Brits Show Us That There’s Still Hope
Despite the Dark Clouds, Brits Still Have Holiday Hopes: It would be eminently reasonable for any sociologically conscious observer of a people to find it reasonable for the latter, in the current state in which the UK finds itself, to have an attitude stoked or scarred by despair and a sense of hopelessness. Yes, it is both frivolous and, possibly, dangerous midst a global pandemic that, once again, has the British in a stay-at-home-lockdown and with its economy in a recession, for them to contemplate the notion of leisure travel and/or a holiday.
Not the British. Midst the darkness of the news that has dominated the coverage of the UK’s travel and tourism industry—and, oh, there was that Presidential election across the pond in America—fully a third of the residents of the UK have indicated that they have not changed their holiday intentions for the next year. That is correct. A report on the results of 3,000 UK adults that was released last week noted that one in three British holidaymakers have not changed their holiday plans—even as they acknowledged that they are concerned about COVID-19.
GO USA/GO UK: Of course, such morsels of upbeat news are especially welcome among the travel suppliers and DMOs in the United States, which depends greatly on the business of the UK. Along with Germany and France—also, once again, experiencing lockdowns—the three generate more than one out of every five overseas visitors to the USA, which itself is currently suffering from a near-zero intake of such visitors because of travel bans worldwide.
About the survey, and what its findings tell us: The survey was conducted on behalf of Travel PR and marketing agency Lotus; it was conducted in late September among 3,000 UK adults who had traveled in the previous two years. Some of the highlights include the following:
—More than a quarter of the respondents (29 percent) said they would not travel abroad before there is a COVID-19 vaccine.
—A similar number (29 percent) said they would travel abroad less often than previously, and 10 percent would travel in another way or choose a different type of holiday.
—The key finding: just less than a third (32 percent) said their holiday plans would not change.
—More than three quarters of the respondents (77 percent) said they would not be swayed by holiday offers, which Lotus took to mean that cut-price deals will fail to bring travelers back.
—In a number that seems less than it is in surveys among travelers of other countries, just under a quarter of respondents (24 percent) said they were more likely to travel domestically than before because of COVID.
—More than one third (36 percent) were less likely to travel to “neighboring countries.”
—Forty-four percent were less likely to travel elsewhere in Europe.
—Nearly half of respondents (48 percent) said that they were less likely to travel beyond Europe.
—However, half (50 percent) were as likely or more likely to travel to neighboring countries in the next years than before.
—Almost predictably, nearly three out of five travelers (59 percent) said they would still opt for a sun and beach holiday.
—Close to one in five (22 percent) expect to have fewer all-inclusive holidays.
—Fewer than one in ten (8 percent) appeared more likely to book with a travel agent as a result of the COVID crisis.
—About one in every eight respondents (12 percent) said that they would be more likely to book a package holiday despite financial protection and other benefits.
In commenting on the survey findings, Jules Ugo, Lotus chief executive, said: “It’s encouraging given the situation we’re in that so many people hope to holiday in Europe in the next 12 months.”
She added, “The travel industry has not been painted particularly positively in the media. There have been a lot of negative headlines – people not being refunded, not being able to get through to call center, being stranded on cruise ships … We need to build back confidence in the industry.”
How Globus Deals with the Pandemic:
Hundreds of travel industry professionals dropped in on Connect Travel’s recent virtual roundtable— Connect with Domestic Tour Operators: Globus Family of Brands—which featured a briskly paced Q&A with Stephanie Parr-Brooks, director of contracting, the Globus family of brands (Globus, Cosmos, Monograms, Avalon). Shari Bailey, vice president, Connect Travel, and general manager, Connect Travel Events, served as moderator for the discussion.
Top Take Aways:
- Bookings Trends: Globus is happy to share the information it is receives regarding requests and bookings—in addition to running tours. This is in part due to the programs The Globus Family of Brands has created to protect its customers. Shorter booking windows, outdoor locations, etc. are all trending with Globus; however, they feel the larger trend is safety, assurance, and flexibility. Globus has taken the time to create programming to address its clients’ “Peace of Mind”; creating pre, during, and post programs to put their customers at ease.
PEACE OF MIND PLANNING
PEACE OF MIND TRAVEL PLAN
IN TOURING WE TRUST
- Product Trends: Outdoor locales and activities are higher on the priority list than ever before. Globus is adding new destinations including those located beyond the gateways and creating new off-season tours to destinations less traveled—”Escapes by Globus.” They are consistently in search of new, unique products and welcome information to assist in creating new programs. Keep in mind, shorter booking patterns are real. Their window is within 60 days for group travel; be prepared for last-minute planning. Also, consider adjusting normal group requirements with your clients.
- Marketing/Promotions: Engaging its customers (consumer direct and B2B) through inspiration has been a primary effort for Globus. Training, blog posts, and social media are key factors in this. When considering promotions, be nimble and quick to adjust based on market demands. Ask Globus how to be involved, contribute to a blog post, create training for their top producing agents, or build a social campaign around their tours to your area.
- Connect: Staying connected is paramount to Post-Covid recovery. Like most operators, Globus, would like to receive destination updates, new product and program information, flexibility and availability guidelines, and safe + clean guidelines. Equally important, updated contacts from your organizations.
Quotes from Stephanie Parr-Brooks:
—“I oversee our health and safety risk management initiatives. Lately it’s been a lot of health and safety … I know more about sanitizing than I ever did before.”
—“The challenge is trying to find commonality in what protocols people have implemented and what they’re doing, and understanding that. At a granular level, it meant that we had to understand what the hotels were doing, what the motorcoach companies were doing. What our attractions are doing and then, trying to find protocols that really work. Finally, we broke it down to pre-trop, on-trip and post- trip.”
— “It’s safe to assume, at the moment, that groups sies will be smaller and we are managing that very carefully … “
—(Asked what is the best way for conveying COVID-19 travel updates information to her) “If they can have something clearly outlined on their website on their website. That makes it very easy for the trade to get a sense of what’s happening in a destination … “
—(What are your customers saying? What’s more important to them
— “Overall, there’s a great desire to travel … but, the general sentiment seems to be that many have pushed the proverbial pause button because they’re waiting to evaluate what’s happening with all the border restrictions and travel regulations on quarantines and testing … as borders start to reopen, as restrictions start to drop, we’re starting to see more of that confidence in booking.”
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| • Contact Information for Stephanie Parr-Brooks: brooks@globusfamily.com • To see and hear the video of the roundtable discussion with Stephanie Parr-Brooks, go to https://connecttravel.com/webinars/connect-with-domestic-tour-operators-2/ |
China Market Notes
“Full Recovery” by Year’s End—for Domestic Travel: Domestic tourism in China will most probably see a full recovery from the impact of COVID-19 by the end of this year, according an item posted on the website of Xinhua, China’s official state-sponsored news service. In a speech delivered at a recent industry summit held in Chengdu, Liang Jianzhang, chairman and co-founder of Trip.com Group (China’s largest travel company) said that China’s domestic tourism market has recovered from pre-pandemic levels by 80 percent so far, and positive growth has been witnessed in various localities.
Prior to Liang’s speech, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism said that a total of 637 million visits were made across the country during the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday from Oct. 1 to 8, which represented 79 percent of the visits made during the same time last year on a comparable basis. Tourism revenue reached 466.56 billion yuan (about 68.5 billion U.S. dollars), a recovery of 69.9 percent of the revenue gained in the same period in 2019, according to the ministry.
As travel and tourism continue to improve, Liang told Xinhua that self-guided tours and medium-to-high-end leisure trips would experience “a robust recovery” among all types of trips. For the complete article, visit here.
Going to China? Leave Your Cash Home: It’s hard for those of us who live outside of China to grasp how paying for everything has gone digital in the country,” writes Shira Ovide of the New York Times, adding, “Most businesses there, from the fanciest hotels to roadside fruit stands, display a QR code — a type of bar code — that people scan with a smartphone camera to pay with China’s dominant digital payment apps, Alipay and WeChat. Paying by app is so much the norm that taxi drivers might curse at you for handing them cash.” Both informative and entertaining, the article is a quick and easy read for those U.S. travel suppliers and DMOs who would benefit from knowing more about a market that is increasingly cashless. Click here to read the complete article.
Today is Singles Day in China—We’ll get an Idea of How Much Disposable Income (the kind of spending that pays for international travel) Chinese consumers should be spending on travel to the USA. “Singles Day” is the name given to today by numerologists, retailers and other like-minded souls in China who deem that Nov. 11, or 11/11, is special enough to have a nickname or brand that means spend, spend, spend. Last year, Chinese consumers spent nearly $40 billion online on Singles Day—which is far more than the $16.8 billion that U.S. consumers spent online Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. This year, Alibaba is trying to increase the number of foreign brands participating. Tmall, Alibaba’s import and export business, will bring more than 2,600 new overseas brands to China for the first time, said Alibaba. Here’s an article on the subject.
Germans Wonder: Where do we go from Here?
The nerves of just about everyone who is still a part of the travel and tourism industry in Germany are really frayed right now. As the data below seem to suggest, German travelers seem(ed) determined to take a holiday somewhere this autumn or, if that doesn’t materialize, sometime next year.
Then, just as October arrived, came the news that Germany and other key European country markets, including the UK, France, Spain and Italy have
re-imposed some form of a strict lockdown of their citizens in an effort to put a check on the alarming increase in COV ID-19 cases. In most instances, the lockdowns will be in effect for at least a month, although that could be adjusted.
Before all of this happened, the professionals in the German travel trade were becoming more vocal, and even had another march on Berlin to loudly protest their dire situation.
Before all this, there was a sense that things might be getting better.
Following is an Oct. 30 post by the Nuremberg-based Travel Data Analytics. While the commentary does not include references to long-haul overseas travel by Germans (due to travel bans wrought by the global pandemic), it does measure and project with regard to regional activity so that one can project trends based on such activity.
In the booking month of September 2020, the upcoming autumn holidays were the focus of German citizens. There was particularly strong demand for vacation trips to Greece and Germany, and Portugal, Italy and Austria also performed comparatively well. However, the fact that many top travel destinations cannot be booked due to existing travel warnings and the associated high cancellation rates mean that the booking revenues generated in September for the current 2020 summer season fall to 12 percent of the previous year’s volume.
The current seasonal balances for the booking status as of the end of September 2020: The current summer season shows a cumulative fall in sales of 78 percent compared to the previous year. This is four percentage points more than in the previous month. The upcoming 2020/21 winter season will lose seven percentage points compared to the previous month. In the previous booking month of September, the cancellations superimposed sales with new bookings, so that the sales balance is now minus 66 percent compared to the previous winter. Central winter destinations such as the Canary Islands, Egypt and long-distance travel destinations are missing in the winter business. The coming months will only tell whether bookings for long-haul destinations will increase with the lifting of the worldwide travel warning on October 1st. (Travel bans have mostly been re-imposed.)
Another ten percent (in terms of sales) trusted in being able to spend a winter holiday in the Canaries – and rightly so, because the travel warning for the Canaries was lifted on October 22nd. In the booking month of September, Germany was still the preferred destination for a vacation trip in the coming winter months with a turnover share of almost 25 percent. This could change in the coming weeks when more sun destinations become bookable again.
The outlook for the summer season next year also remains cautiously optimistic. In terms of sales, three percent more holiday trips were booked for the travel period from May to October 2021 in September 2020 than in the same month of the previous year. Including the rebooked summer holidays from this year, the 2021 summer season currently has more than twice as high a sales volume as in the previous year.
Focus on Autumn Holidays German citizens*
Departure Months Booked in September 2020
Revenue from new bookings, stationary and online, booked in September
| Season/Time of Year | Percentage of Total Market |
| September/October 2020 | 59% |
| Winter 2020/21 | 14% |
| Summer 2021 and after | 27% |
* Caution; the language in this table depended on a google translation.
Growth Rate Compared to the Previous Year
| Season, Time of Year | Booking Status |
| Summer 2020 | -78% |
| Last booking month | -88% |
| Winter 2020/21 | -66% |
* Caution; the language in this table depended on a google translation.
The tables above are based on a chart that showed the cumulative travel sales generated by the end of September 2020 for the 2020 summer season and the coming 2020/21 winter season compared to the previous year. Holiday travel bookings in stationary travel agencies as well as online on the travel portals of tour operators and online travel agencies (OTAs) with a focus on package tours are included. The first table shows what percentage of sales in the booking month September are attributable to the individual travel months or seasons.
Note: Holiday sales that had definitely not been left due to cancellations by the organizers were adjusted in the balance sheets at TDA Travel Intelligence at the end of the respective travel month. As of now, this affected all trips canceled until the end of September 2020.
About TDA Travel Intelligence: Travel Data + Analytics GmbH (TDA), founded by Dr. Markus Heller, took over the tourism retail panel “Travel Insights” from GfK in April 2019 and continues it as “TDA Travel Intelligence”. It is based on the booking data of around 1,750 travel agencies, which represent the stationary sales market in Germany. In addition, the booking data of the classic travel portals and the tour operators are recorded in the online area. Extrapolated to the overall market, the evaluations by TDA Travel Intelligence allow reliable conclusions to be drawn about the booking and travel behavior of German vacationers. Current trends and developments in the tourism market can be tracked promptly.
For further information: Alexandra Weigand, alexandra.weigand@traveldataanalytics.de.
For additional information about TDA, visit: https://traveldataanalytics.de/en/
There is also this—the ta.ts travel agency* mirror:
—The total invoiced turnover of German travel agencies recorded in the “ta.ts travel agency mirror” in October 2020 was minus 88.4 percent compared to the same month last year.
—The billed tourism turnover shows a minus of 82.2 percent in October. The turnover in air traffic recorded a minus of 96.5 percent for the month. The other sales are minus 76.0 percent and the number of tickets is down 93.9 percent
—Year to date: Viewed cumulatively, the total invoiced travel agency turnover in the months from January to October was down 75.2 percent. Tourism recorded a minus of 71.1 percent while air traffic declined by 81.5 percent.
* – ta.ts = Travel Agency Technologies & Services, which is based in Frankfurt
CVC & GOL Still Top Brands in Brazil
One-third of Brazilians know about GOL, while CVC is known by more than a quarter (26 percent) of the country that has a population of more than 212 million people and is the largest Latin American source market for the inbound travel and tourism industry of the United States.
The finding comes from an annual survey of Brazilians conducted by Folha de São Paulo. (Mostly referred to as simply Folha, it is an influential Brazilian daily newspaper and news website, and is based in São Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, which is the de facto business capital of the country.)
The annual edition of Folha de São Paulo that announces the results of its Top of Mind Award for brands in various sectors of Brazil’s economy is a closely watch and much anticipated event. The 2020 survey was carried out by Datafolha and Folha de S. Paulo. The Datafolha is a research institute belonging to Grupo Folha. It was created as a research department for the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper in 1983 and later became a separate company in order to be able to serve external clients.
Data for the year of 2019 show that GOL had 37.7 percent of the domestic and 3.8 percent of the international market share in terms of passengers per kilometer flown, making it the largest domestic and third largest international airline in Brazil. (LATAM airlines, which is the largest Latin America-based airline, with headquarters in Chile, has about 21 percent share of Brazil’s international traffic.)
CVC Increases its Standing: Both GOL and CVC were repeat recipients of the Top of Mind Award as companies most remembered by Brazilians in the travel and tourism market. This year’s survey showed the company with 26 percent of mentions, an increase of five points above the last survey. GOL, meanwhile, accounted for 33 percent of mentions—four points above last year’s index.
CVC’s win this year marked the tenth year in a row that the CVC travel conglomerate has received the honor. Meanwhile, GOL, earned its highest percentage ever, and took top honors for the fourth consecutive year. CVC’s award came at a particularly trying time for the company, which comprises more than a half-dozen major brands (including CVC; the tour operator Grupo Trend; Experimento Intercambio Cultural, which sells educational tours; and Submario Viagens, an OTA). In addition to having financial challenges due to the global pandemic, CVC has been going through the throes of a major reorganization that has seen some long-time employees leaving the company.
2020 Top of Mind Rankings
Category—Airlines
| Carrier | Percentage |
| GOL | 33% |
| TAM (LATAM)* | 22% |
| Blue (Azul) | 11% |
*The merger of TAM with LAN Airlines into LATAM was completed in 2012; even so, many in Brazil still refer to the company as TAM.
2020 Top of Mind Rankings
Category—Travel Agency
| Company | Percentage |
| CVC | 26% |
| GOL | 5% |
| TAM (LATAM)* | 5% |
Datafolha has breakdowns and breakouts of the information related to the Top of Mind survey. For more on what it does and has to offer, visit: http://datafolha.folha.uol.com.br/produtos/datafolhabrasil/
Trade Talk
Mergers, Acquisitions and Market Moves:
• Callaway Golf, the Carlsbad, California-based company that is one of the largest biggest golf equipment makers in the world, has acquired Topgolf, a global sports entertainment company headquartered in Dallas, Texas to create a brand that combines technology, entertainment and sports, attracting golfers and non-golfers alike to its 58 locations across America. “Together, Callaway and Topgolf create an unrivaled golf and entertainment business,” said Chip Brewer, president and CEO of Callaway. “This combination unites proven leaders with a shared passion for delivering exceptional golf experiences for all – from elite touring professionals to new and aspiring entrants to the game.” Brewer will run the combined company after the completion of the merger. Dolf Berle, Topgolf’s current CEO, will continue to lead the Topgolf business through the transitional period, then step down and leave the company. With the move Topgolf will join Ogio (golf bags and travel luggage), Travis Mathew (apparel) and Jack Wolfskin (apparel) under the Callaway brand.
Spanish Tour Operator Closes: Politours, a mid-size operator based in Madrid, has shut down. Established in 1986, the company had a strong presence in Latin America, including Mexico, and sold North American product (Canada) as well. Alejandro Fernández Torres, a spokesperson for the company for Latin America, said in a statement to REPORTUR.com.ar, “We want to make an orderly closure. These coming weeks we will continue to balance accounts with our operators, so that they receive what corresponds to them as soon as possible and transferring reservations to friendly correspondents.” According to REPORTUR, Fernández Torres also suggested that “the idea of the wholesaler’s management is to return in two years, as they foresee difficult times ahead.”
• TUI UK hoping to Sell beyond just next year. In a move that could be indicative of what much of the global travel and tourism industry is going through—a need for cash … upfront … now—TUI UK, a unit of the largest tour operator in Europe, last week put its summer 2022 holidays on sale, explaining that a recent survey showed that 86 percent of its customers expected to be travelling again by next summer. The company said that is already seeing strong demand for winter 2021/22 bookings to Cancun, Jamaica and Tenerife. Also, TUI has two new winter sun routes for 2021, from London Stansted and Doncaster Sheffield Airport to Boa Vista in Cape Verde. And It has additional frequencies on a number of existing routes. TUI is seeing an upward trend in 4 and 5-star all-inclusive hotel bookings for next summer, with over 40 percent of customers surveyed expressing this preference. Eighteen percent of customers surveyed said they would look to book a villa holiday with car hire included, making social distancing easier on holiday.
TUI also expects Florida to continue to prove popular as many families moved their trip from this year to 2021, with 40 percent of holidays to this destination already sold. Richard Sofer, TUI UK’s commercial & business development director said: “Our latest customer survey and booking patterns for next summer indicate that the great British public are looking forward to future holidays even more so as they may have been unable to take one this year.” He added, “This is why we have launched our future holiday programs through to the end of October 2022, so that families and couples alike can plan ahead to next year and beyond to make informed choices about what will make their perfect holiday from the wide range we have on offer.”
• Brand USA Says Bye-Bye to WTM and ITB. Brand USA has confirmed that it is likely to withdraw for good from participation in the World Travel Market in London and ITB in Berlin. Tom Garzilli, Brand USA’s chief marketing officer, made the comment during the organization’s Travel Week Europe, a trade show that was launched in 2019 and which took place online for the first time Oct. 26-29. Brand USA, a public-private partnership, had already planned to reduce its presence at both WTM 2020 and ITB 2021 prior to Covid-19 but, Garzilli told a travel trade publication, the pandemic had “speeded up change.”
“Big global trade shows like WTM and ITB for US tourism are just not as efficient and not as necessary,” said Garzilli. “A lot of money gets spent on those things that we would like to see spent in the market, with tour operators, with consumers, driving business.” Brand USA launched Travel Week Europe, a B2B event in London last year and, after this year’s virtual event, which has attracted 115 U.S. exhibitors and 150 buyers from across Europe, plans called for it to be held in Germany in 2021.
Also, another factor could be that, like many of its private sector partners, Brand USA has suffered this year from a decline in funding levels. Just how much will become known next Tuesday, Nov 17, when Brand USA has a meeting of its board of directors.
• Filling Hotel Rooms, Pandemic Style: Juergen Hutterer, an Austrian businessman who owns the Mihlton, a small hotel in Barcelona, has taken a somewhat different approach to meeting the challenge of surviving in a time of a pandemic-driven economic crisis for the world’s hospitality and tourism industry. He is filling once-empty rooms by the month—effectively turning his property into a unit of short-term apartments. Hutterer is not alone. According to an item in Eldiario.es, “real estate portals that usually rent chalets, flats or apartments now advertise hotel rooms for one or two people per month, with the payment of a one-month deposit.” Prior to the pandemic and related health emergency, Hutterer sold the rooms for between 130 and 180 euros ($158-$213) a night. With this new method he rents them for 590 euros ($698) per month. What used to be billed in four days now takes a whole month, although an employer has fewer expenses. For instance, the cleaning service has been reduced to one day a week. Click here for the complete article.
A Brazilian Recovery—Continued
The last time we checked in on the state of the Brazilian travel and tourism industry (Click here to access “Brazilian Comeback Gains Momentum” in the Sept. 29, 2020 issue of INBOUND), the Brazilian travel and tourism industry seemed to be faring better than most countries important to the inbound U.S. tourism industry. And despite travel bans brought on by the COVID-19 crisis—Brazil is number two in the number of coronavirus deaths, behind only the United States—the country continues to plow ahead toward a recovery that they seem to be certain will come.
The latest Brazilian Overview Monthly Report published jointly by PANROTAS—the Brazilian trade media and event company—and FecomercioSP, the São Paulo-based business and economic organization, walks the reader through six pages of information that tells the reader the up-to-date numbers and trends regarding the country’s economy and tourism industry. INBOUND highlights some of the major points the Overview makes in the latest report.
—Notwithstanding a global pandemic due to COVID 19, the national economy is moving slowly in the right direction. However, said the Overview, the economy will face a major challenge in 2021, when emergency aid measures expire.
—While business activity figures in the tourism industry register on the negative side—it declined 2.7 percent in August—the overall recovery is being driven by other sectors, such as the manufacture of food products; oil and oil products; and beverages. The Overview suggests that some businesses were not prepared for the resumption of demand earlier than expected.
—Inflation for the year was at 1.34 percent for the year—up to September, but in the food and beverages group, which makes up the largest part of household budget, was up 7.3 percent. (This begs the question: Will some households lack level of disposable income needed for travel?)
—All factors considered, consumer confidence is behaving reasonably. The Consumer Confidence Index (ICC) increased 5.6 percent in September, from 102.6 points in August to 108.4 points (at the time the Overview was published). And although it was 3.6 percent below the level of September 2019, the ICC is above 100 points: this number is in the optimistic area. Also, the Retail Businessmen Confidence Index (ICEC) experienced a third consecutive monthly increase, reaching 85.9 points in September,
—Summer is coming soon. (Summer 2020 in Southern Hemisphere begins on December 21
and ends on March 20, 2021) and Brazil is preparing for the high season of recovery. There is already big movement for domestic travel, as well as a great desire among Brazilians to see the borders reopened for international travel.
—Tour operators have had to focus almost 100 percent of their sales efforts on domestic travel for the summer, but also on selling international travel for 2021. The results, notes the Overview, are promising: in September, CVC—the country’s largest travel company—announced that the sale of resorts and hotels packages was already at 80 percent compared with 2019 volume.
—Data released by the Brazilian Tour Operators Association (Braztoa) confirm a recovery, although it is one that is slowly moving. Braztoa’s latest monthly survey revealed that Brazilian travelers are beginning to plan their trips in advance. In September, 75 percent of the operators associated with Braztoa said they had sold trips for the first half of 2021, followed by itineraries that will take place in December (60 percent), with 47 percent of operators having sold trips for the second half of 2021.
—USA is still a destination favorite. According to the survey, internationally, the most sought-after destinations are: Cancún, accompanied by other Caribbean regions, followed by the United States and the Maldives. Portugal, Italy and Argentina are also in great demand.
—Practically, all international airlines have resumed flights to Brazil, but traffic between Brazil and the USA is nil. (However, on Oct. 26, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that he supports lifting federal COVID-19 restrictions on travelers from the United Kingdom and Brazil to help Florida’s struggling tourism industry. At the same time, Britons are in the midst of a complete lockdown.)
Click here to download the October edition of the Brazilian Overview Monthly Report
First Group Tour in Canada in Months
Midst a collection of the worst inbound visitor numbers ever, the company sends out its first group tour since … who knows when? No matter the size or the obstacles, the company managed to send out a small tour within western Canada in mid-October, and had plans to send out more tours this month.
The revelation came early into a Connect Travel virtual webinar– Connect with Domestic Tour Operators—from Stephanie Parr-Brooks, director of contracting, the Globus family of Brands. She had been discussing how Globus had spent a significant amount of time setting up “a lot of” new protocols for its tour products.
They were incorporated into the tour, which was marketed in, and took place in, the Rockies in an itinerary that included Banff and Calgary. The mention triggered a number of questions that were posted on Zoom screens of the hundreds of individuals who took part in the webinar. Asked by the session’s moderator, Shari Bailey, vice president, Connect Travel, and general manager, Connect Travel Events, how the tour went, Parr-Brooks said that it was well-received: “The travelers were excited just to be out and exploring again.” The first group Globus tour since the beginning of the global pandemic that has effectively shut down travel to and from Canada, it also provided staff with an opportunity to introduce passengers to the company’s new protocols.
(Note: The Globus family includes Globus, Cosmos, Monograms and Avalon.)
The upbeat glow that attendees might have felt in listening to, and watching, the webinar, might have helped them cope with the relentlessly challenging news that the inbound tourism industry in Canada has to do deal with—mostly it has to do with the government’s ban on travel to the country from the USA (Canada’s largest inbound market) as well as a notice to all Canadian citizens and permanent residents that they are advised to avoid all non-essential travel outside of Canada until further notice to limit the spread of COVID-19. Both measures are in effect through most of this month. And they will probably be renewed for at least another month.
The impact of the shutdown of travel to Canada from abroad—at least, from Destination Canada’s Top 10 international markets in the most recent month for which complete figures are available, August 2020, is seen the graphic below:
Canada: August 2020 Overnight Arrivals at a Glance*
* The COVID-19 pandemic has affected data availability and the regular process for collecting and distributing data. While this information can provide a baseline to monitor arrival performance going forward, it does feature notable difference compared to data normally published by Destination Canada. This month’s infographic shows all travelers from long-haul (non-U.S.) arrivals, including same-day trips from non-US countries (i.e. air passengers in transit to other countries), which are normally excluded. Destination Canada estimates that these same-day trips account for 3 percent of total arrivals. US travel excludes same-day trips by land, as usual. Data on mode of entry at the country level is not available, so only the total long-haul arrivals by mode of entry is provided. For more information, visit https://www.destinationcanada.com/en/
HODGE PODGE: Appointments and Changes
Katja Spitz, a veteran of nearly nine years as an international market executive with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors recently left the organization and has launched Artemis Adventure Tours, which is based in Las Vegas, where Spitz has been active in the travel and tourism industry for more than a decade. Prior to her tenure with the Las Vegas CVA, Spitz was travel industry sales manager for the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.
Anthony Lim has been promoted from his current role as managing director, Insight Vacations and Luxury Gold, which he continues to lead, to the position of president, Asia, for The Travel Corporation. Apart from managing the Insight Vacations and Luxury Gold brands in Asia, Anthony, whose background includes previous roles in the healthcare, hospitality and the airline industry, will simultaneously oversee the company’s day-to-day operations while steering business transformation for Asia. Anthony takes over from existing managing director Nicholas Lim, who leaves after over a decade of contributions to TTC.
Sandy James has been named director of business development for Zoox Smart Data, an international provider of technological solutions that harnesses big data to build and monetize customer profiles from existing Wi-Fi networks. James’ primary objective is to accelerate Zoox’s commercial growth in North America and to achieve a leading presence in the region as a “go-to” provider for guest behavior analysis. She will work closely with hotel brands and travel organizations in advocating the value of the Zoox Smart Data and Zoox Media solutions. James joined Zoox after eight years as a service management manager with Radisson Hotel Group.
Unique Vacations Canada has appointed Omar Josephs as senior manager, groups and events.
Josephs has held several positions with Unique Vacations Canada since 2003. He started as a regional business development manager in Ontario before becoming National Manager, Industry Relations. His most recent role was Senior Manager, Events, where he managed Sandals events for travel advisors across North America and the Caribbean.
Kristina Heney has been named as executive vice president, chief marketing officer for the Hornblower Group. Hornblower offers a wide range of water-based experiences with headquarters in San Francisco, Chicago, New York and London. Heney joins the company from Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, where she served for five years. Previously, she was senior vice president for marketing and revenue management for the Madison Square Garden Company, where she worked for 15 years.
Claude Molinari, general manager of Detroit’s TCF Center, has been named president & CEO of the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau effective Jan. 1. He’s succeeds longtime leader Larry Alexander, who, earlier this year, announced that he is retiring from the position after 22 years, effective at the end of the year. Prior to his tenure at the TCF Center, Molinari was with the David Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Kelvin Dunk was recently appointed to the position of head of trade sales at Ski-Lifts, a well-known airport transfer provider now operating in 14 different countries across Europe and North America. Previously, he worked for as UK and Ireland sales manager for Oui.sncf is a subsidiary of SNCF selling passes and point-to-point tickets for rail travel around Europe. He was with the company for more than a dozen years.
Maureen Morgenthien has been named director of marketing for Charlotte County Florida’s Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach Visitor & Convention Bureau. Morgenthien has an extensive tourism marketing background including working in hotel and resort sales and marketing; serving as deputy director, sales & marketing with the Emerald Coast Convention & Visitors Bureau in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.; and as director of leisure sales & marketing with the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau.
The Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau has hired Teresa Savage as its new vice president of business development, the first position to be hired during the COVID-19-driven pandemic. Savage comes to Monterey County from her previous position as the vice president of sales for Visit Napa Valley. Savage also worked, at one time, at the Monterey Marriott hotel.
Abercrombie & Kent has named Martin Froggatt as executive vice president at Abercrombie & Kent USA. He joins the company from Travelopia, the collection of specialist tour operators, where he was managing director and chief sales officer, expeditions, education & events. Previously, he served for more than 13 years at TUI where, lastly, he was managing director-North American specialist and activity division.
Ted Sullivan has been appointed chief marketing officer of Salt Lake City-based Entrada Insights, creator of what it says is the world’s first destination intelligence platform. Formerly vice president of destination analytics, Sullivan has extensive knowledge and experience in global travel marketing, data, analytics, branding and media. With more than 25 years of experience in the tourism and travel industry, Mr. Sullivan will lead Entrada’s global branding and marketing programs as Entrada continues to expand its footprint worldwide.
Stephen Ekstrom has been named chief strategy officer at The Tourism Academy, the Ft. Lauderdale organization whose mission is to provide the education tourism professionals need to advance their careers and grow their businesses. It connects more than 175,000 professionals, industry suppliers and association leaders to quality education on-demand. A veteran of more than 20 years in the hospitality, travel & tourism industry since, Ekstrom comes to his new position after serving for a decade as the president of his own business, the Relate Strategy Group, which specializes in tourism representation and travel trade marketing. His resumé also includes a tenure as the director of sales and marketing at Ripley’s Believe it or Not Times Square, New York City.
Posted Industry Jobs
From SearchWide Global:
—Visit Florida is searching for a vice president of marketing. For more information, visit here.
—The Bermuda Tourism Authority is looking for a chief sales and marketing officer. For additional details, click here.
—The Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau has an opening for a director of sales. Click here for more information.
—Visit Orlando is searching for a new president and CEO. For more information visit here.
— Brett/Robinson Vacation Rentals on the Alabama Gulf Coast has an opening for a director of operations. Visit here for more details.
— Sports Facilities Management is searching for a senior project manager to join its facility planning and finance support services team. For more details, visit here.
—The Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau has an opening for a new president. Click here for more information.
—A new president and CEO is being sought by Destination Madison (Wis.). For additional details, click here.
—The Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce is looking for a president and CEO. For more information, visit here.
—The Sedona Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau is looking for a new president & CEO. Click here for more information.
—The City of Omaha has an opening for the position of director, parks, recreation and public property. Visit here for additional details.
—The city of Fort Smith Arkansas is searching for an executive director of its Advertising and Promotion Commission. Click here for more information.
—The Virginia Tourism Corporation (it is the state’s DMO) has an opening for a director of research and market intelligence. Click here for more information.—In the Charlotte/Concord area of North Carolina, Great Wolf Resorts as an opening for a director of sales and catering. For details, click here
