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NTA Tour Operator Spring Meet Begins Today

April 2, 2008

NTA Tour Operator Spring Meet Begins Today
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The 2008 National Tour Association Tour Operator Spring Meet begins today at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and runs through April 4. The event has drawn a 26 percent increase in tour operator attendance this year. The NTA Spring Meet is designed to facilitate product development and continuing education.

Highlights for this year’s Spring Meet include:

  • Education – The educational lineup for the Spring Meet is based on member requests and current industry trends. This year, hot topics such as going green, inbound travel from China and leveraging technology will be addressed. NTA also will offer a core course in the new CTP certification program, which offers best practices in financial management for tour operators.

     

  • Speed dating – This event was pioneered by NTA in 2005 and is designed to give tour operators and receptive tour operators a venue to introduce one another to their businesses. The event consists of more than 20 three-minute appointments that allow tour operators and receptive operators to quickly exchange product overviews and find new vendors to complete packages or sell product to each other.

     

  • Pioneer Award – NTA will honor two industry icons this year – Kirk Lanterman of Holland America Lines and Arthur C. Tauck Jr. of Tauck World Discovery. The NTA Pioneer Award honors individuals whose accomplishments have resulted in a significant change in the travel industry from which NTA and its members have benefited.

Spring Meet delegates also will have the opportunity to explore both the city and region during complimentary leisure excursions, sightseeing tours and familiarization tours. Delegates will get a feel for southeastern Connecticut’s renowned sights like the Florence Griswold Museum & River Quest, Gillette Castle State Park, and the Mystic Seaport. The Icebreaker will be held at the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration.

The National Tour Association has a global membership of tourism professionals involved in the growth and development of the packaged travel industry. Its membership includes 600 tour operator companies – group, independent, inbound and outbound – and the destinations and suppliers that partner with them. The association is committed to providing business results and information to its members, while offering a collaborative, caring environment in which to build relationships. For more information, please visit http://www.ntaonline.com/.

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* Editorial note: Interviews are available upon request.

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