Travel Agent - September 1, 2008 - (Page 12)

FROM THE PUBLISHER Listen and Learn THANK YOU FOR ALL THE NICE NOTES FROM THE TRAVEL PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY ON MY ADDED RESPONSIBILITY OF TRAVEL AGENT MAGAZINE. As many of you know, I have spent 20 years in travel professional media. I am excited to be group publisher of the largest and most diverse travel trade media company in the world. For those of you that don’t know me, my last 10 years were spent building the luxury side of Travel Agent Media Group. My team has been responsible for the launch of Premier Hotel & Resorts, Luxury Travel Expo, Luxury Travel Advisor and Incentive Travel Exchange. This group has been recognized by the travel industry as having the most successful media launches in all of travel—beyond the online travel agencies. This only happened because of two reasons: First, we have one of the most dedicated teams in the industry, and I’m sure many of you are familiar with Ruthanne Terrero, Alicia Evanko and Kimberly Ziegler. The second reason was based on listening to you, the travel professional. A Shout Out The list is too long for me to name all the travel professionals that help shape this business, but you all know who you are. I realized that all great products weren’t made to make money—they must fill a need first. I always say we will figure out how to make money later; it is all about your audience first. This philosophy has paid off. You can’t be all things to all people. Success has happened because you never overpromised and underdelivered. I can’t show you a video clip of me on the moon, but I have been listening to your needs and ideas, so look forward to a few product announcements very soon. Pictured at right, I recently visited Breezy Tour & Travel’s Travel Show. Sound familiar? A mini-travel show, I applaud Marilyn Harvey, the owner of Breezy Tour & Travel, for creating this event for her community. Marilyn also writes a travel column for her local newspaper—interesting that we are in the same business. So my advice to all of you is to listen, learn, become publishers and trade-show operators, and just copy from the best and all our businesses will grow. Group Publisher John McMahon pictured with Marilyn Harvey, the owner of Breezy Tour & Travel, at the Breezy Tour & Travel’s Travel Show (top); other participants at the show (above) JOHN MCMAHON GROUP PUBLISHER 12 | TravelAgent September 1, 2008 CONNECTING YOU For ideas and resources from JohnMcMahon, visit www. travelagentcentral.com/publetter http://www.travelagentcentral.com/publetter http://www.travelagentcentral.com/publetter

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Travel Agent - September 1, 2008

Travel Agent - September 1, 2008 Online Now Contents Contributors From the Editor From the Publisher Europe: Apartment Rentals Offer a Different View of Paris Pacific/Asia: Authentic Sarawak Culture and Longhouse Experiences are Highlights of a Visit to Malaysian Borneo South Pacific: Fiji’s Denarau Island Offers Paradise within a Paradise Las Vegas: As Business Slows, Discounts and Deals are in the Cards at Many Vegas Properties Central & South America: São Paolo, Brazil, is Ideal for Business or Leisure Vacations Caribbean: The Caves in Negril, Jamaica, Offers Quiet Luxury Rosecita Jeffers Takes Over the St. Kitts Tourism Authority Cruises: Crystal Cruises is Making Plans and Changes for the Future Keeping Cruises Affordable with These 12 Tips for Clients Cover Story: Top Supplier Sales Reps Hotels: At Chicago’s Stylish Avenue Hotel, the Kids are all Right Bali is Reinventing Itself as a Family-Friendly Destination Tours: GOGO Worldwide Vacations Renews its Commitment to the Travel Agent Community Agent Profile: Ramesh Kalicharran Looked for His Roots and Helps Others Find Theirs Agenda: Fam Trips, Deals & Incentives, Calendar Luxury Travel Expo The YTB Controversy Rages On The Latest News From the Caribbean Australia Promotes Australia New Flagship to Relaunch Orient Lines Classified Marketplace Agent Access In the Spotlight Editorial Index Advertising Index Trendwatch

Travel Agent - September 1, 2008

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