Top Deck #20

Stage II/Issue 20

Locally written, globally distributed

Brand Exposure

At the Industry’s Largest Events

ew Orleans N in k c a B g in iv G s / Tourism Care & Toronto n e g a h n e p o C s n o ti / Destina In this issue. SevilleNew OrleansLisbonBudapestCopenhagenTorontoBelfastVeniceCambridgeGlasgowMoscowTorinoLos AngelesNew YorkSarajevo 01 PORTADA TD20.indd 1

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TopDeck Magazine | nº18 | Enero 2018

Message from Enrique Ybarra President & CEO City Sightseeing Worldwide

Seville, Spain. The home of the first ever City Sightseeing operation which started on the 31st of March 1999

Dear Friends, In this edition I want to share with all of you my satisfaction with the heights the City Sightseeing brand has recently reached. We already knew that we have one of the brands with the greatest exposure in the centres of the most visited cities around the world. Our global brand is an essential reference for millions of international travellers who choose us while on holiday. And now we can say that City Sightseeing is also a reference for growth and good practices within the tourism industry.

In September and October, we saw the great consideration our colleagues within the sector have for the City Sightseeing brand. We were invited to participate in three major tourism events: the Europe Leaders Forum organized by the WTTC in Lisbon; the largest professional meeting of Tours, Activities and Attractions companies, Arival; and The Travel Convention, ABTA’s annual conference. At these three conferences, the name of City Sightseeing was placed at the level of other great world-class brands like TripAdvisor, Expedia, and GetYourGuide. I want to thank you for your commitment to City Sightseeing and the work you do every day to offer our clients the best possible experience. Without a doubt, your effort is key in the great esteem the industry has for the entire network.

Furthermore, we have to remember that as part of this industry we must give back communities. That’s why we became partners with Tourism Cares. This new partnership recently took us to New Orleans where we volunteered to help those still feeling the effects of Hurricane Katrina. You can learn more about this and other initiatives in this new issue of Top Deck, which as you know, is also available in an interactive version. I encourage you to share this publication with your staff and your partners.

Yours sincerely,

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Stage II/Issue 20

Locally written, globally distributed

Brand Exposure

At the Industry’s Largest Events

s Back in New Orlean / Tourism Cares Giving hagen & Toronto / Destinations Copen In this issue. SevilleNew OrleansLisbonBudapestCopenhagenTorontoBelfastVeniceCambridgeGlasgowMoscowTorinoLos AngelesNew YorkSarajevo 01 PORTADA TD20.indd 1

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/ Staff Editor Antonio M. Ortega. press@city-ss.com Contributing writers Lauren Mogannam, Oliver Nicholls, Gonzalo Ruiz, Rosana Pajaron, Miguel Angel Garcia, Isaac Flores, Sergei Lavrentyev, Mary Cummings, Piru Galan, Luis Miguel Labrado, Jaime Ruiz, Szarina Hernandez, Chelsey Smith, Alex Hillbring.

Production Antonio M. Ortega.

Publisher City Sightseeing Worldwide

Tourism Cares- Giving Back in New Orleans 06/07

18/19

28/29

We welcome your views about TOP DECK and any stories you might have. Please send any suitable items for inclusion to: topdeck@city-sightseeing.com

WTTC’s European Leaders Forum

Destination: Toronto

Suppliers: Latest News

08/09

20/21

30/31

Printed by: Egondi Artes Gráficas This edition of Top Deck has been printed on CREATOR STAR FSC® paper, where the virgin fibre comes from forests with strict criteria towards environmental protection. This FSC® certified paper also incorporates other environmental standards such as chlorine-free bleaching. The FSC® logo identifies products from well managed forests which are certified in accordance with the rules of the Forest Stewardship Council.

Inverview: Zurab Pololikashvili – Secretary General, UNWTO

The World of City Sightseeing

Gallery / Corporate News

22/23

32/33

Destination: Toronto

Gallery / Tour News

24/25

34/35

With Tourism Cares in New Orleans

Gallery / Staff stories

26/27

Gallery / The Best of Social Media

10/11 World Tourism Day

12/15

Views expressed in the pages of TOP DECK are not necessarily those of City Sightseeing Worldwide, their Franchisees, Associates and Partners or the Editors.

Brand Exposure at the Industry’s Largest Events

16/17 Destination: Copenhagen

Interview: Manuel Jimenez, People’s Dept.

36/37

38 The Wall

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AUTUMN IS HERE!

TopDeck Magazine | nยบ18 | Enero 2018

Are you ready?

Discover the New Additions to the

Purchasing Catalogue Visit operators.city-sightseeing.com

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municipalities in this subject – how to grow sustainably.

City Tourism to Keep Growing Europe is the most visited region in the world.

Recently, over-tourism has been highlighted in this area. However, as a global problem, the WTTC call to face it can be extrapolated to the rest of the world.

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he first WTTC Europe Leaders Forum took place in September in Lisbon, Portugal. It was the first in a series of regional events to take place in 2018. Up to 150 leaders were present, including Ministers from Portugal and Greece, and CEO of companies like Thomas Cook, MSC Cruises, and Room Mate Hotels & BeMate.com.

The problem of over-tourism was on the table as one of the most important challenges of the travel industry today. “Growth needs to be sustainable, planned for the

long term and with communities at the centre of planning, to ensure that growth is inclusive and positively benefits the people of Europe” said Gloria Guevara, CEO and President of WTTC. Other critical areas for action highlighted

by Guevara were the need of increasing resilience by preparing for crisis, and transitioning to a seamless traveller journey through the use of technology.

Guevara added that the travel industry doesn’t have “to reinvent the wheel”, but apply the best practices of governments and

Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Minister of EconomyGlobal of Portugal, shared GDP growth his experience on the matter: to promote visiting in off-peak season, to spread tourism along the year and across the territory, to innovate not only in terms of technology but in new services, new experiences, and, overall, to make an effort in training – tourism is about people.

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Destination stewardship, crisis preparedness and travel security Jobsinsupported will be explored more depthby Travel & Tourism during WTTC’s Global Summit will take place in Seville, Spain on 3-4 April 2019, where City Sightseeing will have again a prominent presence.

municipalities with regards to this subject – how to grow sustainably.

Manuel Caldeira Cabral, the Minister of Economy of Portugal, shared his experience on the matter: to promote visiting in offpeak season, to promote tourism throughout the year and across the territory, to innovate not only in terms of technology but in new services and new experiences, and, to make an effort in training since tourism is about people.

Destination stewardship, crisis preparedness and travel security will be explored in more depth during WTTC’s Global Summit, which will take place in Seville, Spain, on 3-4 April 2019, where City Sightseeing will again have a prominent presence.

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TopDeck Magazine | #20 | September 2018

4.6%

10.4%

Travel & Tourism GDP growth

Travel & Tourism total contribution to global GDP

1/10 Jobs supported by Travel & Tourism

1/5 Of all new jobs created came from Travel & Tourism

The strength of the travel industry “Travel & Tourism” accounts for 10.4% of the world’s GDP and 1 in 10 jobs. Furthermore, Travel & Tourism has consistently outperformed the economy as a whole.

Here in Europe, which attracts over half of global international arrivals, Travel & Tourism contributes 9.9% to GDP and in 2017 the sector grew more than twice as fast as the rest of the economy. IATA is forecasting an additional 1.5 billion passengers a year in Europe by 2036”

Gloria Guevara President World Travel & Tourism Council In the European summit held in Lisbon, the President of WTTC stressed that “the challenge for the future is to ensure growth is maintained and is sustainable, providing benefits for local communities, regardñess if they are in large cities or remote rural areas, and ensuring a great experience for the traveller.”

Are you ready for the challenge?

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Zurab Pololikashvili Secretary-General, UNWTO On 1st January 2018, Zurab Pololikashvili became Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Before, he was Minister of Economic Development of Georgia, Ambassador to Spain and worked in the financial sector. Pololikashvili was even CEO of FC Dinamo Tbilisi, the leading professional football team in Georgia!

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What do you see as the guidelines of your mandate in UNWTO?

My aim is to make a more comprehensive tourism development vision. Our sector should be a policy priority and a sector of maximum value for everyone. To this aim, which has been key to UNWTO’s work for many years, I add a focus on making tourism a knowledge creator and innovator, helping us adaptate to the digital age.

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The figures in the tourism sector are growing year by year. What are your forecasts for the upcoming years?

One thing I am sure of is that the world will continue seeming to get smaller. Globalization, interconnectivity, and a growing consumer class will lead to more and more people travelling, as you have pointed out.

By 2030, 58% of international tourism will be recorded in destinations that the IMF calls ‘emerging and developing economies’. Asia and the Pacific will continue to grow the fastest in market share and head towards becoming a true rival to Europe for the world’s most popular tourism region. And technological innovations, such as artificial intelligence, big data, and digital platforms will have an increasing impact on day-to-day operations.

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What do you see as the main challenges in the travel industry?

We have some: in established destinations, like European cities, we must manage tourist numbers and sites sustainably as demand continues to grow, and ensure hosts are consulted in tourism development. On the other hand, tourism still has a large carbon footprint to address. Thirdly, the

sector has to adapt to higher expectations from the consumers.

Thankfully now we can solve these challenges, not just through using innovative new technologies, but also through agile and effective public/private partnerships.

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Indeed public-private partnerships have been boosted by UNWTO and WTTC in the past years. How would you encourage to join forces?

The true strength of tourism lies in its capacity to unite people, and to unite businesses with communities, under the shared conviction that tourism can lead to positive transformative change. For example, to prioritise partnerships for digital transformation, we have launched a competition to bring visibility to startups around the world with innovative ideas that have the potential to disrupt the sector.

Read the full interview in the interactive version of Top Deck at http://city-sightseeing.com/topdeck 08

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TopDeck Magazine | #20 | September 2018

Our role “As a well-known brand with a multinational presence, City Sightseeing has a huge potential role to play in raising awareness of responsible tourism practices. You are in a fairly unique position because it can bridge the more established form of travel, the open-top bus tour that has become its trademark, along with catering to new expectations of travellers” Zurab Pololikashvili – UNWTO 09

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Digital Transformation D “Tourism and the Digital Transformation” is the theme of this year’s World Tourism Day (WTD)

igital advances are transforming the world.

Now we connect and inform ourselves in a very different way and this transforms our behaviour. It is about life and also about a little (but important) part of it – how we travel today.

The tourism industry is not only experiencing the consequences of technology, but boosting the change. And this is the message of the World Tourism Day in 2018 – digital transformation to encourage innovation and sustainable, responsible growth strategies.

Sustainable tourism, universal accessibility, and development were just some of the latest topics to be highlighted by the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) on World Tourism Day, annually celebrated on 27th September. Now the UN organisation sees a unique opportunity to raise awareness on the potential contribution of digital technologies to sustainable tourism development, while providing a platform for investment, partnerships, and collaboration towards a more responsible and inclusive tourism sector.

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WTD Message “We live in an increasingly connected and interdependent world with digital advances transforming how we inform ourselves, transforming our behaviour, and encouraging innovation. We need not only new tools but also new capacities and ways of thinking.

So across the United Nations family we are designing innovative projects, initiatives and partnerships.”

Zurab Pololikashvili Secretary-General UNWTO

Events “We must better understand the growing economic, societal and environmental impacts of technology and innovation in tourism if our sector is to sustain continuous and inclusive growth in line with the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN.”

The UNWTO believes that a digitally advanced tourism sector can improve entrepreneurship, inclusion, local community empowerment and efficient resource management, among other important developmental objectives.

Budapest holds the WTD official celebration from 26th to 28th September The UNWTO and Globalia announce the startups with the best projects of the 1st UNWTO Tourism Startup Competition CS Spain created a gallery in Facebook especially for the #WTD2018 hashtag with pictures of its passengers on board using a special digital frame

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Brand Exposure At the Industry’s Largest Professional Events The City Sightseeing brand featured in some of the most important events in the past months, including Arival, the largest event specifically focused on tours, activities and attractions, CAPA (Centre for Aviation) Summit, and the ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) Forum.

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he City Sightseeing brand is always present at the most important travel trade shows in the world. Usually, these major events take place between the first half and the last quarter of the year. However, our global brand manage to stand out even in the slower months of the year.

As a reference for the sightseeing sector, our international network is asked to take part in some of the industry’s key events. In September, City Sightseeing was one of the sponsors of the Arival Event in Las Vegas, USA. In October, other two major events happened in Seville, Spain.

At the CAPA Summit, the global brand participated as an event partner and had the opportunity to showcase from a stand. At the ABTA Forum, President and CEO Enrique Ybarra represented the company as one of the panelists on a discussion about overtourism.

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Appareances at Tourism Major Events JANUARY • WTTC Members Reception at FITUR (Madrid, Spain) MARCH • WTTC Members Reception at ITB (Berlin, Germany)

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APRIL • WTTC Summit (Buenos Aires, Argentina) SEPTEMBER • WTTC’s Europe Leaders Forum (Lisbon, Portugal) • Arival (Las Vegas, United States) OCTOBER • CAPA – Centre for Aviation Summit (Seville, Spain) • ABTA – Association of British Travel Agents Forum (Seville, Spain)

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1 Information desk at the CAPA Summit Exhibition Centre. 2 View of the City Sightseeing stand during a coffee break at the Hotel Barceló Renacimiento in Seville. 3 The City Sightseeing brand featured as a CAPA Summit partner during the business sessions.

The City Sightseeing brand has been present at some of the most important professional events in the travel industry.

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We’re Among the Best Part of Travel!

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ours, activities, attractions is the travel industry’s third largest and fastest growing sector, and the reason people travel in the first place. It is also going through incredible change.

Advances in technology and changes in what travelers want are creating new opportunities — and challenges — for our industry.”

This was the starting point of Arival, celebrated in Las Vegas, United States, between 24th and 27th September. With the aim of catching up and discovering how to face new challenges, the community of travel companies attended the event held at the Hard Rock Hotel. The different sessions served as an excellent way to advance the business.

City Sightseeing had an outstanding presence at the conference by sponsoring a welcome party with the attendees.

Furthermore, Enrique Ybarra participated in the panel “What the Heck Are We (and How Do We Brand)?”, where he had the opportunity to share the experience of the City Sightseeing brand with the rest of the industry.

Low-Cost Long Haul

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ity Sightseeing featured as one of the event partners of the CAPA – Centre for Aviation Summit held in Seville.

The conference attracted high profile speakers, industry leaders,

including strong C-Level executive representation from all types of businesses within the aviation sector – from full service, LCCs and hybrid airlines.

As an exhibitor, we had the opportunity to interact and engage with these companies, along with suppliers and buyers, while promoting the City Sightseeing brand.

Close to the British Travel Agents

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he Travel Convention – ABTA’s annual conference is the UK travel industry’s flagship event, providing inspiration and learnings to delegates.

The event is attended by senior professionals spanning the full breadth of the mainstream and specialist travel industry, including all types of travel retailers, tour operators, cruise lines, hotels

and airlines, together with travel industry specialists (accountants, lawyers, insurance providers) and those providing business knowledge and advice to the industry.

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1 Enrique Ybarra participating in the panel “What the Heck are We (And How Do We Brand)?”. 2 Brand exposure at the registration desks. 3 Flags at the welcome party sponsored by City Sightseeing. 4 Enrique Ybarra with the other panelists: Stacy Shuster, Director of Marketing & Sales, Ripley’s Believe it or Not! New York; Evan Frank, CEO, Context Travel; and the moderator Alex Kremmer, Co-Founder of Arival. 5 Oliver Nicholls at the Arival Welcome Party. 6 The “Growth Challenge” panel at ABTA’s Travel Convention.

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Copenhagen The Danish capital has been one of the fastest growing destinations in Europe in the last decade. How does CS Copenhagen deal with the increase of visitors and with thousands of cruise passengers annually?

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How do you experience the wide presence of the brand in Europe and the Baltic Sea?

It is great that our guests recognise our buses from other destinations – it makes the choice of operator easy for them. Sharing ideas and thoughts with our colleagues across borders can foster new ideas and improve our operation.

Mads V. Olesen CEO CS Denmark

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Copenhagen is also a busy cruise port. How do you manage cruise passengers?

We pick up guests at all cruise ports to make it as convenient for them as possible and bring them back again. Our Mermaid Tour has

been designed with cruise guests in mind. In about 1.5 hours they have seen the most important sights in Copenhagen – and they still have the opportunity to get off and explore a little by foot, before getting on our buses again to return to the cruise terminal.

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What do you recommend us to visit when in Copenhagen?

Copenhagen is beautiful all year round, but especially in the spring.

Tivoli is the most popular attraction in Denmark, and it is more than just an amusement park. Interesting places are Reffen Street Food and Gammel Kongevej at Frederiksberg.

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The operation CS Copenhagen operates 3 different tours – (1) the classic Mermaid Tour with all the must-see highlights in Copenhagen, (2) the Christiania Tour through the free town, Christiania and the new Street Food area, Reffen, and (3) Carlsberg Tour that gives visitors a taste of ‘local-hood’ taking them to Frederiksberg and Vesterbro where they can relax in a park or do some shopping.

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ndeed, you will love visiting Copenhagen in the spring when the people of Copenhagen wake up from hibernation and swarm out to enjoy the first sun-rays” says Mads Olesen. Visitors come to photograph the Queens Palace and, of course, the Little Mermaid, but there is much more to see and do in the Danish capital.

Located in the middle of the city, Tivoli is an absolute must for all ages.

You can also stroll down the picturesque Nyhavn and take a canal tour to see the city from the water, beautiful on a sunny day, but also charming and cozy in the frosty winter (no worries: boats are covered and heated!). Reffen Street Food is an irresistible playground for foodies and explorers of gastronomy, and Gammel Kongevej at Frederiksberg offers a great variety of shopping and continue to Vesterbro. There are always things to see and do.

Highlights Originally a Viking fishing village established in the 10th century, Copenhagen is today the capital and most populous city in Denmark It is also a business and science hub in Scandinavia and is home to regional HQ for companies like Microsoft or Maersk Tourism is a major contributor to Copenhagen’s economy, attracting visitors due to the city’s harbour, cultural attractions, and award-winning restaurants

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Toronto “More and more visitors are looking for us in Toronto because of previous great experiences with the brand in other cities. In turn, we aim to provide a service that visitors will remember positively.�

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How is operating bus and boat in your city? Any tip to other bus & boat operators?

Given that our boat tours operate independently of our bus tours, we are able to provide this add-on free of charge to our guests, allowing us to keep our bus ticket prices competitively low.

Aoife Noctor Manager CS Toronto

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Toronto is usually in the rankings of the best cities to live. And for visitors?

We want our guests to be able to see and enjoy as much of our amazing city as possible while they are here. We also want them to do so as inexpensively as possible, a

commitment that inspired our longstanding inclusion of the harbour and islands cruise as a free optional upgrade. Discounts, express privileges, complimentary pick ups from hotels...

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How do you see the City Sightseeing brand in 5/10 years?

We expect the City Sightseeing brand to continue expanding its reach, increasing its visibility, and accelerating its innovation around the world. City Sightseeing operators will continue to support and strengthen each other through effective and productive networking.

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The operation CS Toronto operates a hop-on hop-off tour with 20 stops at key locations around Toronto with a high-season bus frequency of just over 10 minutes. The loop takes about 135 minutes to complete, and has been configured in such a way that all of the major downtown attractions can be visited on a single loop without the need to transfer to another loop.

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oronto is multicultural and diverse, with neighbourhoods so different like the bohemian Kensington Market or the high-fashion area of Yorkville. Casa Loma, museums on and around Bloor Street W., or the Art Gallery of Ontario are among the most demanded attractions, together with the unmistakable CN tower, its neighbour Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada and the nearby Hockey Hall of Fame. For many guests, the iconic St. Lawrence Market is a must and the Distillery is a great place to stop for a relaxing lunch or a contemplative dinner.

On the other hand, the harbour and islands cruise can be enjoyed at any time.

Highlights Located on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario, Toronto is the most populated city in Canada A global city, a centre of business, finance, arts, and culture One of the most multicultural and cosmopolitan cities in the world

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THE WORLD OF

CITY SIGHTSEEING CANADA Niagara ** Toronto

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Chicago * Los Angeles & Hollywood Miami ** Natchez New Orleans New York Orlando ** Philadelphia * San Antonio San Francisco Seattle Washington DC *

ICELAND Reykjavik

PORTUGAL Albufeira Aveiro Funchal Lisbon Porto Sintra

PANAMA Panama City COLOMBIA Cartagena

PERU Lima

SPAIN Antequera Arrecife Barcelona * Benalmadena Cadiz Cordoba Jerez Las Palmas Gran Canaria Lleida Malaga Nerja Palma De Mallorca Santa Cruz De Tenerife ** Santander Seville Toledo

Affiliate (*) Attractions (**) 20

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ITA Flo Ge Liv Me Mi Na Pa Pa Ro So Tu Ve

IN ra ife na * na diz ba ez ria da ga rja ca ife ** er lle do

BELGIUM Brussels

UNITED KINGDOM & IRELAND Galway Bath Glasgow Belfast Inverness Bournemouth Llandudno & Conwy Brighton London ** Cambridge Newcastle/Gateshead Cardiff Norwich Chester Oxford Derry/Londonderry Stratford-upon-Avon Dublin York Edinburgh Galashiels (Scotish Border)

TopDeck Magazine | nยบ18 | Enero 2018

BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA Sarajevo CYPRUS (Coming Soon) Ayia Napa Limassol Larnaca CZECH REPUBLIC Prague

RUSSIA Kazan Moscow St. Petersburg

DENMARK Copenhagen

Aarhus

ESTONIA Tallinn FINLAND Helsinki FRANCE Paris * GEORGIA Tbilisi

LEBANON Beirut (Coming Soon)

GERMANY Berlin Kiel

Potsdam Trier

GREECE Athens & Piraeus Corfu HUNGARY Budapest UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Dubai Sharjah

LUXEMBOURG Luxembourg MALTA Gozo

SAUDI ARABIA Al Madinah

Malta

NETHERLANDS Rotterdam Amsterdam ITALY Florence Genoa Livorno Messina Milan Naples Padova Palermo Rome Sorrento Turin Verona

SINGAPORE Singapore

SOUTH AFRICA Cape Town Johannesburg & Soweto

AUSTRALIA Melbourne

NORWAY Alesund Bergen Geiranger

Oslo Stavanger

POLAND Krakow Gdansk

Warsaw

SWEDEN Gothenburg

Stockholm

UKRAINE Kiev

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Giving Back to Communities F In September, part of the City Sightseeing Worldwide staff took part in a Tourism Cares activity in New Orleans

rom painting houses to planting gardens to helping preserve wetland forests, over 200 volunteers worked with Tourism Cares in New Orleans on 21st September to give back to those who are still feeling the effects of Hurricane Katrina, which took place in 2005.

Volunteers, including members from City Sightseeing Worldwide, spread out through various neighbourhoods and worked at six different sites run by local organisations whose aim is to improve all aspects of the city.

Known for its mouth-watering cuisine, eclectic culture, and unparalleled jazz scene, the Big Easy is without a doubt one of the world’s most fascinating cities and

top tourist destination. However, beyond its historic French Quarter and breath-taking Garden District are communities still recovering from the devastating hurricane.

That is why Tourism Cares, a nonprofit that unites the travel and tourism industry to benefit the people and places the industry depends on, chose New Orleans for its “Uniting for Resilient Destinations” program.

“Investing time and labour in neighbourhoods and with local organizations,” says Tourism Cares CEO Paula Vlamings, “is the immediate impact and it’s important. The lasting impact is the power of our collective industry: professionals from all

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First Stop: New Orleans City Sightseeing Worldwide was present in New Orleans from 20th-21st September for Tourism Cares for New Orleans.

The event was focused on rebuilding areas that were greatly affected by past hurricanes. It was the first time the global brand participated in a Tourism Cares event as an official partner.

sectors coming together to create social change through the tourism economy to support healthy, safe, and beautiful destinations through their businesses.”

With the help of numerous volunteers from the travel

industry, “Tourism Cares for New Orleans” will contribute more than $60,000 through investments in the community and volunteer labour value. City Sightseeing Worldwide is proud to have been amongst those giving back to the vibrant city of New Orleans.

In Her Words “Investing time and labour in neighbourhoods and with local organizations is the immediate impact and it’s important. The lasting impact is the power of our collective industry: professionals from all sectors coming together to create social change through the tourism economy to support healthy, safe, and beautiful destinations through their businesses” Paula Vlamings CEO Tourism Cares

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6 1 Tourism Cares volunteers spent a day gardening and painting for Jericho Road. 2 Volunteers helped improve Samson “Skip” Alexander’s house . 3-5. Jericho Road helps beautify city landscapes and provide affordable and energy-efficient housing. 6 The Yellow Team getting safety tips before getting to work.

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TopDeck Magazine | #20 | September 2018

Our CSR Policy

By Oliver Nicholls, Head of Global Distribution and Commercial Partnerships

City Sightseeing Worldwide officially partnered with Tourism Cares at the beginning of 2018 after collaborating with the non-profit on various initiatives.

Giving back to communities we work in is extremely important, thus a great focus has been put on Corporate Social Responsibility by the global brand. The partnership with Tourism Cares allows us to do just that- help destinations in need and improve the travel industry’s corporate social responsibility as a whole.

As we move forward, we hope to continue working on several projects and highlighting all the great work being done by City Sightseeing operations around the world. In the past, the global brand has contributed to Tourism Cares initiatives around the world, such as planting mangrove trees in Bangkok.

Furthermore, countless operations have done their part in giving back to the communities where they operate. From electric buses in York and Edinburgh to City Sightseeing South Africa’s commitment to saving water and building a well-point borehole to City Sightseeing Spain donating on a monthly basis to Make a Wish Foundation, numerous operations are finding ways to help in any way they can.

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Introducing electric buses to reduce our carbon footprint. Contributing to different social projects to give back to those less fortunate. Recycling in our respective offices. Volunteering with others from the City Sightseeing family. These are just some of the things we can do together as City Sightseeing as we look to the future. As 2019 approaches, we hope to continue working on existing projects and finding new ways to do our part to make the world a better place. This is just the beginning.

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Manuel Jimenez People’s Area Manager – City Sightseeing Worldwide If “companies are people”, Manuel has something to say on what City Sightseeing is.

After working for companies like Deloitte and Willis Towers Watson, Manuel joined the City Sightseeing family to help the CS employees grow in their jobs, which in turn allows the global brand to provide the best experience to their customers.

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What are the functions and objectives of the People’s Area?

The main objective of the People’s Area is to ensure that our team is prepared to achieve our objectives as City Sightseeing. What we want is to have the best talent possible and that is oriented to giving the best customer service possible. For this reason, we want to take care of the experience City Sightseeing employees have with the company.

We never know if paths may cross again in the future. A person may leave and in the future be a client, a collaborator, or even an employee again. A very important aspect for us is to work actively in the professional development of our team so that all are and feel prepared to offer the best service to our customers.

What differentiates us from other Human Resource departments is our vision of the employee as a person we need to care for and help in the same way we do our clients. Of course, we must also demand their best possible performance.

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The relationship between professional development and a better customer experience is direct. This is also true when we promote the pride of belonging to a brand. We know that when our colleagues are more prepared and feel more pride in City Sightseeing, our customers will benefit. We understand that when a person, for example a salesperson, has more developed skills, they better serve our potential customers and therefore get better results.

From my point of view, the success of the brand identity is very marked by how our employees interact with our customers. We can define some attributes and put a lot of effort into communicating them, but in the end our clients will have the vision of the brand based on their experience with us. This is marked to a large extent by how we interact with them. That is why we have to ensure that our team understands the importance of the brand and its attributes, and that they are prepared to take care of the customer in the same way that we do them.

How does City Sightseeing staff training, as well as pride in the brand, translate into a better customer experience?

We see that the pride of belonging to the brand has a positive effect on an employee’s daily tasks.

This is extremely noticeable in the communication employees have especially with customers.

If a person believes in what he/she sells, it makes his/her communication much more positive. And that has a direct relationship in a customer’s experience with City Sightseeing.

We have always heard that “companies are people”.

How do you expect the City Sightseeing people to reflect the brand’s identity?

Thus, it is very important that the attributes sold by the brand are present in the company itself. If we promise our customers a fun and creative service, we have to make our employees feel this in their day-to-day. “Companies are people” and this is especially important at City Sightseeing.

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The CS Family “It’s great to see the global brand as a family. That is something I felt before joining City Sightseeing and it is something that can be one of our great competitive advantages in the sector. This pride of belonging to a ‘family’ can help us work more effectively to fulfill our aspirations, which from my point of view, is to achieve happiness of our customers.”

Manuel Jimenez – City Sightseeing Worldwide 27

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News Discover the latest product, services and novelties from the travel industry through our providers’ innovations.

Seasonal Suggestions from the Purchasing Catalogue

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n September, many of the City Sightseeing operations leave the Summer season behind. That means different clothing and uniforms for the staff, but also new opportunities for satisfying customer needs. That is why the City Sightseeing Purchasing Department emailed you with suggestions from the City Sightseeing Purchasing Catalogue especially focused on this time of yea. You will find everything from ponchos to neck warmers to gloves.

For those starting the peak season in the South Hemisphere, there are also exciting items waiting for you in the Purchasing Catalogue for the warm months that lie ahead.

And remember: 1/ All of these products can be personalised, and 2/ Do not hesitate to ask for new products that would be helpful in your operation.

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Unvi Makes the France National Team Parade Sustainable

DESIC’s new collaborations and projects

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rance’s national team, which won the 2018 World Cup in Russia, travelled the ChampsElysées in Paris on Monday, 16th July, on a 100% electric double-decker open-top bus, which was manufactured by Unvi in Ourense, Spain.

It is becoming increasingly common to see Unvi buses in these kinds of celebrations. For example, we saw one at the Real Madrid’s 13th Champions League victory celebration this year and in Rome in 2006 when Italy won its 4th World Cup. But this is the first time it has been done on a 100% electric bus.

Unvi is committed to preserving the environment and developing innovative sustainable transport solutions for all their customers. Unvi has also developed a hybrid double-decker open-top bus, and smaller vehicles like Compa CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) available in 22 / 28 to 32 seats.

ESIC has providing leading-edge technology and IT solutions since 1997 and their Bus Operative smart travel system is already helping more than 10 operators in their daily work activity and improving their customer satisfaction worldwide. Budapest, Dubai, and most Spanish cities are just some using DESIC solutions.

With the help of this system you will be able to carry out a preliminary planning of your operation, track your vehicles in real-time, help your drivers know and follow their work plan, and provide clients with access to all the information about schedules, stops, routes, tickets, points of sale, places of interest, events, and experiences, among many other features.

In Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, Bus Operative has been serving the needs of CS Las Palmas for years with great success. Now DESIC has been selected to develop the new payment system with smart phones via QR code and bank cards that will be valid for urban and interurban lines within the framework of “LPA Inteligencia Azul”, a public EU-funded smart city project.

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Corporate News from the Global Brand

Partnership with Livn City Sightseeing has entered into a global technology and distribution partnership with Livn that enables travel agents and other resellers to issue mobile tickets for the CS network.

WTTC Europe

Hi! Tourism Meeting UK & Ireland Forum

On 11th September, City Sightseeing was present among 150 representatives of governments and large travel companies at the WTTC’s Europe Leaders Forum held in Lisbon.

At “Hi! Southern Tourism Meeting,” Enrique Ybarra participated in a panel discussion about the travel industry’s sustainable growth where shared the experience of CS operators worldwide.

City Sightseeing staff met with the CS operators from the United Kingdom and Ireland in Belfast.

There, they explored new projects that the whole network could benefit from.

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CSR

Part of Change!

Sustainable boats

Euro 6 buses

CS Cartagena partnered with Fundacion FHES (Human Foundation for Teaching and Service) to assist young women in need and allow them to get an education.

Four modern boats entered the “fleet” of CS Venice to provide services to the islands of Murano, Torcello and Burano. The boats are designed to minimize wave motion.

CS Cambridge expanded its fleet to include six new buses to meet the Euro 6 emissions standards. The overall goal is to help reduce pollution and improve air quality in Cambridge’s city centre.

Fund raisings

Caps collection

ABTA LifeLine

In July, the CS Belfast office staff teamed up with Irish Tour Tickets to raise funds for The Children’s Cancer Fund.

Donations were collected on their tour buses on 17th July. Well done!

All office staff in Seville contributed when a local hotel called looking for help in collecting plastic caps for a disabled boy trying to get a standing frame. In the picture, the first delivery.

The morning before the ABTA Travel Convention we cycled in order to raise money for ABTA LifeLine, a charitable trust to help people in the travel industry when they need it the most.

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CS Operators Outstanding News from Your Operation

CS Summer Style Five CS operations –Belfast, Budapest, Glasgow, Moscow, and Seville– said goodbye to the Summer Season by inviting their passengers to share pictures on Instagram wearing our marvellous CS sunglasses.

Minister & Family

Torino Design Tour

Star Star Tours

In September, Russia’s Tourism Minister of the region of Karelia brought his family to ride the CS Moscow buses. Big fun while visiting the Russian capital!

CS Torino has launched a new route focused on design. Visitors can now discover Torino as one of the “Cities of Design” among the UNESCO Creative Cities.

In August, James Corden created the James Corden’s Star Star Tours, a star tour for the stars, on a CS LA/Hollywood bus.

Check out The Avengers cast on the top deck!

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Miss USA on board

World Cup Stars

Belgium celebration

In July, our friends from CS New York received very special guests onboard when Miss USA and Miss Teen USA attended an event in the Big Apple. Great exposure for the global brand.

Players from the German national football team, Arne Friedrich and Jens Nowotny, enjoyed the atmosphere of the 2018 World Cup in Russia with CS Moscow.

City Sightseeing was yet again present in a football celebration. Now it happened in Brussels with the Belgium national team after a great performance in the World Cup in Russia.

“Wave Baths”

The Addams Family Hotel Transylvania

On 15th July, an old CS Santander bus, a single open-top vehicle with a wooden floor, became the most photographed bus in Spain for a day. It was used to transport extras in a historical recreation.

The Spanish cast of the musical comedy “The Addams Family” hopped on the CS Malaga bus during the promotion of the theatre performances in the city last summer. It was a big surprise!

In August, as the animation film “Hotel Transylvania 3” was played in theatres, our colleagues from CS Dublin received some very special guests.

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CS Family Staff Stories

Staff, Friends & Family We are happy to announce a new channel that allows the whole CS staff to be informed of the company’s novelties and to interact with the global brand. Go to http://city-sightseeing. com/staff.

Bonnie and Jono

Dani’s Promotion

Tomas 5 Stars

The CS Glasgow tour was recommended by the Glasgow 2018 European Championship mascot Bonnie the Seal.

There was Jono to catch up with this special guest.

Everybody loves Dani CS Cadiz ever since he joined the family due to an agreement with Afanas, an association of Down Syndrome in Cadiz. And now he is a permanent employee!

Tomas is one of CS Prague’s longest serving staff members and his incredible Castle Walking tour always gets a 5-star rating.

Great job! Keep up the fantastic work!

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Russian Hospitality

Welcome Sarai!

Tallest CS Member

During the World Cup in Russia last summer, Sergei Lavrentyev and his team encouraged the CS Family to visit the country. In the picture, they are with Muzaffar in Kazan.

Sarai Campuzano from CS San Antonio visited us at the City Sightseeing HQ in Seville. In the picture (L-R) Caron Cresswell, Maria Molina, Lauren Mogannam, Sarai, Szarina Hernandez, and Gonzalo Ruiz.

Nermin ‘Merlin’ Kurtovic is a ticket seller in CS Sarajevo. He measures 2.02 m and plays basketball. Everybody wants a picture with him in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina!

Luismi’s Wedding

Ada Claire Madeira

Leonie Hilbring

Most of you know Luis Miguel Labrado, the manager of CS Malaga, from the 2014 Annual Conference in Malaga. In July, he married Susana and the CS Family celebrated with them.

In September, our colleague from CS New Orleans, Emily Valentino, gave birth to her second child, Ada Claire, a lovely girl after her first son, Vinny.

Leonie is the first daughter of Alex Hilbring, our colleague from CS Kiel. She was born on 12th July and that means tha the CS Family is a bit larger today.

Congratulations!

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SuperPosts Best of Social Media

I Lauren Mogannam Online Communications Manager

t has been a few months since the City Sightseeing Annual Conference in Dubai and we are thrilled to see all the great work you have been doing with regards to social media. A big shout out to all of you who have changed your social media profile pictures to the official City Sightseeing logo of your respective cities. Showcasing a unified brand across online platforms is extremely important as it lets users know that we are all part of the same network, thus strengthening the brand. We are also very happy to see different City Sightseeing operations dabbling in social media and creating new profiles. One of the newest additions has been City Sightseeing Brighton to Instagram (make sure to take a look for yourself). Keep up the great work everyone!

To help inspire everyone, here are a few posts that we have seen on different social media platforms that do a great job representing the brand and promoting different cities and interacting with our fans.

Super Posts!

From Facebook to Twitter to Instagram, there are constantly great posts published throughout the City Sightseeing network to promote the global brand, give information, and inspire those to hop-on and discover a city with City Sightseeing.

Here are a few posts that we have selected that have done just that.

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The Wall

Social stories

Twitter | Facebook | TripAdvisor | TrustPilot | Viator | GetYourGuide Sarah Portlock — Belfast. Great value tour around Belfast, which is a fantastic city - ideal for a weekend break destination. People friendly and helpful, Guides on this tour are knowledgeable and willing to answer any questions you may have - recommended.

Sue Hinton – Cordoba. Booked day trip to Cordoba, Spain. Both guides Anthony and Helena were knowledgeable and courteous. A must see city if in Andalusia! I suggest spending two days to see highlights.

Stevie D – Rome. Probably the best hoho we have experienced in Italy so far (and we have done quite a few) .

The route takes you not just within the central areas but also the outskirts which was nice. Best to take this bus on the first day so you can get your bearings and learn a bit before walking all over.

If you have any issues walking then you should probably consider this bus as the streets are tight and we always seemed to be walking uphill!

Definitely worth the money.

@ArivalEvent. #ArivalEvent Round-table: What the Heck Are We (and How Do We Brand) Alex Kremer talks with this group of marketing masters from @contexttravel, @Hub_Strategy, Ripley’s Believe it or Not!, @CitySSWorldwide to get answers.

@jofwise. Turns out Inverness has a tour bus....well had to be done, didn’t it! @CitySSWorldwide Claude T – New York. Claude T — New York. Très bonne formule, à condition de rester relativement longtemps sur New-York car il y a des quartiers qu’il faut faire à pied. Notre conseil: à faire dès l’arrivée pour s’imprégner de la ville, puis approfondir la visite des sites qui vous intéressent en marchant. @CharleneNadalin. @CitySSWorldwide, I toured #Toronto on one of your buses last summer and became a tourist in my own city just like this article recommends, and loved it! #doubledecker #bus #siteseeing #hoponhopoff #Explore#citysightseeingdublin #weshowyoutheworld

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Chrysanthe I – Cape Town. The tour have met it standards. Me and my husband enjoy the excellent service from Rico,Lee Ann.And the driver, driving us safely.Keep up the hard work guys. Being a fellow cpt, doing this tour with my husband on heritage day will b of our treasured memories #proudlySA Jean — Bath. Really good journey around Bath enabling us to view many different sights not accessible while on the pavement level. Also took the Skyline tour which showed the outskirts of the city. Good value for money and the narration was informative.

MRS VAL SQUIRES. An excellent way to get around and see all the sights and to get off at places to see.

The ticket is valid for 2 days and includes a cruise.

The tour guides have excellent knowledge and very informative and helpful.

#Travelindustry #hubsanfrancisco #weshowyoutheworld

Social media really is the new phenomenon so on this page we hope to feature the best feeds from our Franchisees, some of our customer comments and also from leading industry ‘tweeters’. Send your social media namTe to topdeck@city-sightseeing.com and we’ll follow you. You can start with following us @CitySSWorldwide

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The travel of Peter:

Managing and reporting incidents Sarah, the driver, tells John via that there were roadworks at the bus stop nยบ3 and that she could only stop 200 meters away from there.

John makes the change and warns the travellers of the modification that has been made.

John the COO, is working with when suddenly an unforeseen, unexpected problem occurs...

The users get real-time information.

The notice is made in a massive way through the social networking sites of the operation synchronized with .

To be continued...

smart travel system

The manager

The customer

The driver

+34 928 374 026 www.desic-sl.com busoperative@desic-sl.com

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