Fiji's Blue Lagoon Cruises Launches Family Package Fiji's Blue Lagoon Cruises is offering a great opportunity to families with an 'all inclusive Fiji holiday' option with the rerelease of its popular two cabin family cruise packages. Available for sale until 31 March 2011, prices start from US$1360 per family for a three-day Yasawa Islands cruise. Blue Lagoon Cruises' crew are highly experienced with the company's younger passengers with all cruise programs offering special facilities for children including special mealtimes, cots and highchairs. The company also assigns a dedicated 'Kid's Captain'' for 10 kids or more on any cruise. The Kid's Captain offers a special p r o g r a m w h i c h i n c l u d e s bushwalking and snorkel safaris, water sports, beach games and cultural activities. Blue Lagoon Cruises' CEO, Tim Stonhill, said while the company's ships changed location every day and “the rest of the time we spend anchored in sheltered lagoons tied up to the nearest palm tree or ashore,” he said. “This gives the younger passengers – and some of the older ones too - ample opportunity to go exploring, play water sports and volleyball, swim, snorkel or collect coconuts... While we take care of the kids and the cooking, all the parents have to do is sit back, relax and enjoy.”
Kid's Captain offers a special p r o g r a m w h i c h i n c l u d e s bushwalking and snorkel safaris, water sports, beach games and cultural activities.
Blue Lagoon Cruises' CEO, Tim Stonhill, said while the company's ships changed location every day and “the rest of the time we spend anchored in sheltered lagoons tied up to the nearest palm tree or ashore,” he said. “This gives the younger passengers – and some of the older ones too - ample opportunity to go exploring, play water sports and volleyball, swim, snorkel or collect coconuts... While we take care of the kids and the cooking, all the parents have to do is sit back, relax and enjoy.”
Hoteliers reject claims that Nairobi is 8th most expensive city
Kenyan hoteliers while opposing to a recent report published by Hotels.com in the UK, which claims that the Kenyan capital city has become the 8th most expensive city for hotel accommodation in the world, have alleged that the results were flawed. The industry is suspecting this report as an attempt to 'de-campaign' the countries image.
Senior tourism gurus have pointed to the opening in recent months of several new top hotels in the city and more beds in the pipeline for opening in 2011, saying that the capacity of rooms on offer reflects the demand, and is, in fact, now slightly ahead of present annual demand. It was conceded that during periods of peak demand, especially when major conferences or continental meetings are in town, the rates tend to go up, while for much of the year, however, the average rates charged were still making Nairobi an affordable destination for tourists and business travelers.
Another source pointed out that the survey by Hotels.com was distorted as they most likely last surveyed two years ago, when the hospitality sector suffered from the aftermath of the post-election violence and had to use heavy discounting to attract business, while the rates have now gone back to the pre-2008 levels. Valid point but not sure Hotels.com will take heed and correct their negative story anytime soon.
Brazil is one of the emerging markets for Caribbean destinations
Brazil is currently being identified as one of the emerging markets that according to Caribbean tourism stakeholders can make a major difference once the correct marketing strategies are put in place.
Barbados Tourism Minister Richard Sealy recently said “We can think about it today and say that it will not work, but I am sure you will remember when the UK was not our major market. Now it is because of all the work we have done. So I tell you it will be an absurdity for any minister or director of tourism to ignore the Brazilian market, which is now recognized as one of the fastest growing in terms of development”.
Barbados already has a weekly flight from Brazil, and according to Sealy, the Brazilians are looking for options other than the United States and Europe. “The flight is not always full, it is usually between sixty and forty percent occupancy, and although presently it is paying margin, I should let you know that it's an ongoing project, and we are not shortsighted,” he told reporters attending the Caribbean Tourism Organization Leadership Strategy Conference in Barbados.
The minister also said initiatives were being considered while noting Barbados and the region were awaiting the final decision of the new British coalition government on the controversial Airline Passenger Duty being imposed on passengers traveling to the Caribbean. The new direct air service from Brazil to Barbados began in the summer of 2010. GOL, Brazil's second largest airline, is operating a non-stop flight from Sao Paulo to Bridgetown on Saturdays.
'Virtual' World's Largest Cruise Night Goes Live in October
Cruise Lines International Association's (CLIA) World's Largest Cruise Night, the Virtual Edition, goes live this October as more than 3,000 travel agents across North America launch micro-websites packed with information, advice, cruise line videos and special offers, all designed to boost cruise sales dramatically. Many of them will also join the more than one thousand travel agencies who have already announced plans for live events and promotions on October 13, the actual World's Largest Cruise Night.
The WLCN “Dashboard” on the Website has all the information needed, including step-by-step instructions on how to create a highly functional individual Virtual WLCN microsite, complete with welcome and sales messages, customized videos from as many as seven cruise lines, logos, personalized photos and images, and the opportunity to promote the WLCN site with an integrated Facebook button.
The WLCN Dashboard also features everything agents need to know about marketing and promoting their participation in the event, from advertising and local PR tips, to press release shells, postcard and flyer templates, and CLIA direct mail marketing materials.
“ We have made participating in WLCN so easy this year because we really believe that it is an exceptional opportunity for agents to grow their business with incremental c r u i s e s a l e s w h i l e attracting new customers. Every year, more and more agents take advantage of CLIA's assistance during WLCN and this year is proving to be no exception,” Smith added.
Florida coastal city undergoing a revival
Florida's Clearwater Beach, once a mostly blue-collar area of Florida's Gulf Coast, the poor cousin to shiny Tampa Bay and pristine St. Pete Beach, has now been spruced up and is becoming a welcoming spot for West Michiganders looking to escape the cold weather.
Rundown lodgings are being torn down to make way for new beachfront high rises and luxury boutique hotels. The city has a revitalized feel, with locals and tourists walking, biking and skating along the new walkway that hugs the spectacular, lively beachfront.
The half-mile-long lighted Beach Walk winds along the city beach and beyond. A highlight along the walkway is Pier 60, which nightly features entertainers and local craftspeople selling their handiwork. It's a great place to watch talented magicians, musicians and comedians, pick up trinkets and souvenirs or just watch people. It's also a good locale to watch the sun dip into the clear Gulf waters.
A master plan, called Beach by Design, has been on board that separates the town into several distinct districts, such as the marina, retail/restaurant, Old Florida, Pier 60 and Beach Walk and destination resort areas. With it, city planners have found a successful way to please tourists and the city's residents.