ABTA TRAVEL BUDDY GOES ON TOUR
Date published: 16 February 2010With only 4 months until the World Cup kicks off in South Africa, ABTA is reminding Members to sign up to ABTA Travel Buddy, a free email and mobile SMS text service which enables them to provide essential holiday information to customers at all stages of their booking home and away.
The ABTA Travel Buddy email puts together Foreign Office 'Know Before You Go' and destination information for holidaymakers before they travel, and, in emergency circumstances will provide text messages paid for by the FCO so that customers can be provided with essential information and guidance when in their destination.
With an estimated 50,000 English footie fans heading to South Africa, many of whom may not have travelled outside of Europe before, Travel Buddy is an ideal and convenient way of giving these customers essential travel information and advice.
The email helps ABTA Members provide information that’s required under the ABTA Code of Conduct in a clear format and includes details of FCO advice, reminders about the importance of travel insurance and, when appropriate, recommendations to visit a health professional before travel. The email also has space for ABTA Members' own essential travel information.
Nikki White ABTA Head of Destination Services said “We all hope England’s trip to South Africa will be a glorious success and ABTA Travel Buddy is a great way to help ensure your footie fan customers’ trips will be too. It’s free of charge and an ideal way to pass on essential up to date travel information. It’s a win win situation for everyone.”
To find out more or sign up to Travel Buddy ABTA Members should contact destinations@abta.co.uk Tel: 0203 117 0590.
For further information
Sean Tipton, Senior Press Officer, tel: 020 3117 0513,
Frances Tuke, Public Relations Manager, tel: 020 3117 0514, Mobile 07850 712 325, Casia Zajac, Head of Communications, tel: 020 3117 0515, Mobile: 07545 927 411
Out of Hours: Contact the Duty Press Officer via pager: 07659 190 987
E-mail: press@abta.co.uk
Web: www.abta.com
Notes to editors
ABTA – The Travel Association was founded in 1950 and currently has 1,351 members with 5,700 outlets. Members include travel agents, tour operators and support services right across the spectrum from small family-owned businesses to the largest tour operators.
ABTA is the largest travel association in the UK and its members provide 90% of the foreign package holidays in the UK as well as selling millions of independent travel arrangements.
In 2008 ABTA merged with the Federation of Tour Operators [FTO], thereby cementing its role as the leading travel association and increasing benefits for both ABTA and FTO members. Both the ABTA brand which is highly recognised by consumers and the FTO brand which is well known in destinations will be retained.
As part of its comprehensive package of services to members, ABTA, as a non-party political organisation works to represent the interests of its Members to government and key opinion formers in the UK and EU.
