Tasty Tours are your local experts on ocean and river cruises, which are increasingly popular with travellers from Otago.
This coming Sunday and Monday they're bringing Liz Sawers, director of sales in Australia and New Zealand for Viking Cruises, to both Dunedin and Cromwell to offer information sessions.
Liz will be providing some insights into why Viking has over recent years become a leader in medium ship, destination-focused cruising.
Janine Mallon and her team at Tasty Tours invited Liz to the region to offer Sunday's information session in Cromwell, and two in Dunedin on Monday.
"We're going to have exclusive deals on the day,'' Janine says. ``We have an exciting launch deal to announce this Thursday so look out for our ad. In addition, Viking are coming on board with a special offer that's open to anyone who attends our info sessions and we've got some bonus little giveaways on the day as well.''
Liz Sawers has been an integral part of Viking's growth during her seven years with the company. She has been involved in the 2012 launch of Viking's river longships, and in 2015 their ocean cruises. With over 30 years' experience in travel, she has a wealth of knowledge to share.
Liz's visit coincides with the first Viking ocean cruise in New Zealand waters, which is part of a 141-day world cruise.
The company's December launch of their home-porting itineraries between Auckland and Sydney means now is the perfect time to discover what makes Viking so different in the cruise industry.
Australasia is the fastest growing cruise market in the world, with many travellers finding it the ideal way to explore.
"The great thing about cruising is that it gets you to a lot of the doorsteps that you can't fly to,'' Janine says. "The South Pacific islands, in and around Vanuatu and French Polynesia have got so many little islands that you just can't fly to. And it's great value, it's a really easy holiday.''
Viking's point of difference in the industry is that they offer an all-inclusive premium ocean cruising experience. In the four to five star range, these will be hugely popular, with a shore excursion in each port included.
River cruises are equally popular to ocean cruises, with Europe always in demand, the Mekong Delta increasingly popular, and some great journeys in America now available. As Janine explains, the breadth of itineraries offered is quickly expanding.
Tasty Tours are specialists in the cruise industry. They're accredited with the Cruise Lines International Association of Australasia (CLIA), which involves completing a training programme, experience with cruising, performing onboard inspections, and maintaining training with various cruise lines.
Having started in November, Adam Pope is a new addition to Tasty Tours team. He has spent years working on cruise ships, so brings a wealth of knowledge of the inner workings of the industry.
Adam joins the team of Janine, travel consultant Jenny Galliven, and office manager Lauren Macshane.
"We're an experienced team,'' Janine says. ``We don't hide anything, and we try to give people all the information to clue them up on all the ins and outs of cruising.''
Tasty Tours operates under The Travel Brokers umbrella and being a member of Helloworld Limited gives them big-brand buying power and access to great deals. They can book for the same price if not better than other deals that you will see, and they also run exclusive deals.
The Travel Brokers New Zealand was launched in 2002, with Janine establishing her business under the name Tasty Tours in Dunedin in 2010. They hold both TAANZ and IATA accreditation, which offers protection for their clients.
There will be some exciting things happening in February and March on their Tasty Tours website brand, so keep an eye on www.tastytours.co.nz
And to find out more about exciting river and ocean cruises, visit one of the Viking information sessions with Liz Sawers this Sunday and Monday - email info@tastytours.co.nz or call the office on 03-453 1455.
