Incentive - December 2007 - (Page 51)

AWARDS in t i ravelocity Incentives’ Hotel Gift Cards needed something more. The cards could already be used at over 30,000 hotels internationally, paying for the hotel stay and anything else that could be added to the room tab. They also offered the award recipient the convenience of booking his or her travel online, on any date that fit his or her schedule. But despite these benefits, the most an individual could spend at one time with a Hotel Gift Card was $400. So as of November 1, when Travelocity Incentives launched its new Web site www.travelocityincentives.com, the card maximum was increased to a whopping $5,000. “It expands the marketability [of the card] so that people can now book a complete vacation at a four- or five-star hotel e h t g n ry i t t ra ee s By Alex Palmer without it being a partial award,” says Peter Friend, CEO of Travelocity Incentives. This jump in the potential amount of an individual travel award reflects the growing demand for travel gift cards in the industry. Besides Travelocity’s upgraded card, American Express Incentive Solutions contributed to the travel gift card market in late September with the release of the Expeditions Card, which uses AEIS’s patented DirectSpend technology to allow winners to redeem their rewards at as many as 60 travel-related merchants, purchasing anything from luggage to luxury cruise trips. Many other merchants are offering travelfocused incentive gift cards as well. Among hotel chains, Fairmont Hotels and Resorts and Hyatt Hotels and Resorts not only have special weekend and getaway packages, but the en d roa pb hel s ay s mogram d car in pr ift d g ravel te ina e of t ml eno ro r-d olla D T also nonspecific dollar-denominated cards that can be applied to any service at the destination. Airlines like American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, and cruise lines like Disney Cruise Line and Carnival Cruise Lines offer cards ranging from $25 to thousands, allowing incentive winners to get where they are going in comfort and style. More adventurous travelers might appreciate a card from Roadtrips, which they could redeem for tickets to sports events or concerts, or one from Viator, which can be redeemed on over 3,000 tours, events and activities. These dollar-denominated travel gift cards are becoming a significant force in the travel incentive market, because they give incentive planners wider flexibility in what they can offer to travel reward recipients. “Let’s say you’ve been to Hawaii within incentivemag.com | December 2007 | Incentive | 51 http://incentivemag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - December 2007

Incentive - December 2007 Contents Editor’s Note: Revved Up In the News Cover Story: Rolls-Royce Empowers Its Own Case Study: Booz Allen Hamilton Beating Your Best Incentive Primer: Add Value to Your Event Keeping Safety In Mind Incentive Interview Potentials Here and Now Research: Corporate Gifts Facts Report Tabletop Awards: Travel Gift Cards Travel News Viva Puerto Vallarta Indigenous Spas Advertiser Index Off the Cuff: Ambassador Christoph Bubb Luxury Brands Special Supplement

Incentive - December 2007

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