Travel Agent Professional June 2011

Travel Agent Professional June 2011 Issue 8

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Guest Editorial –

By Sue Shapiro

Six Tips for Your Clients’

By Sherry Laskin

Cranky

By Rusty Pickett, ECC

www. autoeurope.com TAP_6_11

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une

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The Joel & Lenore Abels Scholarship

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Waiting on Hold... Don’t Waste Your Time

By Les-Lee Roland Owner of The Package Deal

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Six Tips for Your Clients’ River Cruise

By Sherry Laskin Travel Writer/NACTA Webinar Moderator

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Worldwide Cruise Sales & Client Loyalty

By Mitchell J. Schlesinger Vice President, Sales & Marketing Voyages to Antiquity

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Cranky

By Rusty Pickett, ECC Shellback Cruises

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You Can Always Count on Me!

By Scott Koepf Vice President of Sales Avoya Travel/America’s Vacation Center

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Host Listing

Showcase

Ad Index

Amadeus ...........................................................23 Expedia CruiseShipCenters................................17

http://www.AutoEurope.com Auto Europe................................IFC

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/ Royal Caribbean Line ...................BC

http://www.joinavoya.com/default.cfm?ref=115 Avoya Travel/AVC.........................21

www.sabretravelinetwork.com/tmu Sabre ...........................................13

http://www.leisurepops.com/ Leisure Pops .................................19

http://www.myhosttravelagency.com Travel Planners Int’l........................9

Travel Agent Professional

http://us.voyagestoantiquity.com/ Voyages to Antiquity ......................3

2011

By Sue Shapiro

Travel Agent Professional June 2011 Issue 8

Joel M. Abels

Legend In the Travel Industry April 1927 to January 2007

Travel Agent Professional P.O. Box 120202 Staten Island, NY 10312 E-mail: info@travelagentprofessional.com Phone: 718.227.7541 Ann M. Hoek Publisher/Creative Design Bonnie Walling Editor

Meet Our Editorial Board Mitchell J. Schlesinger Vice President, Sales & Marketing Voyages to Antiquity www.voyagestoantiquity.com Mary Brutscher Former Host Agency Owner & Travel Educational Instructor cruisefacecruises@yahoo.com Rusty Pickett, ECC Shellback Cruises www.shellbackcruises.com Les-Lee Roland Owner of The Package Deal Scott Koepf Vice President of Sales Avoya Travel/ America’s Vacation Center www.joinavoya.com/default.cfm?ref=11583

Travel Agent Professional has its roots in Home Based Trade, the first magazine of its kind, started by Joel Abels in 2004. Joel and Lenore Abels ran Travel Trade for nearly half a century – it was started by her grandfather, John S. Lewis, and her father, Sidney Lewis, in 1929, and they took the publication over after her grandfather’s passing.

Under Joel’s direction, the company grew to be one of the travel agent industry’s leading publications, reaching more than 45,000 agents throughout North America. It spawned a famous series of trade shows and three monthly magazines – Cruise Trade, Tour Trade and Home Based Trade.

The Abels also garnered enormous respect – Joel received the Neal Award, called “the Pulitzer Prize of the business press,” for his hard-hitting editorials.

On a personal note, after working with Joel for over a decade and staying with him until the end, I grew to truly care for and respect the man. He was like a second father to me. Joel was old school, he stood by his word and believed in his work. There will never be another.

While nobody can replace this industry legend, we’re hoping that this new publication, which reunites the original Home Based Trade editorial board, will be able to carry on his passion for travel and those who sell it.

Sherry Laskin, ACC Travel Writer/NACTA Webinar Moderator www.cruisemaven.com

Ann M. Hoek

Contributions Lee Rosen, CEO Leisure Pops www.leisurepops.com This online magazine is dedicated to the memory of Joel Abels, Travel Trade's editor and publisher. Joel and his life's work may be gone, but with your help it can live on.

The industry has lost one of their greatest pillars of support. It is my greatest hope that suppliers and travel agencies can continue to support each other in the absence of Joel. Not only have we lost one of the best advocates for the industry, but I have lost a dear and great friend.

Imad Khalidi, Auto Europe president Reprinted from Jan. 29, 2007 TTN with writer permission

May 2011

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4 Guest Editorial —

http://issuu.com/action/page?page=1

By Sue

The Joel & Lenore Abels

Shapiro

Scholarship

(L-R) Tara Miller, Sue Shapiro, Sara Garvey

The closest most of us will ever come to immortality is to be remembered by future generations. Thanks to Temple University, Joel and Lenore Abels, former owners and publishers of Travel Trade, are being remembered and admired every year when a scholarship in their name is awarded to an outstanding student in the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management.

June 2011

5 Due to the generous contributions of travel agents and travel executives, the endowment was funded in time to present the first scholarship four years ago to senior Lisa Kerr. She did well enough to earn an internship at Ripley Castle in Yorkshire and today is working for a hotel company in Boston. Since then the academic achievements of 3 more outstanding students have been recognized.

In 2009 Tara Miller won the scholarship. Her skills and interest in the hospitality market drew her to the attention of HSMAI (Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association Internationa). Tara completed her senior internship with Destination DC and she did so well that HSMAI offered her a permanent position. Tara can now be found in Washington DC where she is HSMAI’s Partnership Coordinator. Go Tara.

Not to outdone, in 2010 Justin Wusinich captured the prestigious Joel and Lenore Abels Scholarship.

Justin spent a semester studying abroad in Rome

where he even attended Rome Skal meetings. He so impressed Hyatt while he was completing his senior internship at the Hyatt in Monterrey that they hired him for their Corporate Management Training program. Justin can be found at the Hyatt in Miami today.

And only a few weeks ago the newest recipient of the Abels Scholarship, Sara Garvey, received the award. Sara is currently a junior at Temple. Her hard work both academically and in the tourism field made her an outstanding choice for the 2011. Last year she was the Director of Communications for the on campus HSMAI student chapter and is currently President. We look forward to great things from Sara.

The Joel and Lenore Abels Scholarship is an ongoing endeavor. The greater the endowment, the more monies are made available to deserving students entering their senior year. You can be part of that endowment by making a tax deductible contribution.

To so click on the link that follows: http://sthm.temple.edu/scholarships/documents/abels-form.pdf or copy and paste it into your browser. And thanks!

With Imad Khalidi, Auto Europe

Travel Agent Professional

Joel and Lenore with Sue Shapiro and Bob Dickinson

6

Waiting on Hold...

B y L e s - L e e

How much time do you spend on the

R o l a n d

phone — not just talking to clients, but being on hold with suppliers? Sometimes I spend more time on hold than I spend researching an itinerary.

Les-Lee Roland Owner of The Package Deal

Isn’t

it interesting that some companies and cruise lines, who sell directly to the public, have a shorter hold time with their consumer lines than with travel agent lines?

client by $50, and the promised refund they said they would process was never processed, and the client was scheduled to leave within two days.

Recently I spent over 40 minutes on hold with Rail Europe. That is after calling them twice before and being put on hold and giving up. You may be wondering what was sooooo impor tant that I would waste that much time listening to ridiculous menu options — which didn’t even include the department I needed to talk to — or dead air.

Their Web site for agents is pretty good, in many cases. The Europe itineraries and info are plentiful and easy to navigate. And they do pay commissions. But you have to be aware of their added charges for shipping. Here’s where you have an option to pay their fee, or perhaps check with Europe Express, or another supplier, for their rates.

The reason was they had overcharged the Amtrak rates for my

Rail Europe also offers Amtrak, from commuters to long distance,

June 2011

7

Don’t Waste Your Time with rates from $8 to many, many hundreds. Some are commissionable. But navigating through their Web site is a little more cumbersome. Sometimes, a pop up appears saying the city you selected does not have routing. I have found that it’s best to ignore that and to try the same itinerary again.

Sure enough, it has appeared on the second try.

For those you work with a GDS, of course you can book Amtrak on the system and get a commission — or go through the back door, since I don’t know all their codes for booking, I call Amtrak directly make the book and just claim it on my GDS. Or, I go to Rail Europe’s Web site and book it.

I took a personalized seminar with Rail Europe on the phone, which was super helpful for both Europe and the U.S,. and I highly recommend it — if you can get through to them and not be put on hold for an infinity.

After being on hold this last time, I spent another 20 minutes working with the agent and the supervisor before I got the promise that the refund will appear within two weeks.

So, back to my original thought — waiting on hold for long periods of time. I now keep a file folder,

labeled PHONE HOLDS, ETC filled with little items to do when this occasion occurs. And sure enough, I find I do get things accomplished. You know, those little bitty items that we always put off and sometimes forget.

My current folder includes checking my master calendar to see if it’s time to send out automated birthday/anniversary notes. Every client’s birthdate, anniversary, or special date is listed on my master calendar. I tried keeping it on the computer, but I really like the old fashioned handwritten notes better. It doesn’t hurt to send out a little note, stating I have some great space on XYZ ship, perfect for you to celebrate your 50th birthday, let me know if you are interested.

It always seems that in June, I see a multitude of things that are important to my clients. Also, if someone has a momentous celebration in December, I always pop a suggestion to them at least six months in advance for them to consider.

I also subscribe to a great, artistic site — Jacquie Lawson cards. It takes me about 15 minutes a month to send out birthday notes or anniversary notes. One reason I like this site — they do not try to overburden your clients with advertisements. The last thing you want to do is to (continued on page 8)

Travel Agent Professional

8

‘

’

It takes me about 15 minutes a month to send out birthday notes or anniversary notes.

make your client’s E-mail available to a vendor who will constantly send them offers of anything and everything.

Now, I know there are plenty of companies that you can pay a fee to, and send them your entire list and they bill you for sending out cards and notes. I don’t want those. I know that my clients know the difference between the personal touch and a generic company.

Another item in my folder is sending out welcome back notes, which I do on personalized stationary. I address the envelopes before the client leaves, and I pop them in the mail so they receive them within 3 days after their return. I always include a mention of being grateful for referrals and a list of group travel for the next 12 months.

And there it is, in a simple manila folder, my to do list for being on hold.

So, the next time you are moaning and groaning about waiting, put your mind, and your fingers, to work. You can get a lot accomplished. And make certain you always have at least two phone lines operating, you do not want to miss a call coming in!

Or, you can take the easy way out, and just play a few hands of computer solitaire. But, I guarantee that after you’re done, your items “to do” will still be waiting for you.

I also keep a list of the online written seminars I can take to get, yet another, Specialist Certificate in whatever destination is offering them. Those online exams take less than 30 minutes to read the info, answer the 15 questions, and pat myself on the back.

In addition, I keep a copy of my clients’ “bucket list” - yes, I ask them where their dream destinations are. Sure enough, when three or more couples mention the same place, “voila,” I try to get some group space and send out a note.

June 2011

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Travel Agent Professional

10 B y

Unless you’ve been living and working

I’m sure you know the advantages of a European river cruise - cruise ships only touch the edges of continents; river boats take you to the very heart of magnificent cities and ancient towns. For those who want to see Europe without flying, this is the perfect alternative.

Paint a picture: “Imagine quietly gliding past steep sloped vineyards, medieval castles and historic monuments. Disembark and walk right into town for a café lunch. Stroll along the pier or borrow one of the river boat’s bicycles to explore further.”

It’s an easy sell.

A C C

Does this match any of your clients? With an average age of sixty-one and a median income of $80,000/year, river cruise passengers have both time and money to view Europe up-close and personal. If not, as river cruise lines want to lure a younger demographic, look for more 7-night cruises and more active shore excursions. How about a 15-mile bike ride? AMAWaterways has a fleet of twenty bikes and a local guide leads the way.

L a s k i n ,

under a rock, you know that river cruising is a hot topic these days. With nearly a dozen new river boats being built by 2012, it’s no doubt that river cruising is gaining in popularity. And it’s also no doubt that many of your ocean cruise clients are ready to try a river cruise.

S h e r r y

L a s k i n

River Cruise

B y

S h e r r y

Six Tips for Your Clients’

Sherry Laskin Travel Writer/NACTA Webinar Moderator www.cruisemaven.com

Now you’ve sold them on the idea of a river cruise.

Here are my Top Six suggestions for getting the most enjoyment out of it:

1.

Pack light. Not just for the airline requirements but for convenience. There is no obligatory “formal night,” only the Farewell Party.

Men need only a collared shirt and dark sport coat. Women can leave their long dresses and high heels at home. Attire is country club casual even at dinner. Best of all, there are do-it-yourself launderettes on many of the river boats.

Complimentary laundry service is included with many suite-level accommodations.

June 2011

11 2.

Know your limitations. Cobblestone streets, walkways and stairs can be a bit tricky to navigate if you are unsteady on your feet. Europe doesn’t subscribe to the Americans with Disabilities Act. If your client is out of shape, has difficulty walking or has a heart condition, you might want to reconsider that 200-step climb to the top of the castle.

Pace yourself accordingly. Some of the river boats do not have elevators, so make sure the boat you choose has one if you need one. Alternatively, many river cruises lines, including AMAWaterways, offer an easy-paced walking tour option. Uniworld (and other lines I’m sure) has a doctor on board for the lower Danube stretch, Bucharest to Budapest.

3.

Wine and dine. Unlike cruise ships, river boats have “open seating.” Stroll into the dining room (7:30-9:30 a.m). for a leisurely buffet breakfast. Lunch is fairly relaxed, too, as it is mainly buffet-style dining. Dinner however, doesn’t operate the same.

To facilitate good service and freshly prepared entrees, you are expected to arrive fairly close to when the dining room opens, usually 7PM. Dinner times can vary based on the timing of the shore excursions, so check the daily planner.

Let your clients know that on some river cruise lines, the complimentary wine with dinner abruptly ends even before your entrée plate is removed. So if you like to sip wine with dessert, especially a delicious cheese plate, be sure to flag down your waiter for a refill before your place is cleared. Just watch the first night and see what happens.

4.

When in “Rome…” Nothing garners a warm welcome quicker than saying hello in the local language. Learn to say “hello,” “thank you” and “excuse me” in as many of the countries’ languages as possible. Write it on a cheat sheet and put it in your pocket. Chances are that the local shopkeeper, upon hearing your broken German or Romanian will immediately speak to you in English. But you’ve made the effort and it won’t go unrewarded. Get your client a pocket-sized language phrase book for their bon voyage gift. (continued on page 12)

Travel Agent Professional

12

5.

Uniworld: River Princess in Regensburg

Cash is king. Buy Euros before you go. Suggest that your client make a list of the countries they will visit and find a local bank that sells the currency. Mainly, they’ll need Euros. But if they can get any of the other currencies (and there are quite a few on the lower Danube river) they’ll avoid the high commission exchange fees.

Of course, the boat’s front desk will also exchange currency, but there are some limitations. Tipping at the end of your cruise is expected to be in Euros.

6.

Weather reports. Traveling on the rivers in the spring or fall, there will certainly be a variance in temperatures and precipitation. Advise your client to bring that nerdy plastic poncho and a folding umbrella. And leave that backpack at home. Nothing says “American Tourist” more than an Eddie Bauer backpack. If they must carry belongings, a tote bag is much more European.

Also, when taking a motor coach tour, the bus is locked and you can leave that extra sweater or bag on your seat.

There you have it, six easy ways to help your client make the most of their European river cruise.

Sherry Laskin is a travel writer, blogger and social media addict as it relates to business awareness and sharing information. Founder of the Vacation Shoppe in 1992, she offers advice and creative ideas for marketing and promotion for travel agents. Sherry is the webinar moderator and a Chapter Director at NACTA.

June 2011

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powering progress

14

Worldwide Cruise Sales & Client Loyalty

By Mitchell J.

Reap the Rewards

Schlesinger

of Matching Clients to the Right Ships & Experiences Mitchell J. Schlesinger Vice President, Sales & Marketing Voyages to Antiquity m.schlesinger@voyagestoantiquity.com

All

of your clients are important, no matter how much they spend on travel, in terms of repeat business and as or more importantly, referrals to family and friends. It is, however, reasonable to contend that this value is significantly more important the longer, more geographically expansive and expensive the travel purchased.

It is critical to focus on the importance of tailoring travel recommendations based on the demographic and psychographic trends of your clients as they age past 55. This takes advantage of the desire for longer trips and the promotion of worldwide destination travel that results in dramatically higher commissions and stronger profitability.

Your “brand� as a travel professional is very much dependent on the reactions to the travel experiences of your clients and their desire to share

these experiences with family and friends, and of course recommend your agency to them as. It is therefore critical that when booking worldwide destination cruises, that the clients are matched psychographically to the right ship, onboard product and destination experience.

Not to minimize the importance of profiling all clients for all travel recommendations you make, but there is significant value in the client loyalty of those purchasing ver y expensive worldwide cruises to destinations across the globe. Admittedly, the reaction of clients to their experience after spending $8,000 per person can have dramatically more impact on your business compared to clients spending $900 per person. And these distinctions are very important when discussing and finalizing travel arrangements with clients:

June 2011

15 1.

3.

While the “experience is everything”, the perception of what that experience should consist of varies by client. And the totality of the experience, including ship, onboard product, and destination must be explained in detail so a client making a significant travel expenditure can make an informed experience.

Passenger mix is important as well. Clients must understand that they could be on a ship with a high percentage of international nationalities. If the cruise line operates fully in English, this may not be a problem. If the line acquiesces to multiple languages, this may make clients uncomfortable.

2.

Luxury clients are interesting. While loyal to luxury lines, they will sail on non luxury products in order to experience a particular destination not available by a luxury line. In that scenario it crucial that the description of the ship and onboard product must be fully explained so that they clearly understand that there are probably no open dining for dinner, no included alcohol, smaller accommodations and a different level of creature comforts.

In terms of worldwide destination cruising, it is paramount to discuss the guests desires and ability to experience the destination by virtue of the size of the ship and itinerary selected.

Crucial elements include: • the number of ports visited • the amount of time in port • the in depth nature of the shore experiences offered.

4.

5.

For instance, in the Med, larger ships must dock in Naples requiring longer shore excursion transfers to Sorrento and Capri. On the contrary, smaller ships can anchor very close to Sorrento, for only 20 minute transfers to Capri. This has a significant impact on what I refer to as the “effective time in port”. But, it also depends on how important the amenities of the ship are to your clients, and they have to know that one will affect the other.

And because the “experience is everything”, be sure to study the optional pre & post extensions and shore excursions offered by the lines so that you can counsel clients on their opportunities in each port of call. If the cruise line does not include it, make sure to recommend a pre-cruise stay where the ship departs, otherwise they could miss experiencing some of the most memorable cities in the world. Memories come from experiences in ports, make sure they have a good idea of what each line offers in shore excursions.

Another good example is Antarctica. Large ships sailing through Antarctic waters cannot land guests ashore and therefore “sightseeing” is confined to what can be seen through binoculars from the railing of the ship. Smaller ships with fewer amenities allow guests to experience Antarctica “up close and personal”. And even mainstream destinations like Alaska can offer dramatically different experiences, between ships carrying 2,500 passengers versus those with only 300 guests.

These distinctions are extremely important to discuss with clients and prepare them properly for their trip. The expectations for “trips of a lifetime” are dramatic, so that after clients have traveled to far reaching destinations, their experiences must match their expectations. The positive result of this can be very rewarding for your agency in terms of referral business, access to more potential clients purchasing high ticket travel, increased commissions and enhanced profitability.

Travel Agent Professional

16

http://issuu.com/action/page?page=1

By

Cranky

Rusty Pickett,

It may be because we are getting July

ECC

heat in Charleston in the beginning of June, but I am feeling cranky today.

Rusty Pickett, ECC Shellback Cruises www.shellbackcruises.com

A past client recently E-mailed me about a cruise on a major cruise line for July of next year. I provided them the best pricing that was available to me. They E-mailed back several days later and said that they had found a better price online. I asked that they send me the details so that I could see if I could match it. They E-mailed the info back from a “.com” company with the price quote and the state-

ment “we are not supposed to tell you any more detail than that.” The price was lower than that available as an exclusive offer through my consortium.

clearly pits them against one another for a client’s business – essentially, a contest to see which agent can discount the most and get away with it.

I did pull up the “.com” web site and noted that “….

LLC is an independent organization affiliated with ….

LLC. We are not a travel agency or owned by a travel agency, and we provide travel agents with a steady stream of easy-to-manage, highly qualified leads."

This is even more disturbing because the client knows nothing about whom they are dealing with.

Though we all add value to bookings in some way, to seemingly have agents competing against other agents in an apparent discounting battle is bad for all of us who are professionals. I chose to not play this game as a third party and again provided them the best pricing and value added that I could get without additional discounting.

We all expect educated clients to price check more than one source during their vacation research. We all compete against several other well know “.com” Web booking portals that advertise discounted rates and actually do get lower rates with certain cruise lines based on the volume booked – rates better than “exclusive” rates available to consortiums.

I find this particular Web business above particularly counterproductive to professional travel agents, as it

The client’s final comment: “We are going to go with the other company this time and see how it works.” And then we can get into the big warehouses like Costco….

I think I’ll jack up the air conditioning.

June 2011

Showcase

Sales Tip #9 What to Say to Make the Sale Role-Play Helps Agents Prepare for Annual Promotion To help agents master the art of making the sale before our annual Princess Cruises 1 Day Sale on June 18th, Regional Sales Director for Princess Cruises, Graham Cove, and Expedia CruiseShipCenters’ Director of Consultant Development, Fred Mercer, have created a fantastic role-play video.

Expedia CruiseshipCenters’ 1 Day Sale last year produced $18 Million in Princess Cruises bookings in a single day and we can't wait to see what our agents do this year. Here are a few things you'll notice in the role-play video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYl5rsPbctw Get the customer excited People love talking about their travel plans and there's no better way to secure a booking than to get them excited about taking their next dream vacation.

Offer Them Something Special Giving your customer an added bonus they can't get anywhere else provides a great incentive for them to book with you. During our 1 Day Sale, anyone who books a Princess Cruise with us will receive exclusive offers like onboard spending money and coupon books — all secured with a reduced deposit!

Create a Sense of Urgency If a customer thinks they have time to deliberate a decision, they probably will. Our 1 Day Sale creates urgency to book by letting customers know that these special offers on the best staterooms are available for one day only.

There's still time for you to take advantage of this incredible opportunity to launch or grow your business! Find out more about Expedia CruiseShipCenters' marketing and the many benefits of joining our team during our next live webinar. Click here to register now and Change Your Life.

Sincerely, Pat Heathfield Expedia CruiseShipCenters Expedia CruiseShipCenters, Just Cruises 43277 Garfield Rd, Clinton Township, MI 48038 Phone: 586-840-7447/800-837-4477 Email: justcruises@cruiseshipcenters.com • www.cruiseshipcenters.com/JustCruisesHB

Travel Agent Professional

18 By Scott

You Can Always Count on Me!

Koepf Scott Koepf Vice President of Sales Avoya Travel/America’s Vacation Center www.JoinAvoya.com

f o ti y ‘C

’ s l e g n A

One

of the most creative and fun musicals I have seen was ‘City of Angels’. It is not produced often now as it takes some very complicated set pieces as a fictional story (in black and white) melds with real life (in color). Throughout the musical there is a tension between fantasy and reality that I think we can all understand but one song in particular could be heralded as the Travel Agents Lament. In the show she is bemoaning her love life but as the lyrics below indicate it is easy to hear these words come from a travel agent as she toils through another day: If you need a gal to go without salary and work too hard You can always count on me Though my kind of game will die out like the dinosaurs You can always count on me Faithful and true as a Saint Bernard I’m loyal to the Nth degree You can always count on me! (continued on page 20)

June 2011

Leisure Pops: A New Application from an Old Friend Lee Rosen President, Leisure Pops

What is Leisure Pops?

L

eisure Pops is a point-of-

sale, merchandizing software application that runs on an agent’s desktop and helps travel agents to sell more preferred suppliers, more add-on products and more upgrades.

Leisure Pops runs in the background on an Agent's

The Power of Pops

• Sell more preferred suppliers.

• Sell more add-on products.

• Earn more commissions.

• Better service your clients.

desktop and then “Pops” or reminds an agent via a pop up message of opportunities to better serve their client — as well as make more commissions.

For more information go to www.leisurepops.com

‘

20

’

If you nodded your head when you read the lyrics

above I hope it was because of the loyalty described and that your clients can indeed count on you.

Just like this character, we can create a self-fulfilling prophecy by what we believe and repeat. In other words if you believe that while you are loyal and true you will never make much money and that you are doomed then it will come true! For years I have heard about how our industry needs more young people. No question that is true but what is interesting is all of the discussions as to why young people are not coming into our industry and how to solve the problem. Well, to quote a cartoon character from long ago, “We have met the enemy, and it is us!”

Now I know I am generalizing but with the rare exception, when I am at trade shows and visiting agents the take away from the conversations is that being a travel agent is fraught with headaches, greatly unappreciated and severely underpaid. I challenge you to change your tune! When I do have a conversation with a travel agent who loves what they do and is well paid I am reminded just

how easily we could recruit the next generation.

Unfortunately there are not enough positive agents singing the praises of this business so take this as a challenge to focus on the excitement and opportunity retail travel really has. Remember that fantasy can become reality through a positive attitude and diligent pursuit of the results you dream about.

If you nodded your head when you read the lyrics above I hope it was because of the loyalty described and that your clients can indeed count on you. If you related more to the lack of salary and the same fate as the dinosaurs, you may need an attitude check and a whole new song to sing!

There is no doubt that a great travel agent is someone who can sing ‘you can always count on me’ but you need to know that you can provide that loyalty and make a good living without fear of extinction. Actually your goal should be to get your clients to sing another song from this show back to you on a regular basis:

I’m nothing without you Without you I lack what it takes You are the singular person I need With you by my side, there’s no better guide Without you, I’m nothing at all!

June 2011

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22

Selected Host Agencies

H o s t

Amadeus North America, Inc.

Corporate Site:

9250 NW 36th Street

www.ctptravelservices.com

Miami, Florida 33178

Leisure site:

(888) AMADEUS

www.rennerttravel.com

E-mail: salesinquiries@amadeus.com

L i s t i n g

www.amadeus.com

Corporate Travel/The Travel Center

Amadeus North America’s Canadian

West Coast:

14 Duncan Street, Suite 301

1102 N. Brand Blvd. #50

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Glendale, CA 91202

M5H 3G8

(818) 241-6746 • Fax: (201) 994-0652

(888) 611-5554

East Coast: 5 Jefferson Place

AuthorizedAgents

Moonachie, NJ 07074

30230 Rancho Viejo Rd., Suite 110

(800) 870-9345 • Fax: (201) 994-0652

San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (800) 684-3260

E-mail: travelcenter@juno.com www.thetravelcenterusa.com

E-mail: info@authorizedagents.com www.AuthorizedAgents.com

CruiseBrothers.com 950 Wellington Ave

Avoya Travel/ America's Vacation Center 5201 Blue Lagoon Drive, Suite 900 Miami, FL 33126 (888) 426-6184 E-mail: Contact@JoinAvoya.com Agents: www.JoinAvoya.com Consumers: www.AvoyaTravel.com Brentwood Travel Service 1022 Executive Parkway St. Louis, MO 63141 (800) 527-1059 • Fax: (314) 439-5757 E-mail: sturner@brentwoodtravel.com

Cranston, RI 02910

Design Travel Inc. 2168 Lake Shore Circle Arlington Heights, IL 60004 Satellite Location: Sheraton Chicago Northwest Hotel (847) 577 7930 • Fax: (847) 577 7917 E-mail: travel@dtmgi.com www.dtmgi.com

2151 LeJeune Road Ste. 300 Coral Gables, FL 33134 (866) 703-5244 E-mail: info@luxurytravelnetwork.com www.luxurytravelnetwork.com

(800) 827-7779 x 721

Montrose Travel

E-mail: steve@cruisebrothers.com

2349 Honolulu Ave. Montrose, CA 91020 (800) MONTROSE • (818) 553-3200 Fax: (626) 294-9109 E-mail: andi@montrosetravel.com Home Based Agent Program

Cruises-N-More 610 Crescent Executive Court,

Trip Professionals 400 N.Commerce Parkway, Suite 105 Weston, FL 33326 (877) TRIP-PRO • (954) 714-3260 Fax: (954) 733-5424 E-mail: info@rrtrippro.com www.tripprofessionals.com UNIGLOBE

Lake Mary, FL 32746

1199 West Pender Street, Suite 900 Vancouver, BC, V6E 2R1 CANADA (604) 718-2600 E-mail: info@uniglobetravel.com www.uniglobetravel.com

www.join.mtravel.com Company Web site (407) 771-4454 • Fax: (407) 771-00077 www.MontroseTravel.com (800) 733-2048 E-mail: info@cruises-n-more.com

Nexion®

www.cruises-n-more.com

6225 N. State Hwy 161, Suite 450 Irving, TX 75038 (800) 747-6813 E-mail: sales@nexion.com www.nexion.com

Cruise Planners Coral Sands Travel

3300 University Drive, Suite 602

"America's Host Agency"

Coral Springs, FL 33065

1975 SR 29 N, Suite 3814 LaBelle, FL 33935

(888) 582-2150 • Fax: (954) 344-0875 OASIS E-mail: franchising@cruiseplanners.com 4800 Federal Hwy

(866) 481-4678 • Fax: (407) 479-3461

www.betterthanahost.com

E-mail: host@coralsandstravel.com CruiseShipCenters Int'l Inc./ Just Cruises & Vacations Corporate Travel Planners & Rennert Travel (An American Express Affiliate) 1919 NW Loop 410; Suite 200: San Antonio, TX 78213 ( 830) 964-2464 E-mail: pketchum@ctptravelservices.com

Albertville, MN 55301 (800) 392-6484 • Fax: (815) 572-0113 E-mail: bonnie@travelquestonline.com www.tqagents.com

Suite 220

www.brentwoodtravel.com

www.coralsandstravel.com

Travel Planners International

2500 Maitland Center Parkway, Incentive Connection Travel Suite 230 13029 North Cave Creek Road Maitland, FL 32751-4174 Phoenix, AZ 85022 (800) 730-6392 • (321) 422-7738 (602) 867-9606 • Fax: (602) 867-9216 E-mail: sales@tpionline.com E-mail: harvey@ictravel.com www.TravelAgentFromHome.com www.ictravel.com Travel Quest Luxury Travel Network 6597 Laketowne Place, Ste. A

(401) 941-3999 x 721

www.cruisebrothers.com

Stevens Travel Management 119 West 40th Street, 14th Floor New York, NY 10018 (800) 275-7400 • Fax: (212) 696-0591 E-mail: hostagency@stevenstravel.com www.stevenstravel.com

400-1055 West Hastings St. Vancouver, BC V6E 2E9 Canada

Boca Raton, FL 33431 800-613-8380 PH 561-393-7622 Fax E-mail: kelly@oasisagent.com www.OASISAgent.com OutsideAgents.com

8030 Phillips Highway, Suite 13 (604) 685-1221 • Fax: (604) 685-1245 Jacksonville, FL 32256 (866) 822-1000 (904) 739-2224 • (866) 208-5604 E-mail: careers@cruiseship.com E-mail: chad@outsideagents.com www.cruiseshipcenters.com www.outsideagents.com

If you are a host agencies and not on this list please E-mail tap.com@verizon.net

Wyllys Professional Travel 132 Aragon Ave. Coral Gables, Fl 33134 (305) 442-2008 • (800) 3WYLLYS Fax: (305) 441-0945 E-mail: wyllyst@wyllys.webmail.com www.wyllystravel.com YourNameTravel.com (ToGoAway Travel Network) 825 West Jackson Plaza Morton, IL 61550 (800) 207-8383 • (309) 266-8000 Fax: (309) 266-8384 E-mail: mail@togoaway.com www.YourNameTravel.com

June 2011

Showcase

Amadeus & Accor Extend Global Distribution Agreement to Cover Motel 6 & Studio 6 brands Leading North American budget hotel chain chooses Amadeus booking system to drive growth and increase revenues from in-bound travelers Global deal broadens Amadeus’ economy and extended stay hotel content for travel agencies and subscribers Madrid, Spain, 2 June 2011: Amadeus, a leading travel technology partner and transaction processor for the global travel and tourism industry, today announces the extension of its distribution agreement with Accor, the world's leading hotel operator, to enable over 1,100 of the chain’s budget Motel 6 and Studio 6 properties to be booked through Amadeus. The addition of these two brands brings the total number of properties available through the Amadeus global distribution system to over 90,000.

The deal enables Studio 6 and Motel 6 to increase brand visibility by leveraging Amadeus’ premium global position. The agreement is part of Accor’s strategy to drive growth for the budget hotel chain by targeting and attracting travelers from outside North America.

The addition of the Motel 6 chain, which offers economy lodging, and Studio 6, which offers affordable comfort for extended business trips, further supports Amadeus’ Hotel Distribution strategy to pursue the best chain brands to deliver on subscriber needs. Amadeus is responding to travel agents’ increasing demand for greater choice in budget and longstay properties.

This comes at a time when foreign visitor arrivals to North America are expected to grow by over four percent per year over the next ten years*. The Motel 6 & Studio 6 network, which spans across the U.S. and Canada with more than 1,100 locations and 100,000 rooms, offers foreign visitors a convenient and affordable way to experience the iconic American road trip.

Hugo Ehrnreich, Head of Hotel Distribution, Amadeus, said: “At Amadeus, we want to make sure our partners have it all. We want to meet the strong demand from bookers for a wider choice of hotel content – whether for budget hotels, pre-paid bookings, or niche independent properties. And give hotel providers efficient international reach to boost occupancy rates. We are therefore delighted to extend our already excellent relationship with Accor by integrating Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands at rate parity to Amadeus.”

Ludovic DuPont, Vice President, Distribution Travel Agencies, Accor, said: “For us, this is all about gaining access to the international traveler market. We want to be available through the best, most comprehensive GDS for each region as we seek to promote our budget and extended stay offerings to travelers around the world. Amadeus was the obvious choice to make this happen.” * Source: The Travel Gold Rush 2020, Amadeus / Oxford Economics

Travel Agent Professional

About Amadeus Amadeus is a leading transaction processor and provider of advanced technology solutions for the global travel and tourism industry.

Customer groups include travel providers (e.g. airlines, hotels, rail, ferries, etc.), travel sellers (travel agencies and websites), and travel buyers (corporations and individual travellers).

The group operates a transaction-based business model and processed 850 million billable travel transactions in 2010.

Amadeus has central sites in Madrid (corporate headquarters and marketing), Nice (development) and Erding (Operations — data processing centre) and regional offices in Miami, Buenos Aires, Bangkok and Dubai. At a market level, Amadeus maintains customer operations through 73 local Amadeus Commercial Organisations covering 195 countries.

Amadeus is listed on the Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia stock exchanges and trades under the symbol “AMS.MC”. For the year ended 31 December 2010, the company reported revenues of EUR 2,683 million and EBITDA of EUR 1,015 million. The Amadeus group employs over 10,130 employees worldwide, with 123 nationalities represented at the central offices.

To find out more about Amadeus please go to www.amadeus.com To visit the Amadeus Investor Relations centre please go to www.investors.amadeus.com

JUST IN CASE YOU NEED MORE GOOD REASONS

TO RECOMMEND US TO

YOUR CLIENTS. #

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BEST CRUISE LINE for seven consecutive years Canadian Travel Press 2010 Agent’s Choice Award

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BEST CRUISE SHIPS OF 2011: ALLURE OF THE SEAS® Frommers Best Ships 2011

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BEST NEW SHIP: OASIS OF THE SEAS® Cruise Critic 2010 Editors’ Picks Awards Winner

How did we arrive here? By consistently pushing the limits of what’s possible at sea to deliver the vacation of a lifetime. We call this commitment the Royal Advantage – our drive to provide the best, most innovative ships, features, destinations and personalized service to our guests. So when a client wants to know why you’re recommending Royal Caribbean, you’ll never be at a loss for words.

To learn more, visit www.CruisingPower.com/MoreSuccess g y y g or www.RoyalCaribbean.com/RoyalAdvantage ©2011 Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Ships registry: The Bahamas. 11023664 • 4/28/2011