AGTA NEWS - AGTA (UK)

AGTA NEWS
www.agta.co.uk
AUTUMN 2012
Cyprus, 2012 / 2013
Keeping Cyprus’ Beaches
Beautiful for All to Enjoy
In 2010 the Cyprus Tourism Organisation
(CTO), the Cyprus Sustainable Tourism
Initiative (CSTI) and the UK sustainable
tourism charity, The Travel Foundation,
entered into a partnership agreement
to establish a programme of initiatives
to support Cyprus in becoming a leader
in sustainable tourism – tourism which
benefits destination environments and
communities.
Noel Josephides, AGTA (UK) & The Travel Foundation, Chairman
It’s a shame that the politicians in
Cyprus have decided over the last two
years to cut the tourism promotional
budgets. It’s a fact that as soon as
politicians see that figures are improving,
they believe that they will continue to do
so even without any promotion - a very
basic mistake. Without promotion we will
see no increase in arrivals from the UK in
2013. We must not forget that the reason
Russian arrivals are growing is because
they are charter based and tour operator
driven. No-frills carriers ex UK will
not bring growth and as long as there
is a strong no-frills presence no tour
operator will charter aircraft. Politicians
generally believe they know how tourism
works because they take holidays, fly in
aircraft and stay in hotels.
But in one area Cyprus has moved
forward considerably. Let's call it
environmental maintenance. The CTO
partnership with the Travel Foundation
in the UK and the Cyprus Sustainable
Initiative will bear fruit and has already
had a positive impact as we can read in
the adjacent two columns.
Fig Tree Bay, Protaras
News & Events
participating in beach cleans!
What can you do to support this initiative?
• Ask those who smoke to occupy the select
dedicated smoking zones, and use the
ashtrays provided
• Remind holidaymakers to separate litter
into the correct Green Dot bags or bins
• Suggest walking, cycling or taking public
transport to reach the beach
• Promote beach clean events and encourage
staff and holidaymakers to join in
• Keep up to date with beach activities and
new initiatives - like the Greening Cyprus
Beaches Facebook page
Nissi Beach, Ayia Napa
One of these initiatives looks at the
‘greening’ of Cyprus beaches. Nissi Beach
(Agia Napa) and Fig Tree Bay (Protaras)
have been selected for a pilot study, taking
place throughout 2012, to showcase what
a ‘green’ beach could look like. Already in
place at these two beaches are:
• Sun beds/umbrellas which have been
replaced with ones made from recycled /
sustainable materials
• Traditionally produced/locally made clay
ashtrays purchased for Nissi Beach
• Ashtrays made from recyclable material
purchased for Fig Tree Bay
• Zoned smoking/non-smoking areas
created
• General waste/recycling bins replaced
and revamped
• Bike racks installed at Nissi Beach
• A safe drinking-water fountain installed
at Fig Tree Bay
• Plants, which are endemic to Cyprus,
planted and promoted
• Educational talks provided to local
schools
• Local residents, school children,
businesses and holidaymakers
Julie Middleton, Industry Program
Manager, The Travel Foundation
T. +44 (0) 117 930 7172
M: +44 (0) 7932 669 246
www.agta.co.uk
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Four Seasons Hotel beach front
Pictured with Harry Stavrou of Beyond Certainty are Yannis
Efthymiou, AGTA (left) and George Joseph, Palm Beach Hotel
BEYOND CERTAINTY FEATURE
Earlier this summer AGTA Affiliate
UK member Beyond Certainty LTD
(BC)–a successful London Based Event
Management company specialising in
bespoke events , conferences , dinners (large
or small) with great expertise- hosted its
annual ‘Thank You’ event for their client base
at a fantastic West End venue in London. The
evening was based on a Circus theme. As
the doors opened with a bang guests were
Cyprus
A Directory of Real Holidays in
2013
AGTA (UK)
Association of
Greek Cypriot
Travel Agents
greeted by a Ring Master, who hosted the
entire private party.
During the evening guests were able to
sample the best canapés in town from a spicy
shrimp and grilled red pepper to teriyaki beef
in lettuce cups. Not only did they enjoy the
exquisite contortionists and illusionists they
were able to dress up in the photo booth
and enjoy the oxygen bar. As well as help
themselves to sweets from the pick n mix
AGTA 2013
Cyprus Brochure
The 2013 AGTA annual members’ brochuredirectory has been launched during October
2012. The new brochure - complete with
concise editorial covering Cyprus’s holiday
resorts attractions / events / and news - is,
as always, aimed at promoting the Island
as a quality tourist destination at trade and
consumer travel and holiday exhibitions
beginning with the World Travel Market.
stand and popcorn.
In a welcome address to his customers
the company’s Managing Director,
Haralambos Stavrou, said: ‘We strongly
believe that by holding this annual event
keeps us in touch with our clients and
thanking them for their continued support
especially in the current climate’. See above
memento images from the event.
in all categories. More importantly the click
through facility to members’ own websites
and background page details will be vastly
improved. Work to the site is on-going and
new features are being considered.
AGTA Website
Updates & upgrades to the AGTA website
www.agta.co.uk are currently being
completed. Innovations to the site include
a better presentation of members’ listings
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www.agta.co.uk
News & Events
CYPLON HOLIDAYS – WINS PRESTIGIOUS TRAVEL
BULLETIN AWARD YET AGAIN!
Tass Anastasi - Sales & marketing Director- Cyplon Holidays with
Jeanette Ratcliffe - Publisher - Travel Bulletin
Specialist North London tour operator,
Cyplon Holidays, picks up prestigious ‘Star
Specialist Operator to the Mediterranean’
award.
Cyplon Holidays, an established specialist
tour operator for over 40 years, and based
in north London has been awarded the
prestigious award ‘Star Specialist Operator
to the Mediterranean’. This was announced
and presented at the Travel Bulletin Awards
held at The Landmark Hotel, London, on 10
September 2012.
Cyplon Holidays had previously won,
on 3 separate occasions, the ‘Specialist
Independent Operator to Cyprus’. Tas
Anastasi, Sales and Marketing Director for
Cyplon Holidays, commented: “It was nerve
racking waiting to find out if we had won and
we are just over the moon to have done so.
It’s a testament to the exceptional rapport
we have built up over the last 41 years
with the UK travel trade and our excellent
programmes to Cyprus, Greece and Egypt.”
“We will continue to offer quality holidays
at affordable prices, backed by a team of
mature and specialised reservation staff of
which we are very proud.” Over 6,000 travel
agents voted for 32 categories in Travel
Bulletin’s annual trade industry awards.
New Affiliate Members
So Nice & So White Boutique Suites
A: 103 Nissi Avenue, PO Box 30440, 5343
Ayia Napa, Cyprus
T: 00357 23723010 / F: 00357 23 721233
E: [email protected]
W: www.sonice.com.cy
E: [email protected]
W: sowhitehotel.com
Contact for AGTA matters: Mr Nikolas
Panayiotou (MD) and in UK by Sandra Bruce
(Sandy Beach UK – T: 07802 478843)
‘So Nice and So White are Boutique Suites in
Ayia Napa, ‘Owned & operated exclusively
by Mr Nikolas Panayiotou and his family.
The two properties are among the finest
boutique suites / hotels in Cyprus’
Wirecard Technologies GmbH
A: Einsteinring 35 / 85609 Aschheim,
Munich, Germany
T: +49 (0) 89 / 4424-1675
F: +49 (0) 89 / 4424 – 2675
E: [email protected]
W: www.wirecard.com
Contact for AGTA matters: Mario Berni (Sales
Manager) T: +44 (0) 0781 66 00 1 22
‘Wirecard Technologies AG is a global
financial services and technology company
News & Events
headquartered in Ascheim, Munich, Germany.
The company provides payment processing,
card issuing and risk management services
to more than 10.000 corporate customers
worldwide. Wirecard Bank AG operates under
a German Banking Licence and is a Principal
Member of VISA, MasterCard and JCB.
Wirecard AG is listed on the TecDAX index of
Deutsche Börse and now ranks among the 30
largest German technology companies below
the DAX.
One of Wirecard’s key markets is Travel
and Transport where it provides payment
processing services for over 45 global airlines
many major tour operators, travel agents, OTA’s
and hotels.
www.agta.co.uk
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AGTA NEWS
www.agta.co.uk
AUTUMN 2012
WORLD TRAVEL AWARD - "Cyprus' Leading Resort 2012"
InterContinental Aphrodite Hills Resort Hotel
The award winning, five-star and first-ever
leisure, golf and real estate development
in Cyprus which combines the five-star
InterContinental hotel with an indulgent spa,
championship golf course and a first class
Annabel Croft tennis academy, announced that
the InterContinental Aphrodite Hills Resort Hotel
had won the 2012 'Cyprus’ Leading Resort’ award
last week, making it the 7th World Travel Award
title since the opening of the hotel in 2005.
substantially heighten the hotel’s international
profile and provide a highly effective advantage
in making it stand out from the rest of its
competitors.
The InterContinental Hotel part of Aphrodite
Hills Resort is known as one of the finest fully
integrated, luxury resort developments in the
world. This extremely prestigious award proves to
Limassol: Amathus Beach Hotel, Four Seasons,
Le Meridien, Londa , St Raphael. Paphos & Polis:
Annabelle, Anassa. Ayia Napa: Adams Beach.
Protaras: Capo Bay, Grecian Park
Other Award winning Cyprus
AGTA member hotels in 2012
Grecian Park
Capo Bay
Amathus Beach Hotel Limassol
Londa
Four Seasons
Le Meridien
St Raphael
Annabelle
Anassa
Adams Beach
End Note:
AGTA NEWS is a quarterly produced newsletter distributed
to members and industry networking tourism partners.
We would welcome suggestions from members for
important news (i.e. awards or out of the ordinary news)
about their organisations /companies for inclusion in
future editions of the Newsletter.
News & Events
Comments on published items are also welcomed.
Please e-mail any of these to the AGTA (UK)
Secretariat:
E mail: [email protected]
Prepared-distributed October 2012
Yannis Efthymiou
Executive,
AGTA (UK) Secretariat
AGTA NEWS Autumn / Winter 2012-2013
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www.agta.co.uk
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