VisitBritain's Hafsa Pathan, Ted Flett & Lynda Falcone
Kensington Tours' Elizabeth Story &
Debra Marquart, with Michael Bremner of Highland Experience Tours in Edinburgh (centre)
Vicky Jones of Cardiff & Co with
Beth Cummings of Southern Wales Tourism
Janet Redler of Janet Redler Travel & Tourism in Montgomery, Wales with
Mary Kay McGuinness of DeNure Tours
It was a brisk fall Friday when VisitBritain held its tradeshow, Destination Britain. The day before, the tourism board hosted Canadian tour operators, but Friday’s focus was solely on the trade.
The Thompson Hotel, YTO’s latest super chic boutique venue, was the setting for the 2 day scene. Wide awake after their morning coffee and breakfast presentations, agents participated in 4 workshops specializing in Scotland, Wales, England and London. Afterward, guests had the opportunity to meet with the 30 British suppliers that took part in the event.
“Today, not only will travel agents learn about the destination, Destination Britain will show them what’s available in the U.K. and what’s available to book through Canadian suppliers,” said Lynda Falcone, VisitBritain’s Travel Trade Manager, Canada. There were a number of familiar partners present, including Thomas Cook, Alio and Kensington Tours, but Falcone mentioned that the majority of the suppliers in attendance were U.K. based companies who had flown in especially for the event.
The VisitBritain team referred to Destination Britain as a one-stop-shop where Canadian tourism professionals have the opportunity to meet with travel partners and build their relationships. And being introduced to so many international trade partners, the tradeshow was also an ideal environment to initiate new ones.
