2011 National Travel Industry Awards

Australia's travel industry celebrates its night of nights

Tonight almost 1000 travel agents and suppliers gathered for the annual National Travel Industry Awards, once again held at the Sydney Westin Hotel.

The eagerly anticipated night of nights saw the industry celebrate top achievers in a range of categories, with huge interest in the winners announced tonight by MC Jules Lund.

AFTA ceo Jayson Westbury said it was a great occasion to celebrate after a year in which travel agents have truly proved their worth to the travelling public, dealing with a spate of disasters from which the industry continues to recover.

Diehards are continuing to celebrate at the 'afta' party which is expected to continue into the early hours of the morning.

The winners from tonight were:

Rookie of the Year - Agent: Katrina Tasker, Escape Travel Chatswood
Best Travel Consultant - Retail: Anne Westby, Travelcentre Bendigo
Best Travel Agency Retail - Single Location: Harvey World Travel Lane Cove NSW
Best Travel Agency Retail - Multi Location: Phil Hoffmann Travel
Best Travel Consultant - Corporate: Hannah Moore, The Travel Authority
Best Travel Agency Corporate - Multi Location: Globetrotter Corporate Travel
Best Travel Agency Corporate - Single Location: Spencer Travel
Best Conference & Incentive Travel Agency: etm group
Best National Corporate Travel Management Company: Corporate Travel Management
Best Innovation in Marketing - Retail Agency: Phil Hoffmann Travel
Best Travel Writer: Stephen Scourfield, The West Australian
Best Registered Travel Industry Training Institution: Brisbane North Institute of TAFE
Best Hotel/Resort - Australian Property: Cable Beach Club Resort & Spa
Best Hotel/Resort Group: Accor
Best Agency Support Service: Air Tickets
Best Tourist Office - National: Tourism Queensland
Best Tourist Office - International: Tourism New Zealand
Rookie of the Year - Industry Supplier: Christian Coronica, AAT Kings
Best Sales Executive - Industry Supplier: Blake Muir, Topdeck
Best Car/Campervan Rental Operator: Hertz
Best Tour Operator - International: Insight Vacations
Best Tour Operator - Domestic: AAT Kings
Best Cruise Operator - International Based Operation: APT
Best Cruise Operator - Australian Based Operation: Princess Cruises
Best Wholesaler - International Product: Creative Holidays
Best Wholesaler - Australian Product: Qantas Holidays & Viva! Holidays
Best Domestic Airline: Qantas Airways
Best International Airline - Off-Line: Lufthansa German Airlines
Best International Airline - On-Line: Singapore Airlines
Best Agency Group [100 stores or more]: Travelscene American Express

More details and lots of exclusive pictures from the event in Monday's Travel Daily and at www.traveldaily.com.au/photos.

Read More

Funeral Service for Otto Habsburg (1912-2011), son of the last Austrian Emperor

A great European passed away on 4 July 2011: Otto Habsburg-Lothringen, son of the last Austrian Emperor and Empress, Karl and Zita, passed away in his house in the Bavarian town of Pöcking. He was 98 years old. Otto Habsburg-Lothringen will be buried together with his wife Regina, who died in February 2010, in Vienna's Imperial Burial Vault on 16 July 2011.

Otto Habsburg-Lothringen and his wife Regina (née Princess of Saxony-Meiningen) will be the last members of the former imperial court to be buried in the family vault next to Otto's mother, Empress Zita. On Thursday and Friday (14 and 15 July 2011), the two deceased will lie in state in the Capuchin Church. The requiem for Otto Habsburg will take place on Saturday 16 July 2011 at 3:00pm in the Stephansdom. After that, the funeral procession will proceed across the Graben and Kohlmarkt, through the Imperial Palace and via the Ringstrasse to the Kaisergruft (Capuchins' Crypt) on the Neuer Markt.

He was born on 20 November 1912 in Villa Wartholz near Reichenau an der Rax in Lower Austria. After emigrating to Switzerland, Madeira and Spain, as well as temporary stays in the USA and France, Otto Habsburg-Lothringen had lived in Bavaria since 1954. In the 1930s, he fought against the annexation of Austria to Hitler's Germany. From 1957 to 1972, he was Vice President, after that President of the International Paneuropean Union until 2004. This union advocates a politically and economically united democratic Europe. From 1979 to 1999, he was the representative of the Bavarian CSU in the European Parliament. Otto Habsburg-Lothringen was honoured especially for his consistent fight against National Socialism and Communism.

Otto Habsburg-Lothringen's relationship to the Second Republic was therefore not entirely free of conflict. After lengthy negotiations, he was only allowed to return to Austria in 1966 after renouncing his affiliation with the house of Habsburg-Lothringen and the associated claims to power. In 1972, there was finally a historic handshake between Otto Habsburg-Lothringen and the then Federal Chancellor Bruno Kreisky, which relaxed the relationship of the Republic of Austria to the Habsburg-Lothringen family in the long run.

The funeral in Vienna on 16 July 2011 will be attended by many representatives of the European nobility, high church officials and top representatives of Austrian, European and international politics. Otto Habsburg-Lothringen leaves behind seven children. The head of the family is son Karl, born in 1961, who is married to the art patron Francesca Habsburg.

Laying-out in the Capuchin Church: 14 & 15 July 2011
Requiem in St. Stephen's Cathedral and burial in the Imperial Burial Vault: 16 July 2011 (starting at 3:00pm)

Imperial Burial Vault

1., Neuer Markt / Tegetthoffstrasse
Daily 10am–6pm
U, Tram, Bus: Karlsplatz/Oper
U1, U3: Stephansplatz
www.kaisergruft.at

Additional information, photos, and accreditation:

www.ottovonhabsburg.org

Photos of Destination Vienna at www.wien-bild.at

At www.viennaphoto.com, nearly 1000 photos can be downloaded free of charge for editorial use. Please register under "New customer registration" in the "Login" area. You will receive your access code immediately.

Austria, www.vienna.info, www.b2b.vienna.info,

www.twitter.com/ViennaInfoB2B

Read More

LAN AIRLINES RECOMMENCES FLIGHTS FROM AUSTRALIA TO SOUTH AMERICA

LAN Airlines will resume daily flights between Australia and South America from tomorrow, Friday 8 July, following the dispersal of volcanic ash cloud in New Zealand airspace.

Flight LA 800, the airline's daily flight on the Sydney - Auckland – Santiago route, has been disrupted since early June because of the ash cloud.

Flight LA 800 is scheduled to depart Sydney at 9.25am on Friday, flying via Auckland to Santiago.

Passengers seeking more information or wanting to check upcoming flights should call LAN reservations in Sydney on 1800 558 129 or visit www.lan.com.

Due to the high volume of calls, some delays may be experienced.

For passengers who were booked to travel prior to 8 July, but whose travel plans were affected by the ash cloud disruption, LAN will waive change fees for new reservations made up to and including 31 October.

LAN regrets the disruption caused to passengers during this crisis.

Read More