| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 19/06/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 24 |
| Copyright: Other |
Short breaks
Wallace Arnold expands coach itineraries for UK and Europe
Report by TANYAJEFFERIES
COACH operator Wallace Arnold has expanded the UK short-breaks selection in its Britain and Europe programme, after piloting four-day domestic weekend coaching holidays last year.The operator has added 33 breaks in the UK, including tours to Bristol, Bath, Northumbria and Stratford.
Marketing manager Gordon Durrens said: “UK short breaks are a growth market and we need to be a part of it but we have taken our time in order to develop the right product for our customers.”
UK prices are from £85 for three nights’ half-board at the Grand Hotel in Exmouth, Devon.
The brochure, which is on sale now for holidays from autumn this year to spring next year, features more than 150 new holidays to meet demand from existing clients for fresh product and to attract younger customers.
“In the past 12 months we have seen more 45-plus clients, where the traditional coaching customer is usually 55-plus,” said Durrens.
“We are looking for a 15% increase in passengers on this programme,” he added, but declined to release figures.
New tours in Europe include the five-day Champagne Country programme, a nine-day Normandy Coast and Brittany itinerary and a seven-day holiday to Lake Lucerne and the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.
The lead-in price for Europe is £159 for a four-night Popular Ostend package including half-board accommodation and return ferry crossings.
Durrens said the number of joining points across the UK has been increased from 950 to 1,600 to meet client demand.