e-TID Travel Industry Digest
Former transport minister Theresa Villiers has been appointed as Northern Ireland Secretary in today’s reshuffle by Prime Minister David Cameron.
The Daily Telegraph reports Travelodge landlords will vote today on whether to accept a rescue deal for the budget chain that will see rent payments slashed and hotels sold. The group, which operates more than 500 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain, is proposing to sell 49 to other operators, with the landlords of a further 109 being asked to accept a 25% rent cut. Click here for more.
Unite is making preparations for a strike ballot of its members at Birmingham Airportafter rejecting the company’s final offer of 2.5% pay increase and a one-off non-consolidated payment of £150. Click here for a statement from the union.
ThisisLeicestershire reports that several swimmers who claim to have been left stranded in the water during a snorkelling trip are seeking compensation fromThomson Cruises. The incident happened on 14 March during a seven-day cruise on the Thomson Celebration in the Red Sea, off Egypt. Click here for more details.
eDreams.com is adding ten new sites in Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and Thailand. In some of the ten, including the UAE, Indonesia and the Philippines, eDreams will be the first online travel agent to operate in the local currency.
Cruise Holidays UK has announced the recruitment of its 50th franchisee and its first retail store opening. The company, originally known as Global Cruising, was launched in 2004 and in early 2011 became North American cruise travel giant Cruise Holidays’ first UK master franchisor. It is planning to open four more stores this year and a further ten in 2013.
The European Tour Operators Association is taking part in the next High Level Group meeting in Brussels on the 27 September, which will discuss coach tourism in Europe. The event is organised by the International Road Transport Union and brings together European institutions such as the Commission and Parliament with the industry.
All Leisure Group’s Swan Hellenic has expanded its 2013 river cruising programme with the introduction of the 79-passenger Royal Crown and sailings on the Dutch waterways. The new vessel offers Swan Hellenic passengers the chance to visit cities including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Haarlem. The two new sailings complement the line’s existing 2013 river cruises on the Rhone and Danube on board the A-Rosa fleet of ships.
Meanwhile, sister company Voyages of Discovery has introduced a new price promise, pledging to customers and agents that if the cost of their cruise goes down at a later date, they will be refunded the difference in the form of an on-board credit or a cabin upgrade.
Travel Republic, part of Emirates Group-owned dnata, has been granted a Flight-Plus ATOL licence by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Back in 2010, the Supreme Court told the CAA it cannot make a further appeal against a ruling that Travel Republic did not breach Air Travel Organisers’ Licence (ATOL) regulations in a long-running dispute about selling dynamic packages. To see details of the ATOL from the CAA website, click here, and from Travel Republic here.
Airlines are under pressure to allow passengers to use the internet on planes, amid concerns that their current email blackouts are costing the British economy around £640m a year, reports The Daily Telegraph. Half of UK adults said they would like internet access on aeroplanes, compared with 13% opposed to the idea, a YouGov poll found. To see the Telegraph article, click here.
And finally…Scots taking their pets abroad can now fly them directly back into the country rather than having to go via London or Manchester, following the launch of a new border inspection post at Edinburgh Airport. Click here for more from the BBC.
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