New luxury tour operator launches

The directors behind a luxury tour operator launching this week say they plan to capture a market abandoning the four star package holiday. Managing director, Mark Van Straten told TravelMole: “In the last two years we have noticed there is a massive requirement in the market as people are abandoning package holidays. They are leaning towards an independent way of purchasing travel.” When asked whether the luxury market was ever going on package holidays, his colleague Daniel Essex added: “There was a huge four star package market.” Voyana is a tour operating and cruise brand that has evolved from Globe Corporate Travel Group, formed in 1985. Mr Van Straten says the company began to stray into the luxury cruise market in the early 1990s. “It was a market that agents were shying away from”, he said. The company will offer holidays in 27 destinations, including places in the Indian Ocean, Far East and Europe. Consumers are directed to a comprehensive website with details of the product on offer, and are directed to a travel consultant to book. “Our message is a global presence through our comprehensive website substantiated by old-fashioned serviceability” said Mr Van Straten. He added that for high-end travel purchases upwards of £5,000, he thought people would rather talk to a person than simply plugging their credit details into a computer. Voyana has 28 consultants working in an office in Middlesex outside London. Mr Van Straten said they are all experts in their destinations and have visited the places many times. Daniel Essex is director of the cruise division, which will offer tailor made packages with cruise lines like Royal Caribbean and Silversea. He told TravelMole: “We don’t sell what is in the brochure, we sell customers what they want, with stop-overs where they want.” Mr Essex says the company is keen to work with agents. It will pay agents a flat booking fee and suggests that agents add their own mark up onto a holiday. Mr Van Straten added: “We will work with a number of good quality agents, rather than working with all agents.” Mr Van Straten accepted that for the shorthaul city breaks market, dynamic packaging worked well. He added that Voyana was considering introducing dynamic packaging for its own shorthaul products, but said that they are not city breaks. Voyana is working with search engines to make sure it comes out high on the list when people do a holiday search. It is also taking out adverts in the national press. Mr Van Straten says the website is receiving 3,000-4,000 enquiries per week already. Report by Ginny McGrath

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