NTTO’s Big Picture Still not a Pretty One
The arrivals data are there; they’re just not what we would like to see. The researchers, economic analysts and statisticians who at or for the U.S. Department of Commerce’s, National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) are turning out treasure lodes of reports on a timely basis—better they ever have of late—but the heavy hand of a global economic pandemic tells us that the overall statistical portrait of inbound travel to the United States will not be a pretty one.
The near-or short-term picture does, however, seem to suggest that expectations for the remainder of Q3 2021, as well as Q4, could open the sluice gates for some healthy activity on the market—even if it is comprised of news bytes here and there, as well as anecdotal evidence throughout the distribution chain: new job openings are appearing in healthy numbers; sales and marketing professionals who were furloughed or laid off, at sending out notices on the social network that they’re going back to work; and attractions, tours, shows and restaurants have re-opened and/or reclaimed seating capacities that they had prior to April 2020, when the full-force of the pandemic brought the tourism industry to a halt.
For the B2B/wholesale side of international inbound tourism, the state of business is one that is in recovery. Insiders will have a better grasp of where things are within the next six weeks. By that time, Connect Travel (publisher of INBOUND) will have had its RTO Summit Florida, where receptive tour operators—many of them with offices in Orlando—who have a pulse on developments in South America and Europe will meet in a little more than a week (Aug. 29-30) in Tampa. A broader view and understanding of the international market will be when IPW convenes, along with Connect Travel’s TOUR and THRIVE Summit (focusing on the U.S. domestic market) on Sept. 20-22.
What follows are two presentations from NTTO trove of monthly data for the six months of 2021 through June. The first is a large table with numbers for the 50 largest overseas country markets; and second, there are two bar graphs that contrast data for this year vs. 2020 and 2019.
First, the Big Picture.
Just to help you put the above in perspective, take at 2019—the Top 5 markets for overseas tourism to the United States were: United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Brazil and China. None of them appear in the Top 15 for 2021 so far.
And then there is the following:
Questions? Contact the research team
For UK Retailers, 2021 is Over
Some agents might not make it through the winter … and travel wholesalers gathering in Tampa and Las Vegas within the next month will tell us what they expect the business climate is for 2022 and 2023. But, for the travel agent sector of the UK travel and tourism industry—it’s the segment that is the industry’s public face and voice for the British consumer and it’s the same segment that furnishes the UK travel trade publications with a reliable supply of gloom-and-doom headlines—this year is over.
“The summer has already been lost and any attempt to save summer is over,” Julia Lo Bue-Said, CEO of the Advantage Travel Group, the UK’s largest independent travel agent group, said last week.
In a statement that was sharply critical of the British government’s traffic light system* of allowing travel to holiday destinations, Blue-Said lamented the shift that left some key markets in red (Turkey, in particular, stood out) and did not move enough countries into green. It has been difficult for agents to keep current on what the traffic lights say on a day-to-day basis.
*(In the government’s traffic light system, red is the strictest designation, with travelers to these countries required to quarantine upon their return—among other restrictions—and amber and green the less restrictive color.)
The outlook was further muddied with the release of the results of a snap poll conducted among agents by TIPTO (Truly Independent Professional Travel Organization), a membership group of tour operators that supports UK travel agents with training and marketing support.
In the poll of 77 agents following the government’s latest traffic light update, 88 percent said they did not think the current level of sales is enough to sustain their business in the winter months. Also, as reported by Travel Weekly UK:
—Just nine percent of respondents believed they could survive without extra government help based on current trading.
—More than two thirds of agents said they did not feel confident about trading over the next six months.
—Sixty-six percent said they were not confident about business in the short term.
—Twenty-six percent, meanwhile, said they did feel confident.
—Some agents responded to the survey by indicating that customers still lacked confidence in travelling but said they were hopeful business would improve in 2022. And, as expected, some blamed the complicated and ever-changing traffic light system and testing requirements and costs for denting consumer confidence while other respondents said the lack of government understanding in the sector was the main problem.
No families and their students: Last week’s developments essentially ended any possibility that a hoped-for, last-minute infusion of visitor traffic to Florida—especially Orlando—by families. In England, the UK school year starts in the begins with its Autumn term, which runs from early September to mid-December, with a half term break in late October that usually attracts some families with students, but not enough to make a difference. (There are stiff financial penalties for families who do not get approval—which they don’t usually get— to take their children on holiday during the school term.)
Toward the future: U.S. inbound tourism industry insiders will be looking toward two events within the next month that should be a “shopping center” for both business, information and intelligence. First is Connect Travel’s RTO Summit South on August 29-30 in Tampa. The event regularly attracts a large showing of receptive tour operators, many of whom are headquartered in nearby Orlando. As a part of their business operations, receptives are usually the first to pick up gossip, information and intelligence. In Tampa, there should be a good showing of companies that do business in South America and parts of Europe.
And then, IPW convenes in Las Vegas on September 18-22. Some 700 exhibitors are registered and eager to meet with the more than 1,000 buyers and press who are signed up to attend.
Look for an interesting business environment in Las Vegas, as there are three other events co-located with IPW, including Connect Travel’s TOUR (Sept. 20-22) THRIVE (Sept. 18-19) and eTourism Summit (Sept. 20-22). For mor information, visit https://connecttravel.com/
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The latest quarterly UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) showed a flicker of upbeat information, noting that more than six million passengers flew in and out of the UK in Q2 of 2021—an 85 percent increase over the first quarter of the year. Still, this was down 92 percent vs. the same period in 2019.
As for the future, a CAA spokesperson said, “We expect further recovery of the number of flights and passengers in quarter three of 2021.”
China Can’t Shake the Virus
The big news for those following outbound tourism news from the world’s largest outbound source market was discouraging—best described in a two-sentence introduction a current news summary: “The spread of the Delta variant has prompted a dramatic response from authorities in China, including mass testing and travel restrictions. China’s scrutiny of cross-border travel and trade is also likely to put further pressure on supply chains and affect Chinese imports. As other countries employ a herd immunity approach to living with the virus, what can be learned from China’s zero-tolerance policy?”
Everyone was looking for an answer to what became a menacing situation:
—According to the usually reliable online news site, bignewsnetwork.com, Chinese officials indicated that the current outbreak is linked to the airport in the eastern city of Nanjing.
—The same news site said that more than 30 Chinese officials were fired or received other punishments for allegedly failing to respond adequately to the latest COVID-19 surge in China.
—Among those who lost their jobs were a vice mayor, along with heads of city districts and health commissions. Also let go were staff in hospital management, airport managers and tourism department officials.
—Other reports said the highly contagious Delta variant was transmitted among airport workers and has since spread from Hainan province in the south to Inner Mongolia in the far north.
—The outbreak in China has resulted in other new travel restrictions, lockdowns of communities and the sealing off of the city of Zhangjiajie’s 1.5 million people.
The irony is that the bad news came in the wake of official reports which indicated that travel was recovering, and getting closer to those of 2019. For instance:
● The Chinese broadcast news outlet, CGTN, reported the Chinese made over 1.8 billion domestic trips in the first half of 2021, up by 100.8 percent from the same period in 2020, official data showed.
● A total of 1.024 billion and 847 million domestic trips were made in the first and second quarter, a surge of 247.1 percent and 33 percent year on year, respectively, said China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
● Domestic tourism revenue stood at 1.63 trillion yuan (about $250 billion) during this period, up by 157.9 percent year on year, it said.
●The country’s tourism industry welcomed a fast recovery in the first half of 2021. Domestic trips and tourism revenue had recovered to about 60.9 percent and 58.6 percent, respectively, of the level of the first half of 2019, the ministry said.
● China saw its per capita expenditure on tourism go up by 28.5 percent to settle at 872.27 yuan (roughly $135) in the January-June period.
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Who is Viya? Midst all of the above, there is one ongoing story that seems to captivate the Chinese appetite for big, “good” news.
From Bloomberg News: “A millionaire at 34 and bigger than ‘Sunday Night Football,’ China’s star saleswoman Viya rules a $60 billion world of live online shopping.”
From Jing Travel—travel marketers might want to follow the example (and success) of their colleagues in Macao—there is this excerpt from its email newsletter.
“Macau Government Tourism Office collaborated with Viya, China’s leading female livestreamer, to host a broadcast selling travel packages and hotel room bookings to the city.
“The Jing Travel Angle: There is no bigger star in China’s livestreaming e-commerce ecosystem than Viya. In nightly broadcasts that blend elements of the infomercial with informal conversation, Viya consistently reaches millions somewhat irrespective of the product at hand.
“Macau is the latest stakeholder in China’s tourism industry to lean into the strategy with Wen Qihua, the tourism office’s director, making an appearance alongside Viya in a livestream that reached 15 million viewers. The show was a success. In the course of an hour, Viya sold $13 million in exclusive travel packages and hotel reservations.
“China’s livestreaming e-commerce trend continues to grow. Last year, more than 60 percent of the country’s internet users watched livestreams with the market expected to be worth $300 billion by the end of 2021.”
NTTO Makes Int’l. Marketing Easier
… and other Trade Talk items
● The National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) has announced the release of the Survey of International Air Travelers (SIAT) Inbound Monitor. The Monitor is a new data visualization tool based on the Survey of International Air Travelers which enables users to interactively analyze the characteristics of overseas visitors from world regions or countries to the United States at the national, state and metropolitan statistical area (MSA) level. This includes data on passenger trip planning, travel patterns, demographics, and spending and income. The Monitor is updated to include the latest data from 2020, which as anticipated measured a decrease in inbound international visitation by 75.5 percent from 2019.
Exploring the monitor allows data users to identify some interesting findings about international visitor trends at the national and local scale. For example:
—The median household income of overseas visitors fell from $82,636 in 2019 to $76,585 in 2020.
—Florida’s top inbound market changed from the U.K. in 2019 to Brazil in 2020.
—53 percent of overseas visitors who traveled to Wyoming in 2019 also traveled to California.
—46.5 percent of French visitors to Chicago used the city subway/tram/bus in 2019.
The SIAT Monitor can be accessed directly by clicking here or by going to the SIAT Program landing page. Later this fall, NTTO will release a companion Monitor on U.S. outbound travel to destinations abroad.
● Touristik Aktuell tells us that TUI, Europe’s largest tour operator recorded an unbroken high demand for holiday travel in the third quarter of the financial year. The travel group has so far achieved a total of 4.2 million bookings in all European markets for the current summer. Since the half-year figures in May, around 1.5 million bookings have been added. At the same time, there is still an increased trend towards online bookings: According to the information, 52 percent of TUI customers booked their holidays online in the third quarter as well. Read the complete article from Touristik Aktuell here
● Hyatt Hotels Corp. announced on Aug. 15, that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Apple Leisure Group., a major luxury resort-management services, travel and hospitality group, from affiliates of each of KKR and KSL Capital Partners, LLC for $2.7 billion in cash. The transaction is anticipated to close in the fourth quarter of 2021, subject to customary closing conditions. ALG’s resort brand management platform AMResorts® provides management services to the largest portfolio of luxury all-inclusive resorts in the Americas under the AMRTM Collection brand portfolio, including well-known brands Secrets® Resorts & Spa, Dreams® Resorts & Spas, Breathless® Resorts & Spas and Zoëtry® Wellness & Spa Resorts as well as the fast-growing Alua® Hotels & Resorts brand, which is expanding in European leisure destinations. Apple Leisure Group is headquartered in the Philadelphia suburb of Newtown, Pennsylvania.
● Free Vaccinations at DFW: Given the increase in infections that have occurred from Covid-19 at the national and international level, the DFW International Airport and the United States National Guard will be vaccinating passengers (including internationals) and airport employees until September 12, 2021 or while supplies last. The airport is applying the three vaccines offered in the United States: Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. The passenger can arrive without an appointment and will simply have to fill out an electronic form right there.
● Brits and Visitors Comfy with Masks: Overseas residents are slightly more likely than UK residents to say that wearing face coverings made them feel safe (75 percent and 69 percent) respectively), although as these are unweighted figures this cannot be called a statistically significant difference said a new report from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS). Following are some of the main findings of the ONS culled from the report:
—The number of UK residents arriving back into the UK who have been vaccinated rose between February and June 2021, from 6 percent to 62 percent, a trend broadly reflecting the vaccine rollout in the UK over this time period.
—Roughly two-thirds of all UK (66 percent) and overseas residents (69 percent) interviewed felt safe with social distancing during their journey in June 2021, which has remained broadly consistent since February 2021.
—Most UK and overseas residents arriving in the UK said the wearing of face coverings made them feel safe during their journey with overseas residents slightly more likely than UK residents to say that wearing face coverings made them feel safe (75 percent and 69 percent respectively), although as these are unweighted figures this cannot be called a statistically significant difference.
—The proportion of both UK residents and overseas residents in June 2021 (52 percent and 64 percent respectively) who said coronavirus (COVID-19) testing was very important fell from the corresponding figures in May 2021 (64 percent and 73 percent respectively).
—Most UK residents arriving in the UK found following overseas COVID-19 restrictions either difficult, or very difficult (80 percent in June 2021), but conversely most overseas residents said that they understood UK COVID-19 restrictions either quite well, or very well.
—Despite understanding UK COVID-19 restrictions quite well or very well; most overseas residents said between February and June 2021 that they were either not at all confident, or not very confident in accessing information about UK COVID-19 restrictions.
The above findings are based on results from the ONS International Passenger Survey, More information is available here.
● Holiday travel and shopping—online or in-store? The latest Consumer & Retail study from Escalent, a human behavior and analytics advisory firm, has been released. Sink or Soar During the 2021 Holidays: Redefine Your Brand and Gain Market Share provides a close look at the trends that will define the crucial 2021 holiday shopping and travel season.
“As pandemic restrictions continue to evolve and concern over new variants fluctuates, consumer habits are shifting rapidly in response,” said Greg Mishkin, vice president of Escalent’s consumer & retail and telecom division. “A customized, omnichannel strategy will be all the more important to win over customers this year, as divisions remain over which shopping channel they prefer.” Some numbers:
—Consumers have acknowledged the pandemic as a catalyst for a change in their habits, with 44 percent of respondents saying COVID-19 has changed how they prefer to shop.
—However, similar to how they shopped during the pandemic, consumers on average plan to do 48 percent of their holiday shopping this winter in brick-and-mortar stores, 41 percent via online retail and 12 percent through curbside pickup services.
—Gen X and Millennials are the most travel-eager generations, with more than 38 percent of each group planning to hold large gatherings and more than 45 percent anticipating holiday celebrations with local attendees.
To learn more about how brands can position themselves for success during the 2021 holiday season, read the full white paper at Escalent.co
● “I missed a connection and I want my money back!” Getting a lot of attention in Europe these days—especially with new restrictions at airport points of departure—is flightright.com. Its mission is simple. Its website tells us: “We enforce your right to reimbursement and compensation in the event of flight delays and cancellations!”
It cites EU Air Passenger Rights Regulation 261/2004: Basically, a delayed passenger and may be entitled to a ticket refund or compensation. The EU regulation applies to flights departing from or arriving in the EU. In the second case, the airlines headquarters must also be based in the EU. So far, it claims to have enforced over € 350,000,000 (just over $410 million) for its customers.
$410 million. You’ll find more on how it works, along with other information at https://www.flightright.com/
● More Analytics worth Reading: The research team at MMGY NextFactor—a global tourism research and marketing group headquartered in Kansas City—has released the DestinationNEXT 2021 Futures Study, a strategic road map that provides direction for how destination leaders should navigate our industry’s highly fluid future. When push comes to shove, will the industry really ‘build back better’? Will we see definitive advances in sustainability; equity, diversity and inclusion; and community building to make our sector more human and earn the respect of other leaders? Have a good read and then share your thoughts at https://lnkd.in/eVJd8vDi
● HotelPlanner and Reservations.com enter a three-way merger with Astrea Acquisition Corp. to Become a Public Company Listed on NASDAQ: HotelPlanner and Reservations.com, two widely known companies in in travel technology and online hotel bookings, have announced a three-way merger agreement with Astrea Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition company, that will result in their combining as a publicly listed company on NASDAQ under the new ticker symbol “HOTP.”
The combined company will keep the HotelPlanner name after consummation of the merger. HotelPlanner, with its family of brands including HotelPlanner.com, Meetings.com and now Reservations.com, will offer individual, group and corporate booking access to more than 1 million global properties, enabled by a proprietary, cloud-based, artificial intelligence technology platform, and a 24/7 global customer service platform. The transaction values the combined company at an enterprise value of $567.1 million, plus additional consideration should it achieve market-based milestones.
HotelPlanner intends to use most of the anticipated net proceeds to accelerate organic growth by continuing to increase effectiveness in marketing spending, and accelerating investments in artificial intelligence and machine learning.
IPW! News, Names and Nuggets of Information
Yes, IPW is 100 percent ON! It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Malcolm Smith, U.S. Travel’s senior vice president of business development and general manager of IPW, to find out what the outlook for the big event, which takes place next month. Including on-site preparation and registration, the event runs from Sept. 18 through Sept. 22. Here’s what Malcolm had to tell us:
Just a month remains until nearly 700 exhibitors reconnect, rebuild and reunite with hundreds of domestic and international buyers and press in Las Vegas at IPW 2021. We hope you will be there as part of our industry’s global comeback.
What We’re Hearing: We know that you continue to deal with shifting circumstances and that you’re navigating what’s best for your business in an unprecedented environment. We’ve heard from delegates who have wondered whether IPW will indeed take place and from others who want to know what our registration counts look like and which markets will and will not be able to attend in-person—we wanted to address these questions directly.
What We Want You to Know: Is IPW On?Yes, IPW is 100 Percent ON! And we have full confidence that this year’s show will serve as an integral step in getting the global travel industry back up on its feet. We have absolutely no plans to cancel this year’s show.
What are the health and safety requirements for IPW 2021? Rest assured that your health and safety is our top priority at IPW 2021. Along with our hosts, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and the Las Vegas Convention Center, we are fully committed to your well-being.
Our health and safety practices at IPW will go beyond the industry standard requiring face coverings for all delegates regardless of vaccination status, enhanced surface cleaning protocols, social distancing on the show floor, during luncheons and more. Be sure to review IPW’s health and safety practices, and read an update from Steve Hill, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
As an additional benefit to all delegates, we will be offering an Onsite COVID-19 and flu vaccination clinic, provided by Albertsons Pharmacy, for those who may wish to get vaccinated while they’re in town—this option will be available for all attendees, both domestic and international. Be on the lookout for additional details on the vaccine clinic at IPW soon.
How are registration numbers? We are pleased to report strong registration numbers despite complicated circumstances across the globe. As of now, we have nearly 700 exhibitors registered and eager to meet with the more than 1,000 buyers and press who are signed up to attend. We hope that number will increase when additional good news on borders comes to fruition. Approximately 500 buyers and press are registered to attend from markets that can already travel to the U.S. primarily from Canada, Mexico, Central America and South America (except Brazil). An additional 400 buyers are registered to attend from the United Kingdom and European Union, and we anticipate that these delegates will be able to travel to the U.S. in time for IPW. And, of course, U.S.-based buyers and receptive operators will be there as well.
Participation at this year’s IPW will go beyond the myriad of benefits you gain through traditional business appointments and in-person networking—your presence at IPW 2021 will solidify your organization’s position as a critical partner in our industry’s global comeback, and we can’t wait to see you in Las Vegas.
See you next month in Las Vegas!
HODGE PODGE: Appointments, Openings & Changes
Kirsten Lynch 
Rob Katz 
Ryan Bennett
Vail Resorts, Inc. has announced that Kirsten Lynch, the company’s chief marketing officer, will be appointed CEO, effective Nov. 1, 2021. At that time, Rob Katz (center), the company’s current chief executive officer, will be appointed executive chairperson of the board and remain fully active and engaged in Vail Resorts’ key strategic decisions and priorities. Additionally, at that time, Ryan Bennett, currently vice president of marketing, lift revenue, will be named chief marketing officer of Vail Resorts.
Lynch joined Vail Resorts in 2011 as chief marketing officer and previously held senior leadership positions at PepsiCo and Kraft Foods. Katz was appointed to the Vail Resorts board of directors in 1996 and named chief executive officer in 2006. As executive chairperson, Katz will remain a Vail Resorts employee and director, advising both Lynch and the board on long-term strategy and critical priorities. Bennett joined Vail Resorts in 2018 as vice president of marketing analytics before he was promoted to his current role as vice president of marketing, lift revenue. Prior to joining Vail Resorts, Bennett was with Boston Consulting Group for 11 years.
Visit Napa Valley has made some changes in its staff: Brice Gosnell has been named director of marketing. He will lead Visit Napa Valley’s paid, owned, and earned marketing efforts, including the rollout of Visit Napa Valley’s new brand campaign in the Fall of 2021. With over 20 years of experience managing consumer-facing travel brands. Most recently, Gosnell was most recently head of the Americas at Australian-based Luxury Escapes.
A Napa Valley native with more than 25 years in travel and tourism sales, Rebecca Merry-Barrango is returning to Visit Napa Valley in the role of business development and sales manager. Prior to the pandemic, Merry-Barrango was a member of the Visit Napa Valley staff team for eight years, holding roles at the Napa Valley Welcome Center and with the company’s sales team, focusing on the luxury leisure travel market. Her prior experience also includes sales positions with the San Diego Tourism Authority and United Airlines.
Ailsa Pollard has been appointed as CEO at dnata Travel Group (UK & Europe). She will start in her new role on Nov. 1, 2021. Pollard will report in to the previous holder of the role, John Bevan, who now oversees all aspects of dnata’s global travel business as divisional senior vice president for travel. She will assume responsibility for all of dnata Travel Group’s UK-based brands (Gold Medal, Travel Republic, Travelbag, Netflights and Sunmaster) while heading up a leadership team and workforce numbering nearly 800 people. As a key member of the leadership team for dnata Travel Group, part of the Emirates Group, during the last 12 years, she’s held a variety of senior roles in the company prior to her new job.
Angela Harde has been named head of product & operations for the Berlin-based tour operator Geoplan Privatreisen. She joins the company from Sauterleuteschule/Stiftung KBZO in Baden-Wurttemberg, where she worked for almost a year-and-a-half. Previously, Harde was with Miller Reisen GmbH for almost eight years.
Marcelo Miranda has been appointed director of marketing technology at SUMMIT One Vanderbilt, the new 1,000-foot observation attraction scheduled to open in October in mid-town Manhattan. Miranda is quite familiar with New York City attractions. Prior to joining One Vanderbilt, he was with Hudson Yards, and before that, he worked for the Empire State Realty Trust for nearly a decade
Isabelle Willemsens has been named country director, northern Europe for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. She will be responsible for marketing and sales director marketing and sales offices for Disney destinations in Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Previously, she had been Country Director for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts for the Benelux for nearly four years. Willemsens joined Disney in 2010.
Sonia Fong has been appointed as senior vice president of convention development at Louisville Tourism on August 23. Fong has worked in the hospitality industry for 24 years, most recently at the Greater Miami Convention & Visitor’s Bureau as vice president of convention sales & services. Previously, she served the Miami agency for 21 years in a variety of sales positions. In her new role, Fong will develop and implement a marketing plan, manage the convention sales team to achieve annual room night goals, and outline sales objectives to promote Louisville as a premier convention destination.
Esequiel Santos who spent more than 20 years as a part of the CVC family—much of it as a senior official at the tour operator Trend, which was acquired by CVC—has been named commercial director and one of the partners of OFB Operator/SSA. Santos left CVC Corp. five months ago.
Destination Canada, the Canadian tourist office in France has appointed the Canadian Maryse Normandeau as trade partnerships manager. Normandeau is in charge of relations with partners in the tourism industry: airlines, tour operators, travel agencies and OTAs, as well as dedicated lounges. Originally from Montreal, has 15 years of experience in the French tourism industry, including 13 years as a destination specialist in Canada: first as a tour operator then product manager for Canada for the tour operator Terre Canada, then product manager for Canada for FIT at AmériGo. You can contact her on maryse@360tourisme.fr
Natascha de Bruyn is leaving her position of group manager sales and marketing at Alltours. She is officially departing on August 25th. Beginning in September, de Bruyn will work for the Dr. Tigges, a well-known travel agency based in Dortmund that was established more than 90 years ago. There she will be sales manager in the business travel division, where she will look after the corporate customers of the travel agency chain throughout Germany. De Bruyn started out as a sales representative at Alltours ten years ago. In 2014 she was promoted to group leader in sales marketing. Before she joined Alltours, de Bruyn was with CWT (formerly Carlton Wagonlit Travel) for six years.
Valéria Padilla has been named as new regional marketing leader for Copa Airlines—the Panama headquartered carrier sometimes known as the Hub of the Americas for its numerous connections made from throughout the Americas. She will be responsible for all marketing strategies for Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. A 20-year veteran of the travel and tourism industry, Padilla has held senior sales positions for Alitalia, Aerolineas Argentinas and Varig.
Impala, the London-based hotel booking start up, has made two senior appointments who previously held positions at Airbnb. Caroline Hudack, who was previously head of marketing for the EMEA region at Airbnb has been named chief marketing officer of Impala. At Airbnb, Hudack was was one of the first product marketers at its Menlo Park, California base, and set up Facebook’s first consumer marketing team in Europe. Robin Clifford, who was head of supply for Northern Europe at Airbnb has been named vice president of global supply. In addition to his experience at Airbnb, Clifford held senior roles at Nestorstay and Booking.com.
Classic Collection and Classic Package Holidays has appointed Patrick Devonshire to the position of regional sales manager in its trade support team. Devonshire was most recently sales manager at Flexible Autos, before which he worked in managerial roles for Co-operative Travel. At Classic, Devonshire will cover trade sales for the operator’s brands across Essex, the home counties and East Anglia.
Danny Orloff has been recruited to be the new tourism marketing director of Visit Redding. Previously, Orloff has worked in the athletic shoe and apparel industry, where he led teams and marketing efforts at Finish Line and was a consumer experience manager with the NIKE Company Store at its worldwide headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon.
A one-time state tourism director for Delaware, Tim Morgan has been named vice president of economic development at New Mexico Partnership. Morgan has more than 15 years of experience in economic and business development as well as strategic planning. Most recently, Morgan worked as the City of Maple Valley’s economic development manager. He has also served as chief of tourism and special events for the Charles County Tourism Office in Maryland. In the mid-00s, he served as state tourism director for the Delaware Economic Development Office. He was also director of sales for the Washington County Visitors Association in Oregon.
Julie Holmen has joined Destinations International to be its lead in membership engagement. For 25 years, Holmen has been actively selling individual hotel properties and entire destinations in the global travel market. Most recently, she was with Meeting Professionals International where she worked with their global supplier accounts and strategic alliance partners to enhance MPI’s presence around the world. From 2006 to 2017, Holmen was director of city-wide sales and event engagement with Destination Toronto.
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Job Postings
Visit Dallas, one of the Top 100 Places to Work in Dallas-Fort Worth, has the following job openings. For more details, click on the individual links: Administrative Assistant; Diversity & Inclusion Resource Manager; Event Manager; Sales Coordinator; and Site Coordinator.
From SearchWide Global:
—The Roebbelen Center @ the Grounds, a multi-purpose event facility on 60 acres situated between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, is seeking a general manager. More details here.
—In Arlington, Texas, there is an opening for president and CEO of the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau. More details here.
—Freeman is searching for a vice president, national graphics. More details here.
—Visit Dallas has an opening for a senior vice president/chief marketing officer. More details here.
—Visit Estes Park, about 90 miles north of Denver, is search for a director of finance & administration. More details here.
—Destination Door County (Wisconsin) is looking for a president and CEO. More details here.
—In Oregon, the Josephine County Visitor Association’s Destination Marketing Organization, Experience Grants Pass, us searching for an executive director. More details here.
—Visit San Antonio has an opening for director of market strategy. More details here.
—The Oklahoma State Fair is seekingapresident and CEO. More details here.
—The San Diego Tourism Authority is looking for a chief sales officer. More details here.
—Visit Pittsburg has an opening for chief sales officer. More details here.
—There is an opening for a chief executive officer at Explore Skagit Valley in Washington State. More details here.
—Visit Wichita is searching for a vice president of marketing. More details here.
—In the Charlotte/Concord area of North Carolina, Great Wolf Resorts has an opening for a director of sales and catering. For details, click here
—Georgia’s Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center & Tourism Authority is searching for a conference sales director. More details here.
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From LinkedIn Jobs: Known to many across the board in the travel and tourism industry, the LinkedIn list (click here) has numerous job opportunities posted. Following is a brief sample of some of those jobs currently listed.
—Ralph Lauren is search for a coordinator, brand activation (regional tourism – West). More details here.
—Interdependence Public Relations in Denver has an opening for a managing director of Travel and tourism. More details here.
—Wanderlust Adventures in Orlando, Florida has an opening for a travel specialist. It is a remote position. More details here:
—AmericanTours International in Los Angeles is seeking a travel service coordinator. More details here.
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From Indeed.com: We’ve taken a look at this site (click here) which says that it has hundreds of new jobs listed, including a fair number in the travel, tourism and related industries. A sampler of what to expect is below.
—The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, is searching for a director of corporate and travel industry sales, the Americas, in New York. More details here.
—The Philadelphia office of Tiquets, the global ticket booking company for attractions, is looking for a U.S.-based supply coordinator (the company is headquartered in the Netherlands. More details here.
—Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City is looking for a manager of tourism and travel. More details here.
—The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is looking for a vice president of guest experience. The salary range is $130,000 – $157,000 a year: More details here.
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Have a job to offer in the travel and tourism industry? Let us know and we’ll post your notice—no cost to you. Email tom@tomberrigan.com
