WHEN an agent flies from Aberdeen to Harwich to spend several hours in training workshops on a ferry on the North Sea, the operator organising the event must be doing something right.
Travel 2/4 is in its seventh year of running four long-haul return training sailings a year aboard a Scandinavian Seaways ship from Harwich to Hamburg. The Aberdeen agent had the longest journey for the May sailing in which 64 agents took part.
Sales manager David Longmuir believes that going abroad makes the training sailings popular, but said agents also like the structured format. They are divided into groups of three or four and get 15mins with each supplier – there were 23 on the May sailing.
Training starts as the ship leaves Harwich at 4.30pm. It also fills the following morning until the vessel docks in Hamburg at 1pm.
There is 3hrs free time in Hamburg before the ship sets sail again at 4.30pm for another 2hrs of training. On the final morning, there is a multiple choice quiz, with questions on each supplier and holidays for the winners.
“We put a lot into training agents as we only sell through the trade,” said Longmuir.
“Agents find this hard going, but the feedback shows they learn a lot about Travel 2/4. We get repeat agents and others who ask to come because they have heard it is good.
“We look at it each year but why change a winning formula? We put new things in, but the format stays the same.”
New this year are two sailings from Newcastle to Amsterdam. The first ran in March and the second will be in October. Suppliers, who pay for a place, are keen to get on board. Kissimmee St Cloud Convention and Visitors Bureau UK marketing manager Shirley Harrington said one reason is because it is hard to get agents away from their shops for training.
There is a waiting list which Travel 2/4 is trying to cut down by restricting suppliers to three out of four sailings.
That made room for three new names on the Hamburg sailing – Virgin Atlantic, Newmans Holidays and Scandinavian Seaways – but has caused friction with regulars such as Ansett Australia which like the opportunity to talk to 60-80 “captive” agents.
Longmuir said he understood why they are upset, but added: “It is good to bring in new blood.”