Delta Vacations Sees Luxury, Group Bookings Grow
by Doug Gollan /Photo: Adrian Pingstone
Delta Vacations is seeing growth in travel agent bookings for its 4-star and higher hotels John Caldwell, the president told over 1,000 travel agents attending Travel Market 2016 in Desert Springs, CA. This year, 80% of revenue is being sold into those high-end properties, compared to 68% last year. Another area of growth is group bookings where he said, TRAVELSAVERS and NEST agents had increased sales by 167%.
For the Atlanta-based carrier’s leisure arm, the good news comes as its parent is ringing up record results, paying out $1.5 billion in employee profit sharing in 2015, contributing to a happy, motivated workforce that is helping drive industry leading on-time performance, and a record 100 days so far this year where it has not cancelled a flight.
“We want to get your clients where they want to go with their luggage and their underwear,” Caldwell told the packed ballroom at the JW Marriott Resort & Spa. To provide more inventory for affluent travelers, Caldwell said over 60 new upscale and boutique hotels have been added this year.
Delta’s expanding network is also providing more opportunities for expansion. He said the airline has spent “billions” building its hubs in Los Angeles and Seattle, with the latter as a gateway to Asia. It is also now the dominant player at New York’s JFK and LaGuardia airports. Its $300 million investment into China Eastern has given it a gateway in China, which provides onward domestic feed via its partner, while Brazilian carrier Gol gives it the same connecting opportunities in Sao Paulo. He said, when the US and Mexican governments approve Delta’s increase in control of Aeromexico to 49 percent, the plan is to have a “full joint venture.” He added, Delta Vacations is also benefitting from the parent’s stake in Virgin Atlantic, which has increased its presence at London’s tightly controlled Heathrow Airport.
As previously announced, the tour operator’s MLT University has been renamed Delta Vacations University and will move from Minneapolis to Atlanta this year, to be held Sept. 17-18. Over 65 classes and a trade show to meet suppliers is in store for agents who attend.