Travel Agent - November 12, 2007 - (Page 84)

NEWS IMPACT Disney’s California Upgrade Will Create Sales Opportunities THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY’S decision to spend more than $1 billion over five years revamping California Adventure, the theme park adjacent to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, should give agents a whole new way of selling the resort to travelers. “For years Disney has been focusing on its parks overseas, so this is an expansion everyone has been waiting for,” says Jo Vagos, director of agent support for CruisingCo. com and MouseEarVacations.com. The aim is to give California Adventure more of the trademark creativity for which Disney is known while encouraging guests to extend their stays beyond the typical two days. Sandy Nussbaum, owner of the Disney-only Instant Impressions Travel Services in Parsippany, NJ, hopes the company—which will test Magic cruises out of California next summer and is adding two vessels to its fleet by 2011—will base a ship in California when the expanded theme park is complete, so it can be sold as a pre- or post-cruise extension. “The response to these California sailings are phenomenal—they are nearly sold out—so it’s proof positive that people want to be there,” Nussbaum says. Though it will take more than the wave of a wand to complete the park renovations—which include the creation of a 12-acre space called Cars Land, based on the 2006 movie—a Disney spokesperson told Travel Agent the majority of attractions will remain open during construction. At the new California Adventure, an interactive “Walt Disney Story” attraction will take center stage. Disney says the park will draw inspiration from the California that Walt knew, as exemplified by red trolley cars traveling Main Street, reminiscent of the old Pacific Elec- Paradise Pier at Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim tric Railway. Other new features will include a Little Mermaid attraction and a signature nighttime event and viewing area for 9,000. This is the second recent renovation undertaken for Disneyland, following last month’s groundbreaking of a 250-room expansion of the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, with 50 rooms dedicated to the Disney timeshare business. “Disney Vacation Club has a lot of members in Chicago and in the Northeast,” Nussbaum says. “They will start traveling to California because of the accommodations and they’ll come back and share what an amazing destination Disneyland is now.” —JENNIFER MERRITT CONNECTING YOU For a video of Disney products, go to www.travelagentcentral.com/disney 84 | TravelAgent November 12, 2007 Interested? Request #035. http://MouseEarVacations.com http://www.travelagentcentral.com/disney http://www.NordiqueTours.com http://www.NordiqueTours.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Travel Agent - November 12, 2007

Travel Agent - November 12, 2007 Online Now Contents From the Editor From the Publisher Contributors Europe: Berlin Has a Vibrant Arts Scene Central & South America: Iberostar Grand Amazon: Adventure, but with Upscale Cruise Comforts Culinary Tours in Argentina and Peru Belize Eco-Lodge Packages Pacific/Asia: Bali Awaits Discovery by U.S. Tourists Las Vegas: Three Days in Vegas for Baby Boomers Caribbean & Bahamas: CTO’s Chairman Sees Growth in the Market Dominica’s New Tourism Director Discusses Challenges and Opportunities for His Island St. Vincent and the Grenadines: Where Less is More St. Maarten as a Destination for Foodies Tours: Sunshine and Disney are Just Two of Florida’s Options Cruises: Theme Cruises Generate Demand and Revenue Oceania’s Sales and Fleet are Growing Cruise Deals Cover Story: The New Wave Supplier Profile: Viking River Cruises Launches Land-Only Tour Operation Air Lift: Sabre Takes UpSell to the Skies A Tough Season Ahead: Rising Rates and Demand Give Hotels Edge in Price Negotiating Agenda: Fam Trips, Deals & Incentives, Calendar Caribbean Tourism Conference Cruise and Hotel News Trends In U.S. Travel to France Disneyland Upgrade Travel Week In the Spotlight Classified Marketplace Editorial Index Advertising Index Trendwatch

Travel Agent - November 12, 2007

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.