Update from Sally Everton - Director

4th April 2019

Categories: Member News

Visit Devon’s Director, Sally Everton, has been busy driving promotion internationally and encouraging visitors to come to Devon. 

In March Sally has been working on the following:

Domestic:

- Numerous meetings over the county during this month (9 in total) with existing members, and now new members as result of them attending the SW tourism conference, our members update and Springboard

- Follow up meeting with DATA re BTTS and other joint initiatives

- Meeting in Bridport with Jurassic Coast Partnership re joint tourism strategy for both Devon and Dorset

- Working with GWR re new partnership details and collabortive working on educationals and groups

- Partnership building with coach tour operators around Devon 

- Exmoor National Park and plans for this years events promoting 150 years of Lorna Doone 

Press and blogger pieces 

- Pamela Badham - Four-PR - press trip to South Devon, Agatha Christie theme

- Press piece in German newspaper on The 25 B&B in Torquay (from ITB) (plus translation into English)

https://www.sueddeutsche.de/reise/brexit-urlaub-reise-tourismus-bb-1.4362887

https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sueddeutsche.de%2Freise%2Fbrexit-urlaub-reise-tourismus-bb-1.4362887&sandbox=1

International:

- Attend ITB as VisitDevon on VisitBritain stand. 6 days.  4 days Trade and 2 days consumer.  Appointments with numerous tour operators agents press, bloggers, etc. *The 25 immediate interview and publication

- Attend event at British Consulate - hosted by Ambassador.  Networking with agents and press

- Finalise MeetGB Educational for April 8th - 10th 2019  10 buyers from the US and 2 from Europe.  Association and Incentive covering English Riviera, South Devon, Exeter and Dartmoor.

- Finalise sourcing partners for 3 day itinerary for Pre ExploreGB educational for Canada and North America

- Finalise MeetGB appointment schedule.  60+ appointments over 2 days in April

- Talking with various international journalists - mostly German, plus Dutch golfing magazine

- Book 'Selling to US and Canadian MICE Market' run by VisitBritain and also share with our members

- Various updates for VisitEngland and VisitBritain

- Begin follow up on tour operators, agents and press - ITB

DEF Project:

- Nearing completion for this round of the project working closely with our project co-ordinator and our research and insight consultant based in the US

- Continue to develop partnerships with tour operators/DMC's and with local partners and tour guides

- Meetings with ASA and AC Group re working with us and the tour operators carrying our itineraries

- Continue to develop thematic itineraries to fit our 5 themes - ongoing

- Finalise content for trade interviews to take to chosen tour operators/DMC's

- Various meetings throughout the month with VisitCornwall, and project co-ordinator

- Source all appointments with US based tour operators, agents and media for sales mission, book flights and accomm

- Various conference calls with the US over the month with Simon Bradley,US based project consultant 

- Conference calls with Kirk MacDonald re Australia travel trade and tour operators.  Link with 4 tour operators for bookable itineraries

- Attend 5 day sales mission eastern tri-state in US, mix of appointments with tour operators that we interviewed when product testing, as well as agents and media

- Applied to DEF team for short extension of project to enable us to host FAM trip in spring 2019 - GRANTED

- Hosting Indulgent Vacations - Devon and Cornwall 8 days.  Working with Unique Devon Tours and Unique Cornwall Tours

- Organise training days for the DEF project.  1 day Torquay at the Riviera Centre Thurs 23rd May, and Friday May 24th Tiverton.