Corporate Travel e-Newsletter - September 2008

Every quarter we draw a winning name. The odds are miles better than winning the lottery (and cost you nothing!), so anyone who has not already done so, now is the time to subscribe to our free e-Newsletter, and be in with a chance of winning the subscribers' prize draw for the 3rd quarter 2008!

The voucher certificate will have a value of £100, redeemable against any form of holiday booking (combination of travel and accommodation) made through us to the value of £500 or more, and will be valid for a period of 18 months from the date of issue. It will be transferable, providing the winner advises Medway Travel of the name of the eventual recipient.

From a City break to a Cruise, from an all-inclusive package to a tailored holiday, the choice is yours. Just take a look at the Leisure section of our website to see the massive range of outstanding holidays on offer. Our team of consultants is highly qualified to research and advise on all aspects of your trip.

The chances of your being the lucky winner in the next 12 months are better than 1 in 500, so the very best of luck!

Medway Travel has recently launched this new service to help those corporate clients attending trade fairs, either as exhibitors or as visitors.

We will remind you at the appropriate times, before any of those regular events which your company likes to attend, to ensure you have the best choice of arrangements and to save you from a possible last minute scramble for expensive, inconvenient or barely adequate accommodation.

For your interest, we list a number of the largest International Fairs coming up in the next few months, on our website, but there are of course many others.
 
At Medway Travel we have a specialist team to handle all such arrangements. Our consultants have a truly excellent understanding of what is involved and the ability to make your arrangements at best available rates, using our local ground agents where necessary. Thus we can ensure your trip is made in the most cost effective way, whilst catering for all your requirements.

Our normal practice is to "block reserve" the travel arrangements and hotel accommodation well in advance of the event.  At that time we would request a 20% deposit of the estimated cost.  These "bookings" can, usually, be amended up to one month prior to date of the event at which point details (such as names and numbers of attendees) must then be forwarded to the appropriate carriers and hotels.

We can thus ensure that however heavy the demand, your travel arrangements are guaranteed, and you will have more convenient accommodation at the most advantageous rates for your travellers.
 
If you are planning to attend any such fairs within the next 12 to 18 months, the earlier you let us know of your intention to travel, the better will be the deals and choice we can obtain for you on airfares and hotel accommodation. 

We would therefore strongly recommend you give us the dates of all the fairs your company intends to attend, as far in advance as you can, and our team will recommend when would be best for us to start the block booking process.

We will from then on remind you at the appropriate times before those events in which you are interested, to ensure you have the best choice of arrangements and to save you from the last minute scramble for accommodation (with the higher costs that can be involved in late bookings).
 
Please also remember that major savings are possible for groups of 9 or more travelling together, as we then negotiate special group rates with the airlines and hotels.

If you have any Group or Trade Fair requests please contact us and our consultants will be only too pleased to help with your enquiry.

Medway Travel's UK rail research and ticketing system (Evolvi) has undergone some very exciting advances in the last couple of months.

The Evolvi system has been developed to add Ticket on Departure as the latest enhancement to the ticketing fulfilment options that the system offers. We at Medway Travel will therefore be able to offer this facility to all our rail user clients, from October onwards.

It means we are now able to provide Evolvi’s comprehensive MI data and extensive travel policy compliance routines, together with the TOD capability for the growing number of stations (currently some 500) covering the whole UK rail network.

Evolvi also offers the revolutionary innovation of traceability for uncollected TOD bookings, enabling us to action appropriate refunds for our customer base.

If you are amongst the growing number of businesses that are increasing their use of UK rail for their executive travel, please talk to us about this cost effective and very convenient rail fare research and  ticket provision service we offer.

If you or your colleagues have plans to visit any overseas trade fair in the future, please contact us as soon as possible about your arrangements for travel and accommodation. The earlier we can make the bookings for you, the lower the cost of the airfares will be, and the greater the selection of hotel accommodation available.

We also suggest you take a look at our website Trade Fairs page from time to time, to help with your forward planning, and then look to our APTT service to ensure you get the best accommodation rates and locations. .

SEPTEMBER 2008

17th – 19th, Suntec, SINGAPORE
HOPSPIMedica ASIA: International Exhibition on Hospital, Pharmaceutical, Medical & Rehabilitation Equipment & Supplies

18th - 21st, Munich, GERMANY
EXPOPHARM: International pharmaceuticals trade fair.

28th – 1st Oct, Düsseldorf, GERMANY
InterCool: International Trade Fair Frozen Food, Ice Cream, Technology

OCTOBER 2008

2nd – 4th, Baku, AZERBAIJAN
Book Fair Azerbaijan: A full range of products and services, educational programs, and networking opportunities make this a must-attend event
for book industry professionals.

4th – 19th, Paris, FRANCE
Paris Motor Show: With all the big names in passenger cars, commercial vehicles, heavy duty and garage equipment, spares and automobile accessories
being present, offering you a perfect chance to show case your products.

6th – 9th, Melbourne, Australia
Ausplas: Largest & longest-running trade event for the plastics industry in the Southern Hemisphere.

14th - 16th, Avignon, FRANCE
MIFFEL: Mediterranean trade fair for fruit and vegetables.

15th – 17th, New Delhi, INDIA
International Foodtec India: India’s No 1 Trade Fair for Food Processing & Packaging, Ingredients, Beverages, Cooling and Refrigeration

15th - 19th, Frankfurt, GERMANY
Frankfurt Book Fair

18th - 20th, Luzern, SWITZERLAND
LIGHT & SOUND

21st – 25th, Düsseldorf, GERMANY
glasstec: International Trade Fair with Glass Technology Live – Special – Show & Symposium

NOVEMBER 2008

1st - 9th, Istanbul, TURKEY
Istanbul Book Fair

3rd - 6th, New York, USA
AD:TECH NEW YORK: An interactive marketing conference and exhibition that delivers an up close and informative look at the world of digital media.

6th – 9th, Cairo, Egypt
Transpotech: The only commercial vehicle show bringing together buyers and sellers from around the
World.

11th – 13th, Hunan, CHINA
China International Citrus Exposition: Foreground analysis on international citrus industry, the present situation and developing
trends of china citrus industry, new deep processing technologies of citrus products, new marketing thoughts on citrus products.

17th - 19th, Mannheim, GERMANY
BIO-EUROPE: Forum to promote Business Development between Pharmaceutical, Financial and Biotechnology Companies.

19th – 21st, Cologne, GERMANY
INTERauto 2008: A niche event catering for the international automotive interiors design industry.

19th - 21st, Dusseldorf, GERMANY
COMPAMED: High tec solutions for medical technology

19th – 22nd, Düsseldorf, GERMANY
MEDICA: International Trade Fair with Congress World Forum for Medicine

DECEMBER 2008

3rd – 6th, Jakarta, INDONESIA
Vehicle Manufacturing & Automotive Technology Indonesia: Dedicated international showcase exhibition & conference for vehicle dynamics technologies
& components.

5th – 7th, New Delhi, INDIA
GlassTech India: International Glass Products, Glass Manufacturing, Processing & Materials Exhibition

JANUARY 2009

11th – 14th, DUBAI  
Arabplast: International Plastic & Rubber Industry Trade Show

FEBRUARY 2009

1st - 3rd, Dusseldorf, GERMANY
GLOBAL FASHION: This trade Fair presents non-branded producers addressing volume buyers and branded manufacturers for production orders.

4th – 6th, Berlin, GERMANY
Fruit Logistica: Provides an opportunity for industries involved in fruit trading to present their range of services from growing to selling

MARCH 2009

3rd – 6th, Munich, GERMANY
Embedded in Munich: The best place to exhibit everything from software, hardware and components to systems integration and development platforms.

REMEMBER, if there are a number of you travelling together, there are major savings possible for groups of 9 or more, when we negotiate group rates with the airlines. Click here to see more about our Group travel

PLEASE NOTE:
We have secured some client reservations for the Fruit Logistica even in Berlin in February 2009.
If you are interesting in attending this event, please contact us now in order that we can secure the best accommodation availability and prices for you.

The US Authorities are introducing a new system called ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorisation).

This requires authority to enter the USA to be applied for at least 72hrs prior to departure. Once you have applied, you will be given an immediate response, either giving or denying you authority to travel. This electronic authority is then valid for two years  or until your passport expires if that is sooner.
 
The information required when you log in to the US Department of Homeland Security to apply, is the same as you currently complete on board the aircraft - ie the green visa waiver form (I-94W).

The system is voluntary from August 2008 until 11th January 2009. From January 12th 2009 it will become compulsory, which is when the green form will then be withdrawn.
 
The details you are required to complete online include:
· Passport details,
· Flight number,
· Destination address
· Questions regarding communicable diseases
· Information about any arrests and convictions for certain crimes
· Past history of any visa refusal.
 
Please note this information is in addition to the requirement to submit APIS data that we already request from you prior to travel to the US.
 
If you wish to apply for the ESTA please visit http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/esta/

We are often given a real morale boost by the appreciation clients express regarding the quality of our corporate travel services. As our ability to continue to provide this level of attention is all the time under strain from rising costs, it is important for us to be increasing our business, to gain the benefits of scale.

We will therefore, shortly be asking clients if they would kindly participate in the Medway Travel Business Referral Scheme, and consider to whom they might recommend our services. All we will ask is that you to pass on the good news about Medway Travel to people and companies you think would appreciate and value our professional and expert support. 

To show our gratitude we will offer a “thank-you” to both the Company who kindly provides the recommendation, and to the new client when they come on board. We will send you details in due course, but wish to roll out this programme in manageable stages, so pleased don’t be surprised if it is some time before you hear more.

Medway Travel has access to one of the largest portfolios of specially negotiated contract fares open to any travel agent in the country. This means we can - subject to availability at the time of booking - offer unusually low prices for many long-haul and certain European routes.


This month's examples (all in £) are:

Alitalia files for insolvency

The Italian national airline went into administration at the end of August, after months of speculation about its future. The government was unable to bail it out due to EU competition rules against governments subsidising businesses.

At the time of writing Medway Travel is claiming refunds from the airline failure insurance cover added to all airfares we issue, for those clients caught holding unused tickets or sectors on Alitalia, and we have made alternative travel arrangements for them all. 

Shannon to be fuel stop for BA  LCY-NY flights

BA will use Shannon airport as a westbound fuel stop, when it commences all-business class flights from London City to New York next year.

The move will enable passengers to complete US arrivals checks in the Irish city, thus bypassing normal checks when they arrive in New York. Eastbound flights will be non-stop.

What’s not clear is whether luggage will have to be offloaded and re-checked in Shannon in order to comply with US immigration requirements, although a spokesperson for BA said the airline would be "working with Shannon airport in the coming months to design the best possible process for completing immigration checks". BA has also not yet announced which airport in New York it will be using for its new flights.

The all-business class service is due to be launched with twice-daily flights in autumn 2009. using A318 aircraft (the largest plane that can take off and land at London City) configured with 32 fully-flat beds “similar to that of British Airways’ Club World business class”.

The route will be the first long-haul offering from London City, and will indeed be the only all-business class transatlantic product serving London, after Maxjet, Eos and Silverjet all went bankrupt over the last six months.

 

Birmingham gains direct Istanbul flight

Turkish Airlines, which is a member of Star Alliance, will fly five flights a week from Birmingham International Airport to Istanbul from December 15, 2008.

On Mondays and Thursdays flights will leave Birmingham at 1130 and arrive in Istanbul at 1725. On Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays flights will depart Birmingham at 1315 and arrive in Istanbul at 1910.

For passengers flying from Turkey, they will leave Istanbul at 0820 on Mondays and Thursdays and arrive in the UK at 1030. On Tuesday, Fridays and Sundays they will leave at 1005, arriving in Birmingham at 1215.

Each flight will take four hours, and Istanbul is two hours ahead of the UK. Passengers will fly on a 155-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft, fitted with 20 business-class seats and 135 economy seats. The airline has about five Boeings in its fleet, based in Istanbul.

A flight from Birmingham International to Istanbul with Turkish Airlines starts from £180 return, including taxes.
After Manchester, Birmingham International is the UK’s second largest airport outside London, based on figures of total passengers flying in and out of the airport.

BA forced into U-turn over T5 Club check-in

British Airways is to add dedicated check-in at Heathrow's Terminal 5 for its passengers in Club World and Club Europe in an embarrassing U-turn.  Until now, only passengers travelling in first class or gold members of the airline’s frequent flyer programme Executive Club have had their own facilities.

A BA spokesman said “It follows feedback from our premium customers. We have previously done the same in our other terminals.”

Club passengers currently have to share their check-in desks with passengers in World Traveller Plus and Economy. Until now, BA has stated that "Passengers can choose any kiosk, check-in desk or bag drop. Terminal 5 was designed for speed and ease".

The airline will also add an additional business class lounge in Terminal 5 B and add extra facilities to help business class customers with ticket presentation at security.

KLM starts self-service drop-off at Schiphol

KLM has started an innovative self-service baggage drop scheme at Amsterdam Schiphol. The trial, which is expected to last six months, will mean that passengers on KLM and its partner airlines who have one piece of hold luggage will be able to check in their luggage without the need for assistance from a member of staff.

To use the system, passengers place their baggage inside a station at desk row 12 in Departure Hall 2 and enter their personal and flight details, which are then processed automatically. KLM staff will be on hand to help passengers with any problems.

If the trial proves successful, the airport says self-service drop-off "may in future become a standard part of the Amsterdam Airport Schiphol check-in process".

"The passengers' experiences in using the system are important and will be taken into account," said the airport.

As we announced in a recent Medway Travel Express, if you bought a British Airways or Virgin Atlantic Airways ticket in the US or UK between 11th August 2004 and 23 March 2006, you may be entitled to a partial refund of the fuel surcharge. The refund applies to "long haul" flight tickets purchased either in the United States or United Kingdom between these dates.
 
For further information on claiming refunds, including a list of qualifying flights, background on the passenger refund settlement and how to claim, please go to https://www.airpassengerrefund.co.uk/.
 
Alternatively, Medway Travel will be pleased to claim any refunds due to your company on your behalf, on tickets booked through Medway Travel.
 
To carry out this service for you, we will complete all relevant application forms with data captured in our back office system. We will then submit the claim and monitor until the claim has been fully dealt with and the monies returned to us. Medway Travel will charge 25% of refunded monies (with a minimum charge of £20) for this service, forwarding the balance to your company's nominated contact.
 
The deadline for submission of a refund claim is 31st December 2012, but we would suggest you set the process in motion now while these historic records are still reasonably accessible.
 
Please email angela@medwaytravel.co.uk if you would like us to make a claim on your behalf.

The new Star Alliance lounge at Terminal 1 opened this summer, at the same time as member carriers United and Air New Zealand moved into the terminal from T3. Other Star carriers will follow from Terminals 2 and 3 over the coming months, but South African Airways, US Airways, Asiana and LOT are already located in the terminal. Bmi also has its own Diamond Club lounge at the opposite end of the terminal.

The new Alliance lounge is situated on the Departures floor, in the former British Airways lounge, to the right of the duty-free area. It is open for use by first and business class passengers, invited guests and Star Alliance gold-card holders travelling on any member carrier from Terminal 1.

Business class is to the left of reception, with a self-service dining area with high chairs and tables immediately past the entrance. There is a good range of food options, including sandwiches, salads, curries, fresh fruit and cakes, and a choice of beverages including fruit juice, alcohol and mixers, and a coffee machine.

Décor in the lounge is smart, with slate-coloured flooring, white walls and two-tone wood panelling. Past the dining area is a TV zone with flatscreen televisions, a couple of seating areas (one raised section with lots of natural light, and another with wooden artwork on the walls), and a children’s area in one corner. There are also 13 shower cubicles with hairdryers and Gilchrist and Soames amenities.

At the opposite end of the lounge is another seating area and a business centre with ten booths. Facilities here include a photocopier/fax/printer, power sockets and wired internet inputs. Computer terminals are due to be added in the near future for those without laptops. There is wifi internet access throughout the lounge through T-Mobile, free for first class and Global Services passengers (United’s highest tier in its frequent flyer scheme), and chargeable for business class customers.

Other features include a good selection of newspapers and magazines, bowls of fresh fruit, departures boards in each seating area, and the odd flower arrangement.

The separate first class lounge is to the right of reception, and is smaller but fairly similar in feel. The premium lounge has its own shower facilities, and a slightly enhanced choice of food and drink. There is a total of 300 seats across the two lounges, which occupy 1,650 sqm of space.

Overall, it is a welcome facility in which to shelter calmly from the noise and bustle of Heathrow!

For passengers whose ticket doesn't qualify them for this or any of the other complimentary lounge, Medway Travel can provide executive lounge facilities at most airports used by corpporate travellers for a modest fee. This is a great way to unwind prior to an important trip or relax after a stressful day, so do ask  us for details.

 

100,000 aviation jobs will be slashed as fuel prices and the economic slump accelerate industry consolidation on a massive scale, according to Qantas boss, Geoff Dixon.

The chief executive officer, making some wide ranging predictions about the aviation industry in a recent paper, said that the fuel crisis would be the catalyst for a seismic shift that would see the market populated by a few airlines, niche carriers that served individual markets and wealthy flag carriers from the oil nations.

Describing a “new world order”, he said: “Over time, consolidation will transform aviation. It will produce a few, very large and extremely efficient global airlines with a portfolio of interests and brands - like Air France and KLM. These players will have enormous power in marketing, in fuel buying and hedging, in aircraft purchasing, and in reach. There will still be niche airlines with specialist offerings - whether for business or leisure travellers - but these will need to be run very skilfully, and any weakness will lead to a quick death. Those powerful, government-backed airlines, particularly from the oil rich state, will also survive. These governments will continue to use aviation services as instruments of national economic development.”

The prediction suggests that by 2020 “many more” airlines will disappear or they will be taken over because they won’t be able to deal with the “permanently high” fuel costs.

Medway Travel will therefore continue to provide Airline Failure Insurance on all airline tickets we sell to clients, in order to safeguard them from financial loss, should they be holding unused ticket sectors when their carrier ceases to operate.

 

New research shows 800,000 laptops are lost or stolen each year around the world.

Each week 900 laptops go missing from Heathrow alone – half of which are never recovered, according to new research. But this could be largely avoided if owners put external labels on them to identify them, researchers found. 

An independent privacy management company was commissioned to conduct the research between December 2007 and July 2008. Over 5,000 business travellers and airport staff working in security, baggage and lost and found were interviewed – 480 of whom were from the UK. The survey covered 24 international airports in 15 countries and 106 commercial airports in the US. Respondents were asked how well they protect their data while travelling.

In Europe each week 750 passengers travelling through Amsterdam lose their laptops, compared with 733 at Charles de Gaulle, and 385 at Gatwick, 51 per cent of which are never found.

The survey highlights a worrying statistic: 65 per cent of business travellers don’t know how to protect their confidential data, which can include clients’ personal information, and 40 per cent have not backed up their laptop’s data elsewhere.

Yet this could be avoided: 46 per cent of laptops go missing at the departure gates, passengers clubs and lounges, so the losses are a result of passengers being careless rather than airlines. A similar amount of passengers don’t bother finding out how secure an airport’s wireless connection is, before using it.

One of the quick and easy things business travellers can do, is to put their name and contact number on the outside of their laptop. The other primary thing is to make sure you only take the data you need and back up your data; personal data should be encrypted. It’s important for anybody carrying sensitive data to protect it.

Medway Travel can offer a third party ultra secure data storage facility that enables executives to store and access data through the internet, so enabling you to travel without your laptop, or have it with you but without its holding any confidential data, until you actually need to work with it. Please see our website for further details.

Offering an intimate stay with heavy emphasis on cutting edge design and highly personalised service, boutique hotels are enjoying a resurgence in popularity with discerning travellers. Their success has fuelled expansion plans for both boutique chains and large hotel chains worldwide.

Consumers demand more

A hotel’s features and location are a major contributor to travellers overall trip experience, especially due to the amount of time and money spent staying there. As a result, travellers are demanding more from their hotels including the latest technologies, modern and interesting design features, luxury foods and superior service. 

Historically, the word ‘boutique’ implied expensive. However, many hotel brands, such as NYLO, are bringing ‘boutique’ features to the masses. 

Boutiques become chains while chains launch boutiques

To gain scale and increase their appeal with business travellers, boutique hotels are opening numerous outlets, becoming their own hotel chains. Each hotel still retains its own identity by incorporating elements from its locations into design features, local food and overall culture. 

The concept of boutique hotels has proved so successful that hotel chains have increasingly brought their unique concepts and amenities to their own brands.

Starwood Hotels was the first chain to launch a large scale brand based on the boutique concept with its W brand. Starwood's W Hotels was the first to have a boutique chain hotel concept with an emphasis on trendy design and hip locales to target young, urban travellers. There are currently 26 W Hotels worldwide. 

Other chains have followed with Hilton’s Waldorf-Astoria Collection and Marriott’s Edition brand,  IHG’s Indigo and Hyatt’s Hyatt Place. The Stein Hotel chain has seven outlets across Europe and Hotel du Vin is expanding in Britain. 32nd Milestone, in India, is expected to add five more hotels.

Our consultants will take pleasure in finding just the right hotel for you and your guests, to suit the occasion, so do contact us with your requirements and we will not only find you the most appropriate available, but also save you time and probably negotiate a better rate too.

Business travel remains crucial to companies’ welfare, according to a recent survey, as eight out ten European businesses said they expect their international travel volumes to stay the same or increase, with an even more convincing nine out of ten saying the same for domestic business travel.

On the flipside, nearly half of respondents said they also expected to reduce their annual business travel spend and are implementing strategies to drive savings. A third of those surveyed said that their domestic travel policies were likely to get tougher, compared with 21 per cent saying the same of international travel policy.

European businesses emerged as the least concerned with clamping down on travel as just 29 per cent said they were likely to restrict travel for conferences, management retreats and training events, compared with 55 per cent in the US. A similar picture emerged for domestic travel, where 45 per cent of US respondents claim to be cutting back on domestic business travel compared with 21 per cent in Europe.

The survey questioned over 350 senior finance executives at companies – with revenues between £250million and £10billion – across Europe, North America, Mexico, Asia and Australia.

There are several ways in which Medway Travel can assist in minimising the cost of necessary travel. Good MI and ensuring conformance to travel policies are known to produce significant savings, as is clamping down on DIY booking (which can waste a great deal of expensive staff time and fail to identify all the possible fare and travel mode options).

If your company is looking to save on travel costs, please discuss your objectives with our Account Managers.

St Pancras International has become the first major London railway station to install free-to-access Wi-Fi throughout the entire station.

Whether you are a Eurostar business traveller in the exclusive Business Premier lounge, a leisure traveller taking a coffee in the departure lounge - or perhaps shopping or dining before checking-in - everyone can benefit from this facility.

Even if you've simply come to St Pancras International to admire the architecture, you can still surf the net!

Don't forget, our consultants are only too pleased to arrange your Eurostar and Continental rail trips as well as UK rail and any other travel you may have in mind.