INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL TRADE FAMS, TRADE SHOWS & EVENTS
INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL TRADE FAMS, TRADE SHOWS & EVENTS
Visit California/Air Tahiti Nui FAM (Dec. 1-5)
In partnership with Visit California and Air Tahiti Nui, L.A. Tourism hosted a group of seven product managers who will promote Los Angeles as a destination for French travelers. The group explored Downtown L.A., Beverly Hills, Hollywood and Santa Monica and experienced museums and the newest attractions as well as local hotels. Air Tahiti Nui offers nonstop flights from Los Angeles to Tahiti.
LATCB & Visit West Hollywood Regional Australia Sales Mission: Oct. 21-22
LATCB’s Australian office partnered with Visit West Hollywood on Oct. 21-22 for the annual Visit USA Australia regional sales mission to Queensland's Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast regions. The two-day travel trade event provided training seminars on key product updates for L.A., West Hollywood & Los Angeles International Airport for more than 100 travel agents at major retail travel-agency brands. LATCB regularly participates in key travel-trade events for the Australian market. All members are encouraged to inquire about brochure distribution, product updates, prize draws and other dynamic and affordable partnership opportunities for these events. For more information, please email Craig Gibbons, Regional Director, Australia & New Zealand, for travel-trade opportunities at cgibbons@latourism.org.
BrandUSA China Luxury FAM: Oct. 24
BrandUSA invited key travel trade and one media rep to experience the country with a trip to Colorado, Los Angeles and San Francisco. BrandUSA aimed to help key China travel agencies in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou increase their product knowledge and prepare for new, high-end products to be launched in those markets. Media exposure in Travel Weekly and other trade media that's in-line with those product promotions is also in the works. The BrandUSA FAM fulfilled its objectives of a)launching new products through key travel agencies in China's largest cities; b)encouraging traffic in off-peak seasons while preparing new products for 2015; and c)showcasing U.S. tourism's art, cultural, entertainment and destination resources in the L.A.-area, including Universal Studios Hollywood, Getty Center, Huntington Library, Hollywood & Highland as well as a Los Angeles Clippers game.
Visit California and Norwegian Airlines: Oct. 20-24
Visit California and Norwegian Airlines invited leisure, corporate and MICE agents to experience Norwegian’s new non-stop service to Los Angeles from Stockholm while giving them the opportunity to learn about the city and how to get their attract their clients to Los Angeles. Agents experienced the beauty of Marina del Rey with a Hornblower Cruise; the charm of Venice with a walking tour of Abbot Kinney Boulevard; and the excitement of Universal Studios Hollywood with dinner at CityWalk. Other activities included a Hop on Hop off tour of Beverly Hills and Hollywood; dinner in West Hollywood; and games and rides at the Santa Monica Pier. Norwegian Airlines currently offers three flights a week from both Stockholm and Copenhagen to Los Angeles International Airport, and will add a weekly flight from Oslo in June 2015. All of Norwegian Airline’s flights are operated with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
Los Angeles Sales Customer Advisory Board: Oct. 26-28
Los Angeles Tourism is pleased to have hosted 16 guests for the Sales Customer Advisory Board Meeting from Oct. 26-28. The Meet L.A.-themed event offered an opportunity to engage with meeting professionals about industry trends, insights and the state of the industry -- all with the purpose of positioning Los Angeles as the premier meeting and convention destination. The meeting was held at Universal Studios Hollywood's Globe Theatre, while guests also experienced a tour of the Loews Hollywood Hotel as well as a very informative Red Line Tour of Downtown Los Angeles's developments. The event also included sessions conducted by local hospitality leaders, including executive leadership from the Los Angeles Convention Center, representatives from LATCB's Board of Directors and the City of Los Angeles.
United Airlines-Travel Agent FAM: Oct. 27-29
LATCB’s international team, in partnership with United Airlines (Mexico), hosted a group of 11 agents from several of Mexico's travel agencies from Oct. 27-29. The itinerary showcased products and services that promote Los Angeles as a top destination for leisure travel, including Seasons 52 at Westfield Century City, Warner Bros VIP Studio Tour and Santa Monica Place. The group stayed at the InterContinental Los Angeles Century City and the transportation was hosted by SuperShuttle. LATCB would like to extend an appreciation to the partners who helped to make this a successful FAM.
Delta Airlines-Shanghai FAM: Oct. 27-30
LATCB, in partnership with Delta Airlines, hosted a FAM from Shanghai from Oct. 27-30. Managers and executives from several Shanghai travel agencies were treated to an educational tour featuring the attractions and products that make Los Angeles a top travel destination. In particular, the LATCB members who have participated in the “China Ready” program were highlighted, including Universal Studios Hollywood, House of Blues and the Getty Center. The receptive operator America Asia arranged the transportation and provided the tour guide. LATCB would like to extend their gratitude to all its members who helped make this a successful FAM.
United-Chengdu China FAM: Oct. 27-31
LATCB, on behalf of United Airlines, hosted a FAM from Chengdu, China, from Oct 27-31. The purpose of this FAM was to educate the attendees on the attractions and products that make Los Angeles a top travel destination. LATCB members who successfully completed the “China Ready” program were specifically featured, including Westfield Century City, the Original Farmer's Market, Beverly Center, Madame Tussauds, Citadel Outlets and Disneyland. The receptive operator Asia Pacific arranged the transportation and provided the tour guide. LATCB would like to extend their gratitude to all its members who helped make this a successful FAM.
LATCB & United Airlines' launch new Dreamliner 787-9 service from Melbourne to LAX: Oct. 28
LATCB’s Australian office partnered with United Airlines for the Oct. 28 launch of the inaugural non-stop Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner service between Melbourne and Los Angeles International Airport. Upon arrival at Melbourne, passengers were greeted by a host of L.A.-themed personalities and were provided access to the United lounge for a champagne sendoff. The event was covered by local media and major news networks, while officials at the event included Craig Gibbons, LATCB Regional Director Australia; Leigh Harry, CEO Tourism Victoria; Amy J. Hyatt, Acting US Consular General – Melbourne; Dave Hilfman, United Airlines' SVP of Global Sales United, Chris Woodruff, CEO Melbourne Airport; and Luke Punzenberger, United Airlines' Sr. Manager Corporate Communications. The new direct service, which will operate out LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal, will operate six days per week and will go daily in March 2015. To coincide with this new service, LATCB has also launched a major joint consumer and trade advertising campaign with United in Melbourne to promote sales of the new service to the Australian market.
Visit California Germany Mission: Oct. 30-Nov. 1
LATCB's Germany office participated in the Visit California Sales Days in Munich from Oct 30-Nov 1. The Sales Days consisted of two events for the travel trade and media industries in the German-speaking markets of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. An indoor beach location was site of an engaging and successful travel-agent evening in Munich and provided an opportunity to discuss Los Angeles, Los Angeles International Airport's new Tom Bradley International Terminal, the diverse hotel community and activities while distributing other general information to inquisitive agents from Southern Germany. The following day, an event held at Munich's Bavaria Film Studios brought leading tour operators and media representatives to the California partners via one-on-one presentations and Q&A sessions. Like the indoor beach, the location was a perfect setting to discuss Los Angeles as the Entertainment Capital of the U.S. With the topic of eco-tourism gaining importance among German travel professionals (according to FVW, Germany’s leading travel-trade magazine), tour operators, travel agents and media representatives all took notice of L.A.’s growing eco-tourism initiatives, including the promotion of L.A. public transportation use. LATCB's German office also conducted 18 workshop-type training sessions with tour operators and tour operator-owned travel agencies on how to better sell Los Angeles. Encouraging an extended length of stay in Los Angeles, and highlighting both the diversity of cities within Los Angeles County and the convenience of LAX as a port of entry and exit for transatlantic travelers were among the methods discussed at the sessions.
World Travel Market: Nov. 3-6
The London office exhibited at World Travel Market (WTM) from Nov 3-6, as part of a California delegation. London's WTM, one of the world's largest travel-trade shows, included meeting with both key in-market and visiting airlines, tour operators and European trade-trade. LATCB also co-hosted a Nov. 2 VIP Client event, which was organized by Visit California and attracted more than 100 members of the UK airline industry, trade and media.
October Sales Presence
In addition to day-to-day sales efforts, LATCB had representation all over the domestic U.S. at the ASAE Summit Awards Dinner, PCMA Heartland Chapter Inaugural Golf Tournament, Smart Meetings (Colorado), AMEX Inter[action] Supplier Showcase, Rejuvenate Marketplace, The ConferenceDirect CEO Summit, and at Luxury Meetings Summit events in both Northern and Southern California.
Communications
Unexpected L.A. Media FAM: Oct. 20-24
LATCB's communications team welcomed top-tier media from the U.K. for the Unexpected L.A. media FAM from Oct. 20-24. Highlights from the FAM included visiting up-and-coming neighborhoods like Koreatown, Downtown Los Angeles, Silver Lake, Venice and Malibu. Participating media outlets included Suitcase Magazine, Mail Online and The Scotsman.