TRADE TALK How travel
TRADE TALK How travel professionals see the “new dyna Kay Ellison International Product & Contracting Executive, Thompsons, Johannesburg, South Africa Evelyne Gaudin Luxury Travel Advisor – En Route Travel – Santa Monica, CA, USA While travel advisors in the US continue to promote France, which has always been in the top five destinations in terms of popularity, it is important to have this new dynamic created by Atout France in order to interest clients who may have already been – but are looking for something different. While Paris has been a main focus – often as “the world’s most popular tourist destination city”, we have to think of France as being something aside from Paris. What has been needed is training on other ideas and destinations in France. Of course, people know the Côte d’Azur, but there are so many other regions, like Brittany, Normandy, the Alps, and so on, that should be placed more “front of house” by agents. Then there is thematic travel. Wine culture is the number one theme, so we need to be designing more itineraries around the wine regions. Art is another key attraction, as well as existing beautiful regions like the Loire Valley, which travellers are not asking for so much anymore. An emerging market we are finding is that of river cruises, that give people a chance to discover the destination at another pace. Each region should be very honest when telling what they have to offer, and this is where I believe travel advisors will need more information. There is always room for more advisor training. With the growing worldwide trend for experiential travel, this initiative by Atout France will give us the tools to promote cultural events and exhibitions around France. While we already actively promote France as a tourist destination, we will now have additional material to accurately target special interest travellers and also broaden the experience of the average traveller. Andrea Heawon Park Sourcing Specialist, Interpark Corporation, Seoul, Korea As a travel trade professional, it is vital to understand the region and culture in order to approach potential clients. The main reason to travel could be to feel cultural heritage and difference in-depth, which could nourish one’s ability to understand others. With the initiatives of Atout France and this “SMARTguide”, I could easily access what I would like to find out in French destinations and culture, and this leads me to persuade clients to decide to go to France. I believe that there’s nothing more important than sharing correct and detailed information in travel industry. Thank you to Atout France, it will definitely assist me to bring more business to France, as one of the most favoured destination.” 6 France: Destinations to (re)discover france.fr
from around the world mic” in France Tim Hentschel CEO, HotelPlanner.com & Meetings.com, London,UK Rajesh Nambiar Executive Vice President, Ottila International, Mumbai, India This is an encouraging initiative from France to expose more of the deeper French culture and the elements that will give an authentic regional experience of France. The Government’s strategy can give clear guidelines to all the stakeholders – tourism boards, local community, attractions, accommodation providers, DMCs, etc. about their commitment, involvement and forward implementation. For Tour Operators like us promoting France, it is important that we get educated and understand which are the products and experiences which will appeal to our markets and develop communication and programmes accordingly. This is a long-term approach requiring consistency of efforts and co-operation between Atout France and its trade partners. This will definitely increase more niche-business to France in the coming years. France has always been a top group destination for us in Europe thanks to its rich history and culture. We’ve always found that the French Alps have been popular, as well as the Bordeaux wine country. Nice and Biarritz have always been popular, and of course Paris is one of the greatest cities in the world. Overall, France can compete with any country in the world thanks to its huge diversity of tourism offerings. It’s great now that Atout France is highlighting different places and themes, as this consequently gives us an opportunity to create a more dynamic and interesting offering for our clients. Each year, people are looking for something different – even if they’ve already been to a place – and I strongly believe that these efforts by Atout France will do an important job in keeping this great nation top-ofmind when considering destinations for MICE activities. france.fr France: Destinations to (re)discover 7
