Avanti to Launch FIT Portfolio in Australasia, Fiji

Starting September 12, wholesale tour operator Avanti Destinations will offer a full FIT portfolio of vacations, tours, and hotels throughout Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. It is the first time the company is offering products in the region.

Altogether, Avanti will offer eight recommended vacations (three in Australia, three in New Zealand, and two in Fiji), 280 tours and experiences, and 222 three-, four-, and five-star hotels and resorts in more than 50 locations.

“Our travel advisor partners have been asking us to offer Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific for some time because these places are very high on most people’s travel bucket lists,” said Paul Barry, Avanti’s CEO. “Advisors specifically requested vacations with the same high quality that we provide for Europe and our other destinations. All three countries are ideal of independent American travelers since English is the predominant language.”

Barry also told Travel Market Report, “This launch has, in fact, been in the works for quite a while. We were going to launch in 2020, but the pandemic put an end to that. The silver lining was that it gave us extra time to plan, prepare, and secure the very best, broadest selection of tours, experiences, accommodations.”

He added, the three countries currently on offer are only Avanti’s “initial offering,” and that other countries — including Tahiti — may be added later. 

“It is also a region that will give advisors repeat bookings,” Barry continued. “Once clients take one independent vacation there, they will want to return, and Avanti’s wide array of outstanding experiences ensures that each vacation you create is different from the last.”

An e-brochure will be available on Avanti’s travel advisor portal on September 12, and a webinar covering the new offerings is scheduled for August 31 at 1pm ET. (Registration is required.) Additional webinars on the individual countries are scheduled for October, November, and December.

Of the 50 destinations on offer, 25 are in Australia, including all the country’s main metropolitan cities (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Darwin and Perth). Travel to Tasmania is also available.

In New Zealand, Avanti’s 17 locations include four on the North Island (Auckland, Wellington, Rotorua, and Hawke’s Bay) and 13 on the South Island, including Christchurch, Queenstown, Aoraki (formerly known as Mount Cook), and the Franz Josef and Fox glaciers.

In addition to the most popular destinations in the region, Avanti is also travel to smaller, off-the-beaten-path spots, such as Kangaroo Island and K’gari (formerly known as Fraser Island) in Australia, and Tekapo in New Zealand.

In Fiji, Avanti’s hotels, resorts, and tours include: Suva, the Fijian capital; Nadi and Coral Coast, both on Viti Levu; the small archipelago of the Mamanuca Islands; Yasawa (of “The Blue Lagoon” fame); Savusavu on Vanua Levu; and Taveuni, Fiji’s third largest island; among others.

In terms of experiences and tours, Avanti offers 153 in Australia, 109 in New Zealand, and 28 in Fiji, running the gamut from museum tours, bushwalking, and visits to indigenous villages to wildlife or adventure experiences, snorkeling tours, and culinary experiences, and much more. Some are private, some shared, and some for small groups.

Avanti is also offering eight recommended vacation packages ranging from four to 16 days.

As with all of Avanti’s offerings worldwide, advisors can custom-tailor each client’s itinerary, selecting the specific destinations, experiences, transfers, number of nights, and hotels that match each client’s interests and needs.