Sunwing & Signature show heads east

The talk was hot deals and even hotter weather at the Sunwing Vacations and Signature Vacations’ 2016-2017 trade show at Halifax’s Prince George Hotel yesterday (May 9). Twenty-three suppliers greeted more than 130 travel agents, media and partners in an evening that featured a buffet, presentations and prize giveaways.

“We are focusing tonight on what’s new, what’s exciting and what’s exclusive to us,” said David Wright, director of sales, Ontario and Atlantic Canada. This annual event, which started in Stoney Creek, ON, on April 19, will travel across Canada until its final event on May 12 in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

The travelling trade show will reach 5,000 travel professionals Canada-wide and feature more than 70 suppliers, with the numbers of both suppliers and agent attendance growing every year in Halifax, said Wright.

The evening commenced with agents and key partners having the chance to discuss one-on-one what new products are being offered. Presentations that followed highlighted the latest hotel and tour offerings in recently-released Sunwing/Signature’s new 2016-2017 brochures.

The new brochures feature a wealth of new selections and additions. Sunwing has added more than 130 new hotels to serve their collection of 35 popular vacation destinations, whereas Signature Vacations features six new exclusive collections that have been designed in partnership with leading hotel and resort chains cross the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America. The new Signature brochure features 12 pages devoted to Nexus tours, which offers a booking of the 21st passenger for free on pre-booked excursions.

“The number of destination weddings we see grows every year,” said Wright, who highlighted the new Destination Wedding Preview feature, whereby two passengers can fly to their resort in advance to review it before the wedding takes place.

The airline itself has a new logo as well. “We have a brand new paint job—a brand new look. We went back to the orange and white, with nice clean lines, and I think it looks pretty good,” said Wright, adding that passengers receive sparkling wine, hot towel service, snacks and complimentary beverages onboard, as well as a complimentary checked baggage service of 23 kg.

For travel agents, selling excursion packages in advance is a great opportunity to boost commission. “The whole idea is booking your clients ahead of time in Canada before they go on holidays, which means they’re paying in Canadian dollars,” said Wright. “With the U.S. exchange rates we’re seeing these days, it’s definitely beneficial for them to book in Canadian dollars.”

To view Sunwing Vacations’ new brochure click here. To view Signature Vacations’ new brochure click here.