Barrhead Travel will open a specialist US division in 2024, the agency’s sales and marketing director has revealed.
Nicki Tempest-Mitchell (pictured) told the business’s conference in Majorca that the new team would build on growing momentum for the destination.
She said: “Our incredible partnerships with tourist boards, individual states, operators, hotel groups and cruise lines have helped us lay the crucial foundations for a successful launch.”
More: Barrhead Travel to be ‘taken to next level’ with retail expansion
The decision to open a US division follows the success of the recently created touring and adventure division, Tempest-Mitchell said, with bookings for that sector having risen by 102% this year compared with 2019.
Further outlining the reasoning behind the US division, Tempest-Mitchell added: “Already we see main gateways such as Florida, New York and Las Vegas enter our top destinations time and time again.
“We’ve already been recognised for supporting tourism to the US, so now it’s time to build on that momentum and work to introduce even more UK holidaymakers to even more of the US.”
Meanwhile, Canada bookings have grown 25% on last year, Tempest-Mitchell said, with the country now ranking third on the list of long-haul destinations.
Barrhead Travel’s specialist Canada team also functions as an in-house tour operator, Tempest-Mitchell added.