The review: Industry

from Selling Travel January/February 2022

River cruising: Inspiring

Trade talk 36 / The review

news

Maldives set for hotel boom POSITIVE NEWS

The Maldives is set to welcome 12 new properties in 2022, including adult-only OBLU SELECT Lobigili and the family-friendly OZO Maldives.

Most new openings are located in the more remote atolls – Raa and Dhaalu, Noonu, Baa and Lhaviyani – whilst some are being built on artificial islands created by land reclamation, such as the Fari Islands in the North Malé Atoll.

Highlights include the adult-only OBLU SELECT Lobigili, which features an underwater restaurant and is within close proximity to neighbouring Ailafushi island.

The Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort will be the first opening in the Maldives by the sister brand of Anantara, complete with a youthful vibe and a kids’ club.

Address Madivaru Maldives Resort & Spa promises a dedicated spa-island plus a floating restaurant.

A glamorous opening by the luxury Spanish brand Gran Meliá Huravee is set to include one private-island villa among its accommodation offerings.

The Maniya Faru Resort is a new development by the company behind Reethi Faru Resort. It will feature a lagoon restaurant and an overwater spa.

OZO Maldives will mark the second Maldives resort to be opened by the ONYX group, with a family focus, an enhanced sleep experience and curated destination and activity tips.

Located in one of the best diving destinations in the archipelago, Tolarno Maldives Kunaavashi Resort La Vie Hotels & Resorts’ first Maldivian property has been inspired by arts and local culture.

Giving agents an Advantage

The Advantage Travel Partnership has launched a three-year strategy plan that puts an emphasis on growth, collaboration and digital transformation.

The blueprint is underpinned by four pillars designed to forge growth for the consortium and for members alike.

Pillar 1: Footprint Expansion will ensure existing members receive greater support through consultancy products and marketing and technology solutions. Advantage also has ambitious targets to grow its network and attract new members.

Pillar 2: Product and Portfolio Capitalisation promises to leverage more buying power on behalf of members.

Pillar 3: Digital Transformation will further the organisation’s commitment to fully digitise all stakeholder touchpoints and promote enhanced capabilities for data collection and analysis.

Pillar 4: Operational Excellence involves a technology review and makeover of the Advantage digital platforms.

Julia Lo Bue-Said, CEO, said: “We’ve learned some hard lessons during the pandemic, and had to identify areas in the business where we can fundamentally add more value to our members and support them through what will be a tough recovery.

“This framework is ambitious and one I hope will further support Advantage as the consortium of choice for current members as well as future members.

“Continuing to be the voice of the independent agent both for business and leisure travel is now part of our DNA.” advantagemembers.com

• JG goes to Disneyland

New Disneyland Paris coach breaks for 2022 will be available through The JG Travel Group’s National Holidays brand. Ideal for families, packages are now on sale for selected dates during key school holidays periods from a wide range of pick-up points in the northeast, northwest and Yorkshire. Departure dates include May halfterm, the main school summer holidays and October half-term. nationalholidays.com/agents

• Summer with seabourne

Seabourn has announced its line-up of voyages for summer 2023 aboard its two new purpose-built expedition ships, Seabourn Venture and Seabourn Pursuit. The programme includes the line’s first-ever voyages to the Northeast and Northwest Passages in the Arctic. seabourn.com

• New opening in Marbella

METT Hotel & Beach Resort Marbella – Estepona, Spain, is due to open in July 2022 on the Marbella-Estepona shoreline. The five-star resort, surrounded by Andalusian landscape, will feature 253 rooms and suites. A third and fourth property on the Mediterranean riviera are planned to open in summer 2023. mettsocialliving.com

• Adriatic is trade-friendly

Adriatic Holidays is to work with trade partners, including through its Gulet Cruises brand, which has been operating for over 15 years. The cruise operator offers a range of itineraries throughout Croatia and Montenegro, as well as a selection of villas in Kotor Bay, Montenegro. adriaticholidays.com

news

Trade talk The review / 37

Is 2022 the year of the catch-up consumer?

Exodus expeditions appeal to explorers

This year will be the year of the ‘catch-up consumer’ with holidaymakers taking more extravagant trips and placing a higher premium on booking with a travel expert, ABTA’s Travel in 2022 report suggests.

Released during the organisation’s Travel Trends Conference, the data reveals that 61% of people say they plan to go abroad within the next year, up 4% on 2020, and 49% say holidays will be more important than before the pandemic, specially for families with children over five.

ABTA members report they are also taking bookings for 2023, as greater stability and certainty surrounding overseas travel is predicted to return.

ABTA’s data shows that from February 2020 to July 2021 around 16% of people went on a foreign holiday, down from the 64% who travelled abroad in 2019.

Booking trends from ABTA Members such as Jet2holidays, TUI, Travelbag and Barrhead Travel suggest clients want to make sure their next holiday is really special by upgrading: 46% claim they will spend more on the holiday they plan to take over the next 12 months, up from 29% in 2020, with many extending the length of their trip, moving from three- to four-star hotels and looking at more expensive destinations.

And wanderlust is returning too, with 37% saying they plan to visit a “bucket list” country they have not visited before, like Maldives or Caribbean, or take a “once-in-alifetime trip”to the Arctic or Galapagos.

All of which is good news for travel agents, with ABTA predicting the dawning of a new “Age of the Expert” that sees more consumers valuing the importance of travel experts during what will remain an uncertain and unpredictable time for travel.

Thirty per cent of respondents said they are “more likely” to book with a travel agent than before the pandemic, up from 20% last year, while nearly half (47%) cite the guidance agents offer on Coronavirus travel requirements as the main reason.

Hays Travel claim that since April last year more than half of its business has come from new customers, while more than 60% of Inghams’ customers are booking with the operator for the first time.

Those in the age bracket 18-24 are increasingly turning towards travel agents, with two-thirds saying they are “more likely” to book with an expert than before the pandemic and 34% are of the view they will have a “better holiday” if they do.

This is also the age of the package holiday, with 78% of people citing a regulated package holiday was either ”essential or important”, with 27% ”more likely” to book a package holiday than before the pandemic. abta.com

Exodus Travels has a new collection of 22 small-group trips accompanied by naturalists, ornithologists, historians, marine biologists, award-winning photographers, and veteran explorers. The line-up includes key experts from the Africa Wildlife Foundation and the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.

From tracking snow leopards in the high Himalaya and photographing polar wildlife in Spitsbergen to sampling wine in Portugal and learning about conservation efforts in Zimbabwe, the experts will share their own insight and personal experiences to allow travellers to immerse themselves even further into some of the world’s most remarkable destinations.

The following tours are examples of the Exodus Expeditions collection: A 14-day Search for Snow Leopards, led by specialist Himalayan trekking guide Valerie Parkinson. Priced from £2,499pp but excluding flights, departures are on March 7, 2022 and February 19 and March 4, 2023.

The 11-day Paul Goldstein Spitsbergen Photographic Charter, led by the awardwinning photographer, starts from £7,290pp excluding flights and departs June 24, 2022.

All prices include accommodation with breakfast daily, other meals as specified online, tour leaders and specialist guides as specified, all transfers and other transport and activities.

Sam Seward, Exodus Travels’ Managing Director said: “These tours allow clients to discover a destination with the perspective of an accomplished adventurer.” exodus.co.uk