UK OFFICE

May 2018 REPORT

Prepared by: Venessa Alexander UK Director

Tour Operators

Attended IPW in Denver and met with the following tour operators:

• Albatros, Denmark – Group tour operator specialising in over 60s market. Provided area update

• Travel 2 – Part of DNATA and one of their B2B brands. Provided room night stats which totalled 108 year to date as compared to Orlando with over 10,000 year to date. Advised we are very happy to work with DNATA overall but we cannot do so until we have basic room night information on all their brands. Awaiting a response

• Visit USA Finland – Discussed Florida’s Beaches participation in their consumer show MATKA which we have not attended for several year. Florida’s Beaches will now participate in 2019

• Ving, Sweden – They are performing very well for us and were very pleased with the recent co-op campaign. They would like to do more joint marketing moving forward and this will be incorporated in to the new fiscal plan.

• American Sky – Update call whereby they advised they are updating their website and have asked for images and video to be sent.

• Ocean Florida – New room night information shows they are 114% up for the area year on year which is a huge increase and reflects our sustained joint marketing efforts with them. We currently have a campaign live with them in market. Our area is tracking far ahead of their general Florida business.

• BA/BA Holidays – forward bookings on the direct service from Gatwick are up 14% which is being helped by increase in capacity due to a reconfiguration of the aircraft. Unfortunately BA Holidays are showing a 7% decrease in room nights to SPC but this is much better than earlier in the year where they were down substantially more than this. They do feel by the end of the year they will be level year on year, however this is against substantial increases in room nights to Orlando and Miami.

• Kuoni – After several years of a US programme that is just ticking over, they have decided to expand this programme and are proactively marketing many destinations within Florida. Provided the team with an area update and training will be scheduled for their reservations team.

• Nordmanns Rejser – Spoke about the recent co-op which did not perform very well but it seems that Nordmanns are facing strong competition from other operators in market and Florida as a whole is down for them.

• THG Holidays – Florida is doing OK for them but with small numbers. They are finding destinations such as the Deep South Sates are doing well for them.

• Premier Holidays – They have had a great start to 2018 but are finding that their Florida beach destinations are suffering as customers are staying longer in Orlando due to the excellent value of the rental homes in that area. They also feel that this year’s bubble might be down to people wanting to book and travel before Brexit actually happens as nobody is sure what the outcome will be.

• Tour America – They are 17% up to our destination for 2018. Spoke once again about partnering on a consumer out of home campaign with them in February 2019 and they are checking how much budget they might have to allocate to this. Experience Kissimmee would also be a partner in this campaign.

• Trailfinders – We are down slightly for Trailfinders in terms of room nights with Florida and Orlando tracking flat year on year. Trailfinders are not too concerned with this and feel that business will improve as the year goes on. Spoke about training opportunities as well as sending videos and event information for use on their Facebook page.

• Virgin Holidays – Great news that after several years of downturn in our room nights with Virgin, we are currently tracking 11% up. We are participating in their Visit Florida campaign as well as having our own campaign in-market and launch in their retail stores end of May.

Meetings/Training/Events

Boardmasters – We had a meeting with Vision 9 to discuss the outstanding elements of the activation. We were also joined by Katie from Rooster. V9 advised that once the agreement had been signed by Brand USA and they had received the funds, they would begin creating the design of the stand. In the coming weeks, we will work with them to finalise the various parts to the stand including; branding and signage, street art, street performers, VR footage and headsets, IPad and Wi-Fi for competition entries, TV screens, giveaways, communications marketing plan for social media, weather contingency plan, and relevant storage. Katie advised that they are finalising the remaining ticket giveaways through the Western Morning News and Bristol Post, as well as their Facebook competition. Since our meeting, Brand USA have signed the contract and approved the proposal.

TRADE LIAISON

Visit Florida Winter Campaign

The results for the Visit Florida Winter Campaign have now been received. The campaign included national radio, influencer programme, press outreach, tour operator and OTA campaign, airline partnerships and social media. The results are as follows:

NATIONAL RADIO CAMPAIGN

National Radio promotion on Heart radio with pre-promotion and a dedicated week of promotion of St Pete/Clearwater. Radio presenters visited destination to film and videos were included on the dedicated landing page which also included holiday sweepstakes with flights provided by British Airways.

Overall results

• Recorded Promos: 132 • Live Reads: 36 • Talent Lives: 2 • Breakfast Lives: 36 • Newsletters: 3 solus, 2 pods • Social Posts: 43 • Videos: 4 • Total Impressions: 10,765,685 • Total Media Value: £2,770,534.38

Social video content

• CMA: 355,417 views • Fort de Soto: 126,749 views • Chihuly: 360,736 views • Dolphin Cruise: 360,298 views • TOTAL: 1,203,200 views • Media value: £2,359,762,55

Landing Page

• Total landing page views 94,968 • Total entries 13,666

OTA CAMPAIGN - EXPEDIA (total impressions 3,037,744)

• Brand exposure throughout the Expedia and Expedia Brand Portfolio partners such as Hotels.com, Travelocity.com. Orbitz,com, eBookers and Hotels.com from January 1 through March 31. Targeting UK IP’s, Florida searches, Family travel or International Travel interest and other sunshine destinations. Marketing campaign elements included: • Expedia Homepage Takeover • Expedia Native Tiles • Expedia Brand Portfolio • Florida Landing Page

• Total Page Views: 32,762 est. • Room nights up 48% over campaign period • CTR 0.02% • Media value $9600

KAYAK (total impressions 1,116,708)

• Brand exposure throughout the Kayak.co.uk from January 1 through March 31. Marketing campaign elements included standard banners placements across the Kayak homepage and results page. • CTR 0.05% • Media value $11,167

INFLUENCER CAMPAIGN – OLI WHITE

Travelled in destination 9th – 15th April with his younger brother. He has 510k Facebook followers, 1.8 million Instagram followers and 2.8 million YouTube subscribers

• YouTube – 2 videos with 361,056 views/9900 likes/1094 comments • 17 pieces of content produced/9.3 million views/2.13% engagement rate

TOUR OPERATOR CAMPAIGN

British Airways Holidays: (Total impressions 4,102,603)

• British Airways developed a marketing campaign with the goal of driving inspiration and sales to Florida, targeting the pre-family audience

• Key marketing partnership was developed with the Stylist and Shortlist and included print advertorial, custom landing pages, digital banners, Social posts, and a competition.

• Overall Florida passenger bookings up +25% YOY, while room nights are up +44%

Highlights as follows:

- Total Competition Entries: 24,366 - Stylist Highlight Results - Email Sends: 45,000 - Email Open Rate: 20.79% - Social CTR: 0.67%

ShortList Highlight Results

- Total Sent: 45,000 - Open rate 40.78% - Social CTR: 0.71%

Total media value = $108,000 Bookings for room nights +33% YOY

Thomas Cook: (Total Impressions 873,447)

• Visit St. Pete/Clearwater was integrated in various aspects of the Thomas Cook campaign including: on site banners, off site banners and print publication, The Excursionist. • Visit St. Pete/Clearwater specific creative for banner ads on Thomas Cook’s website delivered 320,152 impressions, 234 clicks and a CTR of 0.07%, above benchmark of 0.05% • Visit St. Pete/Clearwater specific creative off site delivered, 553,295 impressions, 391 clicks and a CTR of 0.11%, above benchmark of 0.05%

Total media value = $100,000 Bookings for room nights +2% YOY

Ocean Florida: (Total impressions 1,071,000)

• Ocean Florida developed a digital led marketing campaign that included paid search, social, blog and email marketing. Along with direct mail and agent sales incentives. • St. Pete/ Clearwater & SeaWorld, deal of the week email was the 2nd best performing eblast with a17.13% open rate and 3.48% CTR • The St. Petersburg area saw +242% increase on room nights and +177% in passengers YOY for Q1. Clearwater was evaluated separately and they did see some downward • YOY performance – Clearwater Room Nights were down -44% and passenger numbers down by -43% • A look at forward bookings shows +103% increase in room nights for 2018 compared to 2017

Total media Value = $40,000

Funway: (Total impressions 2,161,297)

• Funway developed a robust program including B2B and B2C activity utilising an array of digital, print and social tactics such as dedicated eblast, Funway 4 Agents Homepage Promotion, MoneyCard Incentive, and exposure on My America Holiday. • The My America Holiday Email campaign featuring Visit St. Pete/Clearwater was sent to a database of 55,000. The open rate was 8.72% • The Travel Bulletin Email was sent to 16,535 contacts and delivered an open rate of 24.68% • Total media value = $40,000 • Bookings for room nights -4% YOY • Boardmasters – We had a call with Katie Bridges and the activations team from our US office to discuss the overall activation at Boardmasters. Leroy has advised to go ahead with the VR footage, TV screens and videographer. He is still working on the landing page/competition entry form and this will be with us shortly. Katie has recommended that we get a quote from the UK vendor for the production of staff clothing and giveaways, which we will follow up on in due course. Craig will send through details of the ring top game and the creatives which can be used for the giveaways. Rooster have finalized the competition for Shortlist, which will be live from the end of the month. The remaining ticket competitions will go live next month once finalised by Rooster.

• Thomas Cook – We have received the final piece of artwork, which is for the Excursionist magazine, and has been approved.

• British Airways – We spoke with Keri regarding the landing page for the Florida campaign which was being updated to ensure prominence of St. Pete/Clearwater and a clear customer booking journey. The radio script has now been approved and will go live this month. All elements have been finalised and we will receive the final results once the campaign has ended.

• USAirtours/TravelPlanners – We signed off all creative and obtained logo placement approval from Brand USA for our joint campaign with USAirtours & TravelPlanners with activity to commence from 1st May. We also received feedback from the winner of the Feel Unique competition, which we ran in partnership with TravelPlanners last year. The winner had a great time visiting our destination and appreciated all of our help in getting this finalized.

• Nordmanns, Norway – We have now received the final results from our campaign with we ran with them in partnership with Icelandair from September 2017 – March 2018;

• Newsletters – These were distributed to a database of approx. 14k customers, and opened by approx. 4.5k. Average open rate of 32.98% and average clicks 418. • Landing page – Traffic to our landing page – 2127 views, 969 unique visits, 639 searches, average view time at 33sec. • Paid Facebook adverts – 660,035 impressions, 2576 clicks, 2477 views on landing page. • Organic Facebook – 17,883 impressions • Room nights - During the campaign they booked 104 room nights.

• Ocean Holidays – Working on signing off all creative as well as working with Brand USA on their logo requirements. The campaign will start on the 1st June and activity includes; social media coverage, a homepage banner, a dedicated landing page, a blog and an email newsletter.

• Tour America/Experience Kissimmee/Visit St. Pete/Clearwater – Results were received and reported as per last month and since then we have also provided the campaign results document and invoice to Brand USA.

• Virgin Holidays – Fiona Lewry contacted us to advise that they are starting a new initiative which will allow their sales agents to become destination specialists. With this in mind, they are planning an in-house Fam trip for their Florida Experts which will allow them to experience our destination, a great opportunity as Virgin Holidays have not had any Fam trips to our area for quite a while now. They have already arranged accommodation and transport for the group of 14 people, but have asked for our assistance on the itinerary. We will work to get this arranged ahead of their arrival at the end of July.

• Virgin Holidays Retail – Work has commenced on the approval process with regards to our retail in-store promotion with Virgin Retail that started on the 24th May and will run for a period of 2 consecutive weeks as well as additional free of charge activity that is taking place in early July. We have received and approved the plasma screen video footage/messages, the takeover leaflet and the Trade Pack that will be received by every Virgin Retail staff member.

• American Road Company – We were contacted by Sam Revivo who was asking for content for their website. We have provided them with copy, images and videos.

• Icelandair, Scandinavia – Sigga Sveinsdottir, Sales Manager contacted us to advise that they are planning a sales agent fam trip to Tampa and St. Pete/Clearwater in September. They are planning on inviting their top agents from across the Scandinavian markets. We have confirmed rooms for the group at Sirata and will work on the itinerary in due course.

• Scandinavian Sales Mission – We had a follow up call with Ruhksana and Norbert to discuss the updated schedule. We have now confirmed meetings and trainings in Copenhagen and Malmo, and will be working on finalising the remaining appointments in Oslo as well as an event in Copenhagen and Oslo with Icelandair and Discover America respectively.

• Funway Holidays – Ahead of their evening training event next month in London, we have provided our training presentation. Unfortunately, they have cancelled the Manchester event due to poor attendance expected.

• Florida’s Beaches – Annual meeting at IPW Denver whereby Miami announced they will pull out of the alliance. We have asked the Florida Keys if they would like to participate. In addition the Swanson’s and FDM shows will not be covered under the alliance but will be shared between ourselves and Fort Lauderdale. We will reintroduce Matka in Helsinki in 2019 as well as a different show in Oslo.

• American Sky – We have arranged a meeting with Kathryn Glover next month to discuss the performance of the destination.

• Funway Holidays – A meeting has been arranged with Amy Shine the new Product Manager at Funway Holidays with some of our local area hoteliers who are visiting the UK in June.

• British Airways – Discussions are taking place with Marc James at British Airways regarding our possible joint annual FAM to St. Pete/Clearwater. Dates are being discussed and we should have further information in the coming weeks.

• Visit St. Pete/Clearwater/ SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment VIP Event – Plans are being discussed with SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment regarding our annual joint VIP event. This year we will be hosting a trade party in London and we are currently looking at venues. The date we have confirmed for the event to take place is the 20th September 2018.

• Gold Medal Travel – Training has been arranged in partnership with local area hoteliers including The Sirata Beach Resort, The Tradewinds Resorts and the Holiday Inn Harborside at Gold Medal Travel in Preston next month.

• Brand USA Mega Fam – We have received the TTG article which included an interview with Dr Hank Hine from the Dali Museum. We have shared this with our office and partners. The feedback we have received from Lucy Russell, Brand USA, upon her return from the Mega Fam, was very positive from the agents who participated.

• Trailfinders – The recent FAM trip we had assisted with for Laurent de Alberti, Staff Travel Assistant at Trailfinders has now taken place and we were advised that the trip was a resounding success and Laurent also shared the team blog that they will be posting online in the coming weeks.

• Visit America, Ireland – We have received their Q2 2018 marketing results;

• Website • 3507 sessions ytd • Users – 3174 • Page views 7544 • Average session duration – 54 sec • Social Media • Facebook – 2573 page likes • Twitter – 605 followers • Instagram – 185 followers • Email • New format working well with open rate of 28% and 1.2% click through (higher than the industry average)

ENQUIRIES:

Telephone/website enquiries for information and/or literature 57

MARKET INTELLIGENCE:

1 May 2018, Source TravelMole Gatwick announces 1,200 job vacancies Gatwick Airport is looking to take on more than 1,200 extra staff in readiness for its busiest ever summer. There are more than 800 vacancies in its shops and restaurants, including at WHSmith, Wetherspoon, Boots, Fat Face, Starbucks and Monsoon, and it is also looking for more than 400 check-in assistants and baggage handlers to work for firms including DHL, Menzies, Airline Services, dnata and Swissport. All the additional roles announced today are seasonal, said the airport, which has a total of around 24,000 on-site jobs. Head of retail Rachel Bulford, added: "It's great to see, once again, so many job opportunities opening up throughout our retail and restaurant offering at the airport. These roles will help to ensure we provide excellent service in all our outlets as passenger numbers increase over the busy summer period. "A large proportion of our staff are based in the surrounding counties, making Gatwick one of the largest economic drivers for the South East region." Gatwick will be in attendance at the East Surrey College Job Fair on May 23, alongside 30 other employers based at the airport to showcase the roles on offer to local people.

1 May 2018, Source TravelMole Holiday spending expected to fall Spending on holidays over the next few months will be 'significantly below' last year's level, according to a report by financial services firm Deloitte. While there was a big increase in spending on long-haul holidays and short breaks in the first quarter of the year, Deilotte said people planned to spend a lot less than last year in the next quarter. Its report shows consumers plan to spend less in almost all leisure activities, apart from playing sport and attending live sports events. "Despite inflation beginning to ease and wages growing gradually, there has been a clear shift in behaviour with consumers starting to rein in their leisure expenditure," said the report. "This suggests that as essentials take up a larger part of their income, consumer are consciously re-evaluating and adjusting their discretionary spending."

4 May 2018, Source TravelMole Norwegian rejects IAG takeover bids IAG's attempts to buy Norwegian Air Shuttle have stalled. Norwegian confirmed today it has received two offers from the airline group but neither has been big enough. In a statement issued this morning, Norwegian said it has received two separate conditional proposals from IAG to buy 100% of its share capital. It said the bids were unanimously rejected on the basis that they undervalued the low-cost airline and its prospects. IAG took a 4.6% stake Norwegian last month. Norwegian said its Board 'remains fully committed to delivering on its stated strategy, for the benefit of all shareholders'. The disclosure came as IAG, parent to British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, Level and Vueling, raised its profit forecast on the back of its first quarter results. Operating profit for the three months to March 31 rose from €160 million in the previous year to €280 million, with pre-tax profit up to €246 million. Passenger numbers grew by 8.5% to just under 23 million and capacity jumped by 4.1%, pushing revenue up 2.1% to just above €5 billion.

5 May 2018, Source Travel Weekly Holiday credit card sales may rise to 80% The proportion of holidays paid for on credit card is expected to rise to as much as 80% following the ban on surcharges in January, according to Barclays Bank. The EU Payment Services Directive (PSD2) means travel firms are no longer allowed to charge customers a fee for using their credit cards to cover their transaction costs, which traditionally have been about 2%. Chris Lee, director and head of travel and professional sports at Barclays Corporate Banking, said prior to PSD2, 70% of holidays were paid for by debit card. However, since January that proportion has changed to beyond 50:50 in favour of credit cards as consumers take advantage of the benefits of paying on credit. Speaking ahead of next week’s Barclays Travel Forum, Lee said: “No one knows for sure, but we think that will flip around from what it previously was [and] might go to as much as 80:20.” He said this trend had left Barclays travel clients with a difficult decision about how to offset the impact of the surcharge ban. “Many have built it in to their overall pricing for all customers to maintain margins because they can’t discriminate between people who use credit cards and people who pay with debit cards,” he said. “Some have decided not to adjust their pricing for the time being and have just taken the hit.” Abta said travel agents are hit particularly hard by the surcharge ban because they do not have the option of raising prices to pass on the costs of processing payments. The association has demanded greater regulation of the card payment marketplace in a consultation issued by the Treasury and welcomed a separate review by the Payment Services Regulator. A spokeswoman said: “The current situation is clearly failing to deliver the government’s objective of cheaper card payments, and is putting SME businesses at a severe disadvantage.”

10 May 2018, Source TravelMole Term-time holiday fines have opposite effect in Wales A report has found that fining parents for taking children on holiday in term time has actually pushed up the number of unauthorised family trips in Wales. The Welsh Government, which commissioned the report and surveyed teachers and staff of local authorities and local education consortiums, found incidents increased after fixed penalty notices were introduced in 2013. Interviewees who took part in the study shared stories about travel agents stumping up for the fines as part of a holiday deal, or of social workers paying fines for families. Several respondents said the fine of £60 was too low to encourage behaviour change and that parents preferred to pay the amount but pay less for their holiday. Others complained of fine inconsistencies within the same local authority and even within the same schools, the BBC reported. A spokesman for the Welsh Government it would consider the proposals in the report alongside other evidence gathered as part of a broader review of attendance policy.

15 May 20185, Source Travelbiz Tourism boss calls for an extra week's school holiday each year Head teachers should pool their staff training days to create an extra week's holiday in May or June as an alternative to term-time fines, a UK tourism boss has said. Malcolm Bell, CEO of Visit Cornwall, said the move 'would make a big difference to families and help the tourism industry reduce congestion at peak times'. He is among several tourism bosses in the UK calling on the Government to scrap fines for term-time holidays, saying the policy is hitting the industry hard. Bell told the Plymouth Herald penalties were a 'naïve, silly knee- jerk reaction that did not have the intended effect'. He added: "They created a problem for the tourism industry." Alistair Handyside, chairman of the South West Tourism Alliance, agreed, telling the newspaper: "It is absolute hogwash which is damaging the tourism industry in Devon and Cornwall." He added: "It does not affect well-off families who, if they are spending thousands of pounds on a holiday take a £200 fine as part of the cost. "It stops poorer families from having a holiday." Bell added: "It's not true there is a cartel pushing up school holiday time prices. It's supply and demand."

15 May 2018, Source Travelbiz Orlando reaches 72 million annual visitors Orlando has consolidated its spot as America's top tourist destination with 72 million visitors in 2017. In doing so, the theme park capital of the world has become the first US destination to surpass the 70-million annual visitor mark. The figure represents annual growth of more than 5%, Visit Orlando said. Visit Orland president and CEO George Aguel said: "Our record-breaking year was achieved despite international headwinds and the statewide effects of Hurricane Irma. "In 2017, our destination launched new consumer experiences on a significant scale, and our marketing efforts leveraged increasing consumer confidence in the United States. "We also continued our focus on communicating the unique emotional connections visitors have with Orlando." Orlando recorded an all-time high of 65.86 million domestic visitors while maintaining its place as a top destination for international travelers, despite upheaval in some major overseas markets. A total of 6.15 million international visitors came to Orlando last year. "Looking ahead, with so many new developments throughout our destination, the region's number-one industry is poised to grow even stronger - this year and well into the future. "Tourism supports one in three jobs and generates nearly $70 billion in annual economic impact," Aguel added.

16 May 2018, Source Travolution Brexit: Long-haul departures are ‘up 50% since referendum’ A 50% increase in long-haul travellers from the UK has been recorded since the Brexit referendum, new research reveals. Passenger numbers to all destinations are up 6%, buoyed by increases to long-haul destinations, including the Americas, up 56%, and Asia up 50%. The results come from analysis of travel industry data to identify trends since the EU referendum two years ago by eDreams ODIGEO. The US has risen four places to become the fifth most popular destination for British travellers. Los Angeles led the list of cities for highest passenger growth with a 178%, while Boston, up115% and Orlando, up 50% also ranked in the top ten for growth. The survey suggests the growth trends towards Asian and American destinations could be set to continue, thanks mainly to young travellers looking to explore long-haul destinations for the first time. Around one in ten (13%) people aged 16-24 are making plans to visit Asia for the first time, whilst 15% plan an inaugural trip to the US. The overall trend is linked to the rise of low-cost airlines offering long-haul flights, such as Norwegian. A YouGov poll commissioned by the OTA of 1,600 people to understand how the EU referendum influenced their views reveals that: • 72% of travellers say they will not cut back on spending this year. Ten per cent are prioritising their getaways by saving in other areas such as eating out and spending on clothes • A quarter have done at least one thing to save money in relation to holidays or breaks since the EU referendum • Over one in ten (14%) Londoners have travelled to cheaper destinations for holiday breaks since the referendum – more than double the national average eDreams ODIGEO head of UK and group external affairs Robert McNamara said: “The pound’s fall in value against the euro, combined with an increase in low-cost long-haul flights, has pushed up UK demand for long-haul travel since the EU referendum in 2016. “This broadening of holiday horizons is encouraging for the travel industry. “Time abroad remains precious and a top priority – with most Brits intending to keep holiday spending the same, even if it means cutting back on other areas. “Looking forward, our most recent data suggests that the growth in long-haul travel amongst UK travellers is set to continue. Although the destinations may change, people still want to travel.”

16 May 2018, Source Travolution Expedia study reveals key trends in ‘booming’ bleisure travel sector New research conducted by Expedia Group Media Solutions has found 60% of corporate travellers globally extend their trips to add some leisure activities. The study underlines the so-called ‘bleisure’ phenomenon that is seeing an increasing blending of business and leisure travel. Expedia commissioned the multi-national study that was conducted by Luth Research and covered American, British, Chinese, German, and Indian travelers. The results of the Unpacking Bleisure Traveler Trends report were released today at the annual Phocuswright Europe conference in Amsterdam. It found bleisure travelers take more than six business trips per year, and more than 60% of business trips during the last year were extended for leisure purposes. In the US, bleisure travel conversion is consistent with the multi-national average of 60%, representing an almost 40% increase in American bleisure travel since 2016. The study found 72% of respondents said there are destinations they have visited or will visit in the future for business that they would like to extend for bleisure. Fifty-six percent said they are more likely to consider a bleisure trip in a destination with great food and restaurants, closely followed by approximately 50% influenced by beaches, weather, nature, historical monuments or sightseeing. Andrew van der Feltz, senior director, EMEA & APAC at Expedia Group Media Solutions, said: “The study provides a deeper look at the influences and motivations of the growing and valuable bleisure audience, and the actionable insights will empower marketers to strategically target and convert these travellers within the condensed research and booking window. “By showcasing unique experiences and activities, which are influential factors during the decision-making process, every destination, hotel, restaurant, attraction, airline, and more, can entice business travellers to extend their trip for leisure.”

20 May 2018, Source Travelbiz Whatever happened to the two-week break? With taking time off frowned upon in overstretched offices and budget airlines popularising the quick city getaway, more than two thirds of us didn’t have a fortnight’s holiday last year

The fortnight holiday, once a staple of British life, is quietly fading into sepia-tinted history. Research by British Airways found that 69 per cent of Brits did not take a two-week holiday last year, and the Office for National Statistics confirms the trend. Over the past 20 years, the number of people taking a fortnight away dropped by almost a third. While the older generation – those aged 65 and over – are the most likely to escape for more than seven days, younger people in the 18-24 age bracket are the least likely. The growth of budget airlines and cheap flights is one reason: there has been a surge in three-night trips, especially among those aged 35-44. But this is only part of the story. BA also found that more than a third of those polled felt that a fortnight off would be ‘frowned on’ or ‘discouraged’ in their workplace. Added to this, repeated studies have shown that we’re increasingly unlikely to use up our annual leave – one found that the average UK employee only takes three quarters of their holiday allowance. Even missing work when we’re sick has become a bit taboo. Sue Clarke, a career and leadership coach (inthehotseat.co.uk), says that the way her clients take holidays – and whether they do at all – is a huge issue. ‘It’s something that comes up all the time,’ she says. ‘We have our official job contract, which sets out what we’re legally entitled to take, and we have our “psychological contract” – the unwritten rules, the company culture. Clarke continues, ‘many companies have pared down staff levels to the bare minimum, which can make scheduling holidays difficult and impact the amount of time you can take in one go.’ We’re also contactable wherever we are in a way we certainly never used to be. One study by the Institute of Leadership & Management found that 61 per cent of UK workers feel obliged to work on holiday; 64 per cent read and send emails, and 28 per cent take business calls. ‘Thirty years ago, when I was a young, stressed executive taking a fortnight off, it was only during the second week that I started to relax,’ says Clarke. ‘But back then, mobiles weren’t the norm and there was no internet – it was true time out. That doesn’t happen any more. We’re always “get-at-able”. The work doesn’t stop, the emails pile up, you don’t know what you’re coming back to. There just isn’t the incentive to go away for so long now.’ In fact, there’s overwhelming evidence to show their importance. Regular holidays have been linked to lower rates of depression, cardiovascular disease and heart attacks. Tests on workers before and after a long summer holiday have shown that people return more able to think flexibly and produce a greater range of ideas. Stepping away from routine refreshes our thinking, provides headspace to see what isn’t working and makes us feel more able to make changes.

21 May 2018, Source TravelMole SeaWorld to give visitors free beer this summer SeaWorld is joining sister theme park Busch Gardens in bringing back free beer this summer. Starting May 18, guests can stay cool with two free 7-ounce beers per visitor aged 21 and over. It is available at Mama's Pretzel Kitchen Patio in the park through September 2. SeaWorld's own brew Mako Red Ale will kick it off while other beers such as Bud Light, Coors Light, Miller Lite and Yuengling will rotate through the summer. Busch Gardens brought back free beer earlier this month after a gap of nine years. Free booze was a summer staple at Busch Gardens for decades when it was owned by brewer Anheuser-Busch. That changed when the company was sold to the Blackstone Group back in 2009 and the freebies ended a short time later.

22 May 2018, Source TravelMole Nearly one in 10 don't book their holiday until the last minute Nearly one in 10 people don't book their holiday until a few days before departure, according to research commissioned by the Civil Aviation Authority. A poll of just over 2,000 Brits by ComRes carried out earlier this month found 5% are happy to leave booking their holiday until the actual day of their departure. The research also revealed that holidaymakers in London are nearly twice as likely as the rest of Great Britain to have booked on the same day (9%). There is also a tendency for those in the North West to consider booking their holiday just a few days before - 19% versus 15% overall. Just under half of us book at least seven days in advance. Andy Cohen, head of ATOL, said: "Even if the idea of grabbing a last minute deal is appealing, it is worth spending an extra couple of minutes to check your holiday bargain is ATOL protected. "Having an ATOL certificate means that your holiday is financially protected, so if the travel company goes bust, you will still be able to get home and will not lose your hard earned cash. For added peace of mind, whenever you book your holiday, look for the ATOL logo to ensure you can fully enjoy your well-earned holiday."

23 May 2018, Source Travelbiz Costs for term-time holidays soar: Parents who take their kids out of school for a getaway are forced to pay up to £739 more compared to 2016

Holiday prices in term time have increased up to 32 per cent in past two years. This means savings made by travelling at off-peak times are being squeezed. Study found big difference in prices for the same holiday from different airports. Parents who take their children out of school for a cheaper getaway are paying up to £739 more for their holiday compared to two years ago, a new investigation has found. Holiday prices have inflated by as much as 32 per cent for term-time holidays, meaning savings made by travelling off-peak are being squeezed - but are still substantially less than in the official school holidays. However, while looking into the cost of holidays in 2018, families travelling abroad this year face paying an average of 22 per cent extra for a holiday taken within the summer break, compared to the same package holiday just two weeks earlier within term-time. FairFX found that prices shot up by an average of 22 per cent for trips departing the weekend of July 28 compared to trips leaving two weeks earlier on July 14. These price hikes mean families face paying nearly £650 extra on average for holidaying during the official summer break in some instances. Ian Strafford- Taylor, CEO of FairFX, said: 'Our latest investigation reveals that holidaymakers are still very much at the mercy of travel providers who are putting families in a difficult financial situation when it comes to taking their children on holiday outside of term time. 'Even those who are at liberty to travel during school term without incurring penalties are also vulnerable to price hikes.'

24 May 2018, Source TravelMole Barrhead launches training portal Barrhead Travel has launched a new training portal, with over 150 training courses accessible to staff. The portal will deliver a variety of bespoke training programmes with specialist support on subjects such as CRM, sales and customer service. The new system, hosted by OTT, was first used as a medium to train all staff across the business on GDPR regulations, which proved to be a successful first use. The portal combines classroom training and e- learning, but will also make training courses far more accessible to Barrhead Travel teams across the UK, including those who run their own businesses under the Brilliant Travel umbrella. This new technology was built and shaped in-house by the company's own training team. Barrhead Travel will continue work with their suppliers to deliver further training programmes. The portal will also enable Barrhead Travel to pull reporting information to track performance and develop staff members.

25 May 2018, Source Travolution Mastercard Travel Landscapes: Travel benefits from fundamental shift in consumer spending

Travolution and Mastercard held an inaugural Travel Landscapes event this week with senior travel delegates hearing from inspiring speakers on the dreaming, booking and experiences phases of travel. The devastating global financial crash of 2008 prompted a switch in consumer buying patterns from accumulating possessions to experiences, according to Mastercard. Sarah Quinlan, senior vice president of market insights, told a Travolution Travel Landscapes event that the global payments giant accesses data from 160 million transactions an hour it processes. She said the 2008 global financial crash had a “fundamental” impact on how wealth is measured as consumers moved from acquiring more goods to do things with friends and family. This move to a more “experiential economy” is good news for the travel and tourism sector, Quinlan said. “We lost a lot in 2008. The whole world saw fundamental wealth loss,” she said. “The one things that did not leave us was family and friends. “You are so fortunate to be in this industry. Spending in every major economy in the world is focused on travel and tourism. This is increasingly what consumers are going to do.” Quinlan told delegates that fluctuations in currency is one of the big determining factors in where tourists choose to travel. She said the access to data all consumers have today on their mobile devices means they are highly sensitive to currency movements and the impact on travel can be almost immediate. “When people have purchasing power they start to travel further. Travel and tourism is vitally important to economic growth. That’s why everyone is competing.” In particular destinations are competing for high-spending US visitors and the strong dollar they bring with them. Quinlan said when the pound slumped 20% in the aftermath of the Brexit referendum one of the things that sustained the economy as people stopped spending was tourism. Mastercard says the data it has on the travel sector should allow the industry to better target deals and to address issues of over-tourism in peak times in tourism hotspots.

26 May 2018, Source Travelbiz Holidays 2018: Are all-inclusive getaways as much of a bargain as you think? HOLIDAYS that are all-inclusive can prove more expensive than B&B options if tourists aren’t careful, a new report warns. Although the lure of endless cocktails and multiple trips to the lunch buffet may seem tempting, opting for all-inclusive is rarely as cheap as travellers presume as extra spending hits a record eight-year high. The research, conducted by Post office Travel Money in its annual All Inclusive Report, reveals three-in-ten holidaymakers planning trips abroad this year will be heading off on all inclusive packages. Commonly, travellers believe all-inclusive board will cut the costs of childrens’ meals and drinks and that the deal is good value as they won’t need to take holiday spending money. However, most of the two-in-five families who went all-inclusive on their last trip ended up spending an average of around £431 extra in their hotel and in the local resort, adding between 14 and 21 per cent more to the overall cost. “This year’s report found that the numbers splashing out on extras has risen for the eighth year running,” said Andrew Brown of Post Office Travel Money, “and while this may reflect a growing acceptance that all inclusive has its limits, the extra costs continue to catch people out. “One-in-ten of the holidaymakers we spoke to expressed surprise at the prices they were charged for extras in their all inclusive hotel.” According to the research, 82 per cent of families paid out extra for meals, drinks and other items in their all inclusive hotel at an average cost of £139.31 each. Despite the large sums spent on their hotel, nine-in-ten families splashed the cash away from their hotel. In European resorts, eating out, alcoholic and soft drinks, snacks, ice cream and bottled water cost all inclusive tourists an average of £292, while holidaymakers on long haul holidays spent an average of over £320 on those items. The best advice, if going all-inclusive, is to do your homework and find out as exactly what is and isn’t included as soon as you arrive in the resort. “Avoid falling into financial pitfalls like charges made for drinks late at night and limited periods when ice creams are free,” advises Brown. “Learn the rules of your resort and save yourself cash.”

30 May 2018, Source TravelMole Long-haul holidays 'cheaper than shorthaul' this summer Holiday price comparison website TravelSupermarket is claiming families could save as much as 47% swapping a short-haul holiday for a more exotic destination this summer. It claims that a family of four could travel to Phuket in Thailand for a fortnight in mid-August for £2948 less than an equivalent holiday in Santorini, saving 47% on the cost of the package. It also claimed a family would save £1,092 (or 33%) if they went to New York instead of the Greek island of Mykonos during the summer school holiday, or they could swap Mykonos for long-haul beach destinations Barbados or the Seychelles and still save money. Emma Coulthurst of TravelSupermarket said: "There are some fantastic savings to be made by swapping short haul for long haul and going thousands of miles further this summer. "It is really worth comparing long haul and short haul to see how far you can go for a lot less. If you pick well, you can experience some long-haul destinations this summer for as much as 47% less than holidays much closer to home." When it searched holiday prices on May 28, TravelSupermarket found that a family of four from the southeast could travel to New York for £582pp, including seven nights room-only in a four-star hotel, while a week in Mykonos B&B would cost them £1,024 more.. "The cost of living is also a lot cheaper in long-haul destinations like Thailand than it is in short-haul destinations within the Eurozone," added Coulthurst. "A three-course meal in a mid-range restaurant in Thailand will only set you back around £7-8 and a pint of local beer £1.20 to £1.60. An equivalent meal in Ibiza is likely to cost you around £26 each and a beer around £2 to £3. "Weather wise, August is one of the best months to go to Barbados and the Seychelles; it is the peak of the dry season so there is lots of sun and hardly any rain; a great time to enjoy the Islands'~beaches and the sea. New York can be very hot but, at those prices, it is worth considering. "In Phuket, you should expect brief but heavy showers on the Island but with plenty of sunshine between downpours. People go for the beach once any rains have cleared in the mornings so it is definitely worth considering at those prices. It will also be quieter in Thailand than in November to March".