Agents have reported an uplift in enquiries for Florida’s Walt Disney World Resort after it hosted a live show of Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.
The show, which was filmed in the Magic Kingdom, featured celebrity appearances from singer CeeLo Green, who performed his hit Forget You, and Cat Deeley.
Stephen Mulhern and Scarlett Moffatt also joined the pair on stage for the ITV show, which attracts about seven million viewers.
Dan Buckingham, head of retail at Virgin Holidays, which partnered with Disney to host the grand finale, said its stores had “without doubt” seen a hike in demand.
Thomas Cook travel consultant Dan Pule said he took a family booking on Saturday ahead of the show airing because his customer’s son was “hooked” on the show.
“It was a one-off holiday they’ve wanted to do for years. Their son wanted to be on the show and was disappointed he couldn’t go so they booked for next summer. Programmes like this boost the profile of theme parks and lead to bookings.”
Debby King, manager of Departure Lounge Travel in Boston, Lincolnshire, said more people had come in to pick up Disney brochures after the show.
Thomson Superstore agent Rebecca Withers, her husband Alan and children Leonie and Charlie were among 300 competition winners who were flown out to Orlando to be part of the audience. Withers won tickets after entering a social media competition run by Travel Weekly that asked agents to take a selfie with Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway on in the background.
She said: “We are thrilled and overwhelmed to be part of the show and have had the best time ever. It’s a holiday we will never forget.”
The winners flew to Orlando on a specially chartered Virgin Atlantic flight, stayed at Disney’s Pop Century Resort and were given $2,500 to spend in resort.