Thursday, 28 March 2013
Summer booking
Agents reported an upturn in late bookings for the bank holiday as forecasters predict the cold snap could last for a month.
However, industry analyst GfK reported a 43% year-on-year fall in summer bookings to Cyprus last week in the wake of the island’s banking crisis.
Abta estimated the number of holidaymakers heading abroad this weekend at 1.7 million, 200,000 more than a year ago.
Tui said it had seen the strongest demand for Easter sun holidays in 10 years, with more than 36,000 people set to travel this weekend. It said clients were opting for destinations with warmer climates in the Mediterranean and North Africa.
Aito agents’ chairman Oliver Broad said: “We’re seeing an increase in bookings for Easter and the weather has played a big part.” But he said customers were frequently unrealistic on price: “Some people don’t realise how expensive it is at this time. The high prices are shocking people.”
On The Beach chief marketing officer Alistair Daly said: “The weather is clearly having an impact. People are looking for guaranteed sun, with bookings to Tunisia and Madeira up more than 100% on last year.”
Barrhead Travel also reported a late surge in Easter bookings, with families opting for Tenerife, Majorca, Florida and Disneyland Paris. A spokeswoman said sales for summer had also been strong.
GfK reported summer 2013 bookings 1% up last week on the nearest week a year ago despite the fall to Cyprus. The Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO) believes the dip will be temporary, with banks due to reopen this week.
CTO UK director Orestis Rossides said: “All ATMs are functioning [and] hotels with a history of servicing international tourism accept major credit cards.”
Sunvil managing director Noel Josephides said: “Cyprus is more of a cash economy at the moment. A lot of businesses are worried about liquidity. But it’s not affecting tourists.”
Lets save Cyprus Tourism
As the situation in Cyprus continues to dominate the headlines, agents must be a source of accurate, unbiased and useful advice, says Abta's Nikki White
In the run-up to the Easter weekend, and with the weather in the UK feeling more like winter than spring, many people will be looking to book a late deal in search of some much-needed warmth. So if you’re thinking of recommending somewhere to your customers, Cyprus is currently sunny with temperatures topping 20C – a great spring-break option.
With this in mind, the last thing Cyprus needs is the reports of financial chaos and ATMs running out of cash following the conditions set by the EU to guarantee a bailout for Cypriot banks.
As we all know, it doesn’t take a lot to put people off a particular destination, especially when they are spoilt for travel choices.
If you cast your mind back last year to the demonstrations in Greece, there was a lot of wild talk about the country leaving the eurozone and that euros printed in Greece would no longer be legal tender. Although this was all incorrect, it inevitably impacted on bookings, which only recovered slowly over the course of the summer. Inaccurate, damaging information can have an immediate and direct effect.
As is often the case, the reality on the ground is rather different from the sometimes misleading advice being given by “experts”. These commentators often feel under pressure to give a response when they are not always in possession of all the facts.
One example from morning television caught my attention last week – a financial expert who advised holidaymakers to cross the border into North Cyprus to get their euros.
Two things spring to mind. Access across the border is possible only through a handful of checkpoints, so people could have been in line for a long trip to get some cash. More worryingly, it would have been a wasted journey – the currency in North Cyprus is actually the Turkish lira!
In reality, ATMs in Cyprus are largely working normally, subject to cash-withdrawal limits, and as long as customers take a stock of euros with them, as well as cards, they should not encounter any difficulties.
Travel agents have a role as a source of accurate, unbiased and useful advice, which is essential for customers when choosing their destination. By giving accurate information, you are providing a service not only to your clients but also to destinations with which we have built mutually beneficial relations over many years.
It must never be forgotten that for many destinations, UK tourists are an essential and irreplaceable source of employment.
During these very tough and challenging economic times, it is vital that we continue to support them.
In the run-up to the Easter weekend, and with the weather in the UK feeling more like winter than spring, many people will be looking to book a late deal in search of some much-needed warmth. So if you’re thinking of recommending somewhere to your customers, Cyprus is currently sunny with temperatures topping 20C – a great spring-break option.
With this in mind, the last thing Cyprus needs is the reports of financial chaos and ATMs running out of cash following the conditions set by the EU to guarantee a bailout for Cypriot banks.
As we all know, it doesn’t take a lot to put people off a particular destination, especially when they are spoilt for travel choices.
If you cast your mind back last year to the demonstrations in Greece, there was a lot of wild talk about the country leaving the eurozone and that euros printed in Greece would no longer be legal tender. Although this was all incorrect, it inevitably impacted on bookings, which only recovered slowly over the course of the summer. Inaccurate, damaging information can have an immediate and direct effect.
As is often the case, the reality on the ground is rather different from the sometimes misleading advice being given by “experts”. These commentators often feel under pressure to give a response when they are not always in possession of all the facts.
One example from morning television caught my attention last week – a financial expert who advised holidaymakers to cross the border into North Cyprus to get their euros.
Two things spring to mind. Access across the border is possible only through a handful of checkpoints, so people could have been in line for a long trip to get some cash. More worryingly, it would have been a wasted journey – the currency in North Cyprus is actually the Turkish lira!
In reality, ATMs in Cyprus are largely working normally, subject to cash-withdrawal limits, and as long as customers take a stock of euros with them, as well as cards, they should not encounter any difficulties.
Travel agents have a role as a source of accurate, unbiased and useful advice, which is essential for customers when choosing their destination. By giving accurate information, you are providing a service not only to your clients but also to destinations with which we have built mutually beneficial relations over many years.
It must never be forgotten that for many destinations, UK tourists are an essential and irreplaceable source of employment.
During these very tough and challenging economic times, it is vital that we continue to support them.
Sunday, 17 March 2013
Monday, 11 March 2013
Friday, 8 March 2013
Water Crisis in Cyprus
Water crisis will break destinations, warns academic
08 March 2013 at 08.15 GMT
Many destinations face imminent water crises without action to reduce use by tourists and ensure supplies, says a leading expert.
Dr Stroma Cole, director of Equality in Tourism, warned yesterday: "Sustainability of water supplies will be what makes tourism viable or not in many parts of the world."
Speaking at German trade show ITB in Berlin, Cole outlined water supply and contamination problems in Bali, Goa and Zanzibar and said: "Bali will reach a critical situation by 2020.
"A water crisis will turn into a tourism crisis and economic crisis: 20% of Balinese people work in tourism and 55% supply the tourism sector; 3.5 million people will be affected."
Cole is a member of the environmental management department at the University of the West of England.
She said: "Tourism development in Bali has gone unchecked since the 1980s, causing the water table to fall. Wells run dry and people depend on buying water. We can't only blame tourism. There is a lack of regulation, a lack of monitoring."
To illustrate the problem, Cole said 1,500 cubic metres of water could sustain 100 rural families in a destination for five years and 100 urban families for two years. Yet the same amount was used by 100 tourists in 55 days.
She said: "In Goa, tourism has caused a decline in the quality and quantity of water but governance is a huge issue. There is a complete lack of monitoring. Most hotels don't know how much water they use."
Cole added: "Most governments have no idea how much water tourism takes. The lack of political will, combined with corruption, means water is not on the agenda."
She said: "There is plenty the tourism industry can do. There is a huge lack of understanding in the hotel sector. Five-star hotels talk the talk and say they only water gardens at dawn and dusk. But then you see garden sprinklers working at midday.
"There are plenty of techno fixes to cut water use, but the chief issue is human rights. It's not enough to have a corporate social responsibility programme."
Cole said the problem extended to Europe. "Malta has a huge scarcity problem but is increasing tourism. Cyprus has had to import water to one area yet is still building golf courses - the most intensive water users."
Dr Stroma Cole, director of Equality in Tourism, warned yesterday: "Sustainability of water supplies will be what makes tourism viable or not in many parts of the world."
Speaking at German trade show ITB in Berlin, Cole outlined water supply and contamination problems in Bali, Goa and Zanzibar and said: "Bali will reach a critical situation by 2020.
"A water crisis will turn into a tourism crisis and economic crisis: 20% of Balinese people work in tourism and 55% supply the tourism sector; 3.5 million people will be affected."
Cole is a member of the environmental management department at the University of the West of England.
She said: "Tourism development in Bali has gone unchecked since the 1980s, causing the water table to fall. Wells run dry and people depend on buying water. We can't only blame tourism. There is a lack of regulation, a lack of monitoring."
To illustrate the problem, Cole said 1,500 cubic metres of water could sustain 100 rural families in a destination for five years and 100 urban families for two years. Yet the same amount was used by 100 tourists in 55 days.
She said: "In Goa, tourism has caused a decline in the quality and quantity of water but governance is a huge issue. There is a complete lack of monitoring. Most hotels don't know how much water they use."
Cole added: "Most governments have no idea how much water tourism takes. The lack of political will, combined with corruption, means water is not on the agenda."
She said: "There is plenty the tourism industry can do. There is a huge lack of understanding in the hotel sector. Five-star hotels talk the talk and say they only water gardens at dawn and dusk. But then you see garden sprinklers working at midday.
"There are plenty of techno fixes to cut water use, but the chief issue is human rights. It's not enough to have a corporate social responsibility programme."
Cole said the problem extended to Europe. "Malta has a huge scarcity problem but is increasing tourism. Cyprus has had to import water to one area yet is still building golf courses - the most intensive water users."
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