OETG goes west!

Orient Express Travel Group (OETG) has become a national business with the merge of Joy Tours of Perth into the OETG operation and the mid year opening of an Express Ticketing office in Perth.

The Joy Tours management team led by Mimi Wong remains with the business, similar to the separate brand arrangement when Chung Pak Travel in Sydney merged into OETG late 2005.

Joy Tours, a member of OETG’s 180-strong Select Travel distribution network, is one of the largest independent travel retailers in Western Australia and Joy Tours will also remain as a long term member of NAITA, Jetset’s national distribution network for independent agents.

It will continue to operate as a separate and competitive business, CEO of OETG, Tom Manwaring said today, adding, “It’s business as usual for Joy Tours, but the WA presence gives us a national footprint and allows us to introduce programs and products nationally”.

Mimi Wong said she welcomed the business association with OETG which provided scope for staff development and the challenge of expanding Joy Tours presence in the market.

Mid year OETG will also open an Express Ticketing Office in Perth.

The OETG Express Ticketing office will operate separately from Joy Tours, servicing OETG’s Select agencies and the WA travel retail industry at large. It will be an independent consolidator in the WA market, open with three staff and be linked to the national Express fares and ticketing systems of OETG.

Mr Manwaring said that with recent top end mergers and buyouts and resultant vertical integration of the industry, Express Ticketing would provide WA’s independent agents with a new option.

No strangers to Perth, Mr Manwaring and wife, Julie, bought OETG in November 2003, with both are formerly of Perth, Tom joining Qantas in Perth before moving to Cathay Pacific, spending the first 16 of 30 years with Cathay Pacific in Western Australia.

Julie served 15 years with Cathay Pacific in Perth and Sydney in reservations and sales.

“I understand the multi-layered Asia market profile in WA and its strong VFR, business and leisure travel performance,” said Mr Manwaring. “As a specialist in travel to and from Asia, Perth is an important last national link for OETG.”

Orient Express Travel Group as a consolidator runs Express Ticketing and Express Fares for The Select Travel Group and other travel agent networks, as a retailer it operates the Orient Express Travel and ASTravel brands, as a wholesaler markets the brands Cathay Pacific Holidays and CP Holidays and as an inbound operator runs CP Tours.

Head office is in Melbourne and a new wholesale division is managed from Sydney.

Report by The Mole