Working with agents to tailor make packages for their clients has become a successful strategy for Inspired New Zealand Tours as domestic passengers look for something bespoke in a domestic holiday.

Director John Gregory says groups can be as small as six, benefiting on a personal level by touring with international standard drivers and guides.

A new website has been launched by Inspired New Zealand Tours, setting out a range of 2020-21 itineraries that can be accessed by the New Zealand travel trade.

Director John Gregory says that while the company has nine core tours, with multiple departures between September 2020 and April 2021, Inspired New Zealand Tours is also keen to interact with any agents and brokers not only interested in selling the set programmes but also in developing bespoke tour options specifically for their client bases.

Travel agents looking to survive through tough times with no fixed date of remedy are increasingly looking at putting their business into ‘hibernation’ and the various ways they can fund this.

Paul Davies, of Oneteam Chartered Accounts / TA Accounting, says agents are faced with making the tough decision between shutting down the business or keeping it in survival mode.

GOL (G3) met with strong interest at the recent JAWS events for travel agents around the country, says Chris Jones of Discover the World. GOL is the latest airline Discover the World represents here, though it
was established in 2001, initially operating flights within Brazil. ‘The network has grown substantially, and GOL now operates seven international and 63 domestic destinations in South America and the Caribbean,’ says Jones.

Air New Zealand will host expo-style travel trade events for the first time in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland this May.
Air New Zealand senior manager distribution Blair Catton says the events will give trade new insight into product and customer experience innovations – including the airline’s refreshed Boeing 777-300 cabins.
‘With the first of our refitted 777-300s now in service, the expos are an opportunity to bring our trade partners and internal teams together and showcase what’s new.

The Asia Now events scheduled to take place around the country from 10 May have already generated plenty of interest from travel agents, says Julie Rice, chairperson of
the event’s organising committee.
Some of the interest is due to pent-up demand because the roadshow did not take place last year, but there is also plenty of interest in Asia from the trade generally, according to Rice.