13.6 days before the pandemic.

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      TUMI enters official partnership with Tottenham Hotspur

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      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

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      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

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      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

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      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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