THE Travel South USA regional marketing consortium is taking 50 senior staff from independent agencies in the UK on an educational to the US.
UK visitors make up the second biggest international market after Canada for most of the 12 southern states represented by Travel South.
The trip will give all the destinations an opportunity to improve their exposure.
The one-week educational takes place in April and is being arranged jointly with the Visit USA Association, the destination marketing organisation run voluntarily by tour operators and other UK suppliers.
Eligible agents will be members of Visit USA’s Pioneer Club, who undertake advanced levels of training to qualify as US specialists.
Travel South managing director Glenn Couvillon said the April visit is the first project in a new Travel South USA Institute educational programme that is expected to be expanded.
Speaking at the Travel South Marketplace in Greensboro, North Carolina, Couvillon said: “We are putting $20,000 towards the cost of the educational, which is not a traditional familiarisation tour. The group will be split up into smaller parties and visit different parts of the south, with all member states participating.
“At the end of each itinerary, the agents will gather for an intensive two-and-a-half-day debriefing session in order to maximise their knowledge of the region.”
Couvillon said there was a growing interest from UK visitors to combine Florida with other parts of the southern US.
For full report on the Travel South USA Marketplace see story