VON ESSEN GROUP GOES INTO ADMINISTRATION - On The Road

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late april 2011 Issue 195 IN THE 2 ETOA news 3-4 Places news 5-6 Options and Attractions news 7-8 Hospitality news 8 Hospitality corporate news 9 People 10 Transport news / Flight plan 11 Cruise news 12 MICE news / Faith Tourism news 13 Travel Industry news 14 Swarovski - Blue Noses, Famos 15 Hotel Metropole / Schilthorn 16 The Doll’s House Museum - Silvesterkläuse 17 “We Welcome Groups” NEWS Magazine Design and artwork... http://www.imageloading.co.uk �� NaIl IN the coffIN? ...continued by the hotels association in a busy Turkish resort that UK operators had bullied hoteliers into reluctantly turning themselves into all-inclusive. For this they were being paid the princely sum of €20 per night per person for the whole package. “What this does to the local economy is obvious, the hospitality for which Turkey is famous and the consequent end result for the holidaymaker. The TUI group are supposed to be leading the pack in terms of responsible etoa news... ETOA UpdATE... CiTy TOUrism sEminArs Following ETOA’s recent City Tourism Seminar in Florence, the Association is planning to hold further meetings in other European destinations. The seminars will bring together representatives of the local tourism community such as hotels, guides, attractions and transport providers, as well as tour operators, tourist boards and political representation from local authorities. The discussion will revolve around each city’s challenges and opportunities as a tourist destination. Topics to be covered will be access, facilities, capacity management, product diversity and sustainability. ETOA sees these events as invaluable forums and it is hoped that the outcomes will not only help tourism in the particular cities but also form the basis of a City Tourism charter. “If our association has a leitmotif, it is Europe’s competitiveness as a destination”, said Nick Greenfield, Head of Tour Operator Relations at ETOA. “Europe is particularly strong when it comes to cities as tourist destinations. We have an embarrassment of riches, not just in terms of historic sights but also in gastronomy, culture, shopping, attractions and the very fabric of the streets and squares. And from large metropolises to small art cities, there is something for everyone. However, we must recognise that tourism doesn’t just work of its own accord. It requires joined up thinking from all the stakeholders and that includes local authorities. Policy decisions can undermine all the hard work done by tourist boards in promotion. City taxes, lack of facilities or even an indifferent welcome can damage the image of a city and hurt the local economy. Equally we recognise the challenges that tourism can present to cities and that’s where we can help by bringing people together to discuss these issues and work towards ensuring the continued success of destinations”. and sustainable tourism, so how do they justify this?” Given the importance of this issue and the power of TUI in the global marketplace, Vision on Sustainable Tourism and Totem Tourism will hold a master class in London on 10 May to discuss the subject and its relevance to sustainable tourism. Executives of TUI and other major tour operators have been invited to attend. www.totemtourism.com These seminars will form a part of what is becoming a city-themed year for ETOA with a flagship event, City Fair, to be held on 20th June in London in partnership with European Cities Marketing. If your city would be interested in hosting a City Tourism seminar, then please contact Nick Greenfield at ngreenfield@etoa.org. VisA’s – nExT sTEp After ETOA conducted a major visas survey last year, there were several meetings with both the European Commission and the UK authorities. At ETOA’s recent Britain and Ireland Marketplace, the particular absurdities of the situation between Britain and Ireland were highlighted, as well as the damage done to the image of the British Isles by over-bureaucratic and unfriendly visa processes. The good news is that both the EC and the UK Government have recognised the need to improve the visa situation; the challenge is how ETOA can push that process forward. This is where members and the broader tourism community can help. We need your own illustrations of dealing with visas to back up the data that was provided by our survey. The EC Handbook on Visas, a document of good practice, highlights areas such as deadlines and acceptable processing times, as well as clear instructions in various languages and suitable supporting documentation. ETOA knows from its survey that there are plenty of cases where these aspirations are not being met. At the same time, the UK Government has said they will aim to improve the efficiency of the visa process but, again, much needs to be done. Please forward your specific experiences of the visa process, be they Schengen, UK or Ireland, to info@etoa.org.All correspondence will be treated confidentially and any illustrations will be handled anonymously with the authorities. ETOA will be releasing further market specific reports later this year. © Copyright 2011. Articles published in this magazine are copyright and should not be reproduced without permission from the publishers. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers and all information is given in good faith. no responsibility can be taken by the publishers for any errors or omissions, howsoever caused. Readers are advised to check upon any information given, and where relevant take professional advice before acting upon it. on the road issue 195 Page 2
Places news usa The US Department of Commerce has released its 2010 report on International visitation, noting a record 60m visitor 5m more than the previous year. In 2010, the top inbound markets continued to be Canada and Mexico, both of which were up in arrivals along with eight of the nine overseas regional markets. Non-resident visits from Canada, which set a record in 2010, and Mexico were up 11% and 1%, respectively. Excluding Canada and Mexico overall arrivals from overseas markets accounted for 44% of the total. United Kingdom is still the biggest market with 3.85m arrivals, but the only major country showing a drop, 1.2%. Next up was Japan, and growth was 16% (3.38m) but this is likely to drop away in 2011 due to the earthquake problems. Germany is less than half of the UK at 1.72m (+2.3%) and France seeing 11.4% increase at 1.34m. Brazil now seventh (1.19m +34%) and China with a 52% rise and 800,000 visitors to the United States. www.tinet.ita.doc.gov copenhagen The Danish capital has been awarded Destination of the Year by European Consumers Choice, ahead of Barcelona, Rome and Madrid as the best place to visit in 2011. The European Consumers Choice Awards are presented every year in a number of categories which the organisation sets and which consumers then vote on. This year, Copenhagen received 25% of the votes - 4% more than Barcelona. Copenhagen was the only Scandinavian city nominated and maintained the lead throughout the whole month of voting. www.europeanconsumerschoice.org Copenhagen france Tall Ships News - sailing spectacle! 30th May - 5th June 2011. This major maritime biennial event opens the sailing season in the Bay of Morbihan, Southern Brittany with around 1,000 sailing craft and tall ships. It can be viewed from coastal paths, bays and ports around the Bay of Morbihan. guernsey VisitGuernsey is stepping up its targeting of group business this year as it builds on a successful 2010 in the group travel sector. The island exhibited at the Excursions 2011 group travel show in January. This followed last year’s introduction of a dedicated groups e-brochure and a marked increase in interest from specialist operators at the Guernsey Trade Workshop event in May 2010. Fisherman’s Quay, St Peters Port Guernsey Copyright: Chris George “Groups business has been on the increase for us for 18 months or more,” said Jason Moriarty, VisitGuernsey’s Manager - Trade & Media Relations. Guernsey’s compact size (just 24 square miles) makes all of this easily accessible, and to add even greater variety day excursions to the traffic-free islands of Herm and Sark can be easily arranged. To download the Guernsey group travel e-brochure organisers and agents should visit www.guernseytrademedia.com/ meetguernsey or call 01481 234567. turkey lost cities The discovery of the lost city of Germenicia in Kahramanmaras with its many houses decorated with mosaics such as found in Ephesus and Zeugma. The antique Roman city of Julianopolis close to Ankara during the unearthing the ancient city of Parnassos was also discovered. excavation finds In Istanbul and it’s surrounds, a 60-metre section of a Roman road and a tunnel have been found in Kocaeli.A temple with statues of Aphrodite and Eros dating from the 2nd century BC in addition to a plethora of ceramics and the remains of walls and a tower in Tekirdag. The Black Sea region has unearthed a 2500-seater theatre during excavations of the ancient city of Tieios, Zonguldak. This ancient city looks set to become known as the Ephesus of the Black Sea Coast. Unique mosaics of horses elephants and panthers at the ancient city Menorca-Port of Maho New sites and finds have recently been unearthed. Highlights include newly discovered lost cities and significant artefacts from ongoing excavations... New forest New forest Brothers jailed Victor Mears, 67, and Henry Mears, 60, ran the Lapland New Forest attraction in 2008 but it closed within days after hundreds of complaints. Earlier this year they were found guilty of eight charges of misleading the public. Both men, from Brighton, were sentenced to 13 months imprisonment. They were also disqualified from being company directors for five years. Judge Mark Horton who presided over the case told the brothers: “You promised customers in your advertising an amazing snow covered Lapland village which was - in your own words - ‘Where dreams really do come true’ and ‘where we have prided ourselves on attention to detail’. “You told consumers that it would light up those who most loved Christmas. You said you would go Nativity scene – Lapland New Forest Turkey’s archaeological finds of Hadrianapolis in Karabuk, leading to this site being referred to as the Zeugma of the Black Sea Coast. In and around the coastal areas of Turkey findings include what is believed to be King Hekataios’s (father of King Mausolos) marble-relief sarcophagus found in the Zeus Karios area of Milas in south-western Turkey. A 1500-year-old Byzantine paintmanufacturing workshop indicating that the port was once full of such premises. On the Aegean coast, a 3000-year old wine-manufacturing centre has been found in Cesme. Findings in Central Anatolia include Cuneiform-script tablets near the ancient city of Kanesh (Hittite Neša) in Kayseri, showing that the first written trade agreement in Anatolia was made 4000 years ago. The ancient city of Kanesh is also the site of discovery of the earliest traces of the Hittite language, and the earliest attestation of any Indo-European language, dated to the 20th century BC. 5000-year-old ramparts have also been unearthed at Kultepe in Kayseri. through the magical tunnel of light coming out in a winter wonderland. What you actually provided was something that looked like an averagely-managed summer car boot sale.” Visitors paid between £25 and £30 for tickets. Approx 40,000 tickets were sold before the Christmas attraction had even opened, netting the organisers about £1m. Less than a week after opening in November 2008, the attraction closed, with its owners blaming the media and sabotage by “New Forest villains” for the decision. on the road issue 195 Page 3
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VON ESSEN GROUP GOES INTO ADMINISTRATION - On The Road

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