Club Travel 2015: A year of exploring the world

By Luana Visagie

One of the many highlights at Club Travel in 2015 was the fact that more than 70 of our team members got to travel to more than 10 destinations through the Club Travel Educational programme. Travel opportunities within the travel industry have become few and far between, which resulted in an Educational Committee coming together in 2014 to create opportunities for Club Travel’s employees and partners to experience the destinations they promote to their clients.

As these educational trips are exclusive to Club Travel, they also serve as a wonderful opportunity for colleagues to get to know one another and supplier representatives out of the office environment.
To kick 2015 off, a group visited ‘The land of the rising sun’… Japan, where sumo wrestling, geishas and sushi all formed part of the visit to Tokyo, Nikko and Kyoto. This Intrepid Tour included accommodation in traditional Ryokans (traditional Japanese Inns), travel by bullet train and views of Mt Fuji capped in snow.

Next up was travel to India where highlights included Mumbai, Delhi, Agra, Jaipur & Alsisar. This ‘On the Go’ itinerary was jam-packed with awe-inspiring sightseeing such as the Taj Mahal, the Agra Fort and the Red Fort.
Before the ski season came to an end, a group of travel consultants were off to experience the slopes of Cervinia, Italy, where some opted to ski and others to snowboard. En-route to Italy, the group stopped over in Istanbul, Turkey, where they enjoyed a Bosphorus cruise and visit to the Spice Bazaar in this city which lies in both Europe and Asia.

A true South African favourite, Mauritius, was next and we had three groups travel to this iconic island to experience the different resort offerings. Mauritius has so much more to offer than resort living and our travel consultants ensured they got a real feel for the island by snorkelling at Ile Des Deux Cocos, glass-bottom boating, sunset cruising, swimming with dolphins, Sega dancing, Grand Baie shopping, bicycle ride to the Fisherman Village of Trou D’eau Douce and yoga on the beach.

From one island to more islands, our team popped over to Greece where they spent time in Athens and then island-hopped to idyllic Mykonos and Santorini. Other destinations visited this year included Uzbekistan, Russia, the USA, the Seychelles and the Maldives.

On their return, each team member completes a travel report which is uploaded on the Club Travel intranet for all team members to access. In so doing, these first hand travel experiences are shared amongst colleagues who get to pass the information on to clients.

We certainly look forward to introducing our team to more exciting destinations in 2016.