Vision Travel Advisors at Travel Week
You’d have thought that with the dozens of countries our Vision Travel advisors have visited and the million of miles they have racked up that it would take a lot to get them excited about travel. Yet once a year many of us attend an impressive trade show in Las Vegas and get very, very excited.
That’s because it’s no ordinary trade show. It’s Virtuoso Travel Week and is one of the most legendary, effective and Impressive shows in the world. This year’s Travel Week, held in late August was no exception. With almost 5,700 travel industry advisors attending from 45 countries around the world, it was a great opportunity for us to network and make great connections for you.
What do these connections mean to you? How about such great benefits and value-adds such as:
• Preferred rates at over 1,000 hotels in 100 countries, along with offers such as complimentary breakfasts, room upgrades on arrival, early check-in and late check-out and Virtuoso-only amenities
• Great deals with some of the world’s favourite cruise lines including shipboard credits, Virtuoso-only welcome aboard cocktail parties and shore excursions and dedicated onboard hosts.
Stephanie Anevich, Vision Travel’s VP of Leisure exploring the new Crystal Skye private jet.
What is Virtuoso? It’s a by-invitation-only international network of luxury hotels, cruise lines, tourist boards, and tour companies. With Virtuoso’s relatively recently addition of active and adventure suppliers, they are now an umbrella association for a growing number of Vision clients. And by the way, we are the largest member of Virtuoso in Canada.
“Travel Week is the most stimulating and rewarding time we have to connect with all the top travel industry people from around the world,” says Lynda Sinclair, Vision’s vice-president of leisure travel. “It’s seven continual days of networking, making contacts and developing relationships.” Even in this era of video-conferencing and Skyping, Sinclair feels that there is nothing to match shaking hands with and getting to personally know people, whether it’s the general manager of that five-star hotel in Rome or the Hong Kong limousine company owner. “And each year we get to reinforce those relationships at Travel Week.”
A good example of the contacts you can make also include local guides, so important to an authentic and fun experience. “We want to make sure our clients are matched with the ideal guide – a food expert if you are a foodie, a garden whiz if that’s what you are into. We don’t want you to be ‘stuck with’ a history fanatic if what you really want to do is scoop bargains at the best local shops.”
Our membership in Virtuoso and the clout and contacts it gives us all around the world is just another reason to book with Vision!