Muscat Diving & Adventure Centre
June 30, 2008
Muscat Diving & Adventure Centre provides a diverse range of tours and activities to cater for international travellers of all ages and abilities. Whether you are organising activities or packages for the individual, couples, families or large groups, whether you are seeking relaxation and luxury; a specialist wildlife programme; action and adrenalin-filled adventure days or anything in-between, we can provide competitively-priced, tailor-made full or part services for you and your guests.
One World Trekking
June 30, 2008
We are a collection of friends wanting to share our passion for adventure travel with you. Since 1990, the members of One World Trekking have been organizing, marketing, selling and guiding worldwide adventure travel tours. We see ourselves as a co-operative of experience and talent that few companies possess. Andy Crisconi, the company’s director based in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, has over 20 years of Himalayan travel experience and will be your main contact. Our goal is not to wow you with lots of bells and whistles, but to provide you with sound advice and a quality trip at a competitive price. We are able to keep prices down by not publishing a fancy color brochure. Our website is our brochure and we will do as much communicating with you as possible by email and telephone.
Alps and Beyond
June 24, 2008
Alps and Beyond was founded in 2002 by Anna Bezzola, a native of Italy who has spent her life hiking in the Alps. After living in California for many years and returning to the Alps to guide trips every summer for a leading US Adventure Travel company, Anna felt the overwhelming call to begin a new venture of her own, and Alps and Beyond was born. The wealth of knowledge gained working with a leading adventure travel company allows her to run the company with expertise and efficiency.
Kensington Tours
June 24, 2008
Kensington Tours is a privately owned, U.S. based tour operator. Our mission is to deliver a private, customized, luxury tour experience to the world’s must-see destinations, for up to 40% less than comparable “group” tours. With Kensington Tours, every adventure is private, flexible and customized to traveler’s exact needs. We have been leading tours since 1999 and have grown rapidly to become one of the leading FIT (customized) luxury tour operators.
The Dominican Sustainable Tourism Organization
June 24, 2008
The Dominican Sustainable Tourism Organization (Organización Dominicana de Turismo Sostenible, ODTS) was established in 1995 to promote the sustainability and diversification of tourism activities within the Dominican Republic. Our national organization integrates communities, the private sector and governmental authorities, working together to maximize tourism opportunities, to share correct information, and to showcase the Dominican culture, natural resources, and attractions, welcoming visitors into high-quality, fun and exciting experiences that are truly representative of Dominicana.
La Organización Dominicana de Turismo Sostenible, ODTS, establecida desde 1995, promueve la sostenibilidad y diversificación de las actividades turísticas en la República Dominicana. Nuestra organización nacional integra las comunidades, el sector privado y las autoridades gubernamentales, trabajando unidos para maximizar las oportunidades turísticas, para compartir información correcta, y mostrar la cultura, los recursos naturales y lugares de interés dominicanos, ofreciendo una bienvenida a los visitantes, a la alta calidad, diversión y emocionantes experiencias, verdaderamente representativas de Dominicana.
Exclusive Tents
June 24, 2008
Our stunning and eco-friendly tent designs are quickly becoming the standard for alternative accommodation worldwide. From the remote African safari to the five star ultra luxury island resorts, Exclusive Tents is leading the way to a new era of sustainable green living.
Our focus and passion is to provide canvas and fabric structures which have a low impact on the surrounding environment. In doing so, we have opened the door for many architects looking to develop in environmentally sensitive areas.
The OpenTravel Alliance Publishes Specification Version 2008A
June 19, 2008
Featuring New Messages for the Tour Operator Market
WASHINGTON, DC – June 2008 –The OpenTravel Alliance (OpenTravel), the travel industry’s leading specification development organization, has published the 2008A version of its specification. It is the latest addition to the OpenTravel library of standard specifications adopted by travel companies worldwide.
For the first time, OpenTravel has published messages that support tour operators, including the distribution functions of tour product search, availability and booking.
“OpenTravel has long been known for its messages that meet distribution needs of the core supplier segments of the travel industry,” said Valyn Perini, Executive Director of OpenTravel. “Our messages for the airline, hotel, rental car and cruise segments are mature and in widespread use worldwide, with tens of millions of messages exchanged every day. It’s time we brought our standards-building expertise to the tour operator segment, part of the ‘Long Tail’ of the travel industry due to its varied and complex travel products.”
OpenTravel member companies PEAK 15 Systems and Adventure Central were leaders in this project.
“PEAK 15 Systems is proud to have taken a leadership role in establishing standards that will allow customers using our online tour operator software to more easily distribute their incredible collection of tours to partners and suppliers around the world,” said James O’Leonard, CEO of PEAK 15 Systems.
Both PEAK 15 Systems and Adventure Central serve the burgeoning specialty market of adventure travel.
“The demand for adventure travel and tours is at an all-time high”, said Dick Schulte, CEO of Adventure Central. “Having these standards in place will make it much simpler and quicker to integrate such a fragmented market. Working with OpenTravel to establish these standards is a critical step towards accomplishing our goal to be the leading provider of distribution and online booking services for the adventure and experiential travel industry.”
Upcoming OpenTravel Activities
OpenTravel Executive Director Valyn Perini will moderate a panel at HITEC in Austin, Texas on Wednesday June 18, 2008 on the topic of “Channel Management Technology.”
OpenTravel Board of Directors Vice-Chair John Lambe will provide a keynote address at the next plenary meeting of the CEN/ISSS Workshop on Harmonization of Data Interchange in Tourism – WS/eTour on 24 June 2008 in Berlin.
OpenTravel’s annual Advisory Forum will be held April 20-22, 2009 at the Marriott Seattle Waterfront in Seattle, Washington.
About the OpenTravel Alliance
The OpenTravel Alliance is passionate about solving the problems inherent with connecting multiple systems within the complex travel distribution arena.
OpenTravel’s mission is to engineer specifications that make data transmission flow smoothly throughout travel, tourism and hospitality. OpenTravel creates, expands and drives adoption of open universal data specifications, including but not limited to the use of XML, for the electronic exchange of business information among all sectors of the travel industry.
With a diversified membership representing influential names in all sectors of the travel industry, OpenTravel is comprised of representatives from airlines, car rental firms, hotels, cruise lines, leisure suppliers, service providers, tour operators, travel agencies, and trade associations. Thousands of message structures are in use, carrying tens of millions of messages between travel trading partners every day. For more information, visit www.opentravel.org.
About PEAK 15 Systems
PEAK 15 Systems is a San Diego based software company providing tour operators with integrated marketing, sales, trip planning, operations and accounting automation as an affordable and easy-to-implement hosted service.
PEAK 15’s Tour Operator Software Suite is heralded as an intuitive and comprehensive application that has proven its flexibility with inbound, outbound, custom, group, domestic and international tour operators. For more information, visit www.peak15systems.com.
About Adventure Central
Denver-based Adventure Central is an online adventure travel distribution company. Adventure Central connects the world to great adventures by automating the distribution of trip inventory from supplier partners such as A Day Away Kayak Tours and American Adventure Expeditions and bringing new cost and time efficiencies to the market. Adventure Central’s private-label offerings distributed through AdventureCentral.com and leading third-party Internet partners like Orbitz (OWW) and CheapTickets give consumers access to one of the largest selection of adventure and experiential inventory at competitive rates available online. For more information on Adventure Central, call 303.292.5522 or visit www.adventurecentral.com.
Unprecedented Array of Exploratory Adventures Offered in Conjunction with 2008 South America and Europe Adventure Travel World Summits
June 18, 2008
Host Countries To Showcase the Adventure Travel Potential of Their Destinations
(SEATTLE, Washington) – June 2008 – In partnership with its host destinations Brazil and Norway, the Adventure Travel Trade Association for the first time is offering pre- and post-conference adventure tour extensions for delegates attending its Adventure Travel World Summit (ATWS) events.
ATTA’s first Adventure Travel World Summit (South America) will be held in São Paulo, Brazil, Sept. 3-6. Between October 21-25, the ATTA will hold its second, the Adventure Travel World Summit-Europe, in Norway aboard Hurtigruten’s MS Midnatsol, an expedition passenger ship.
Along with partnering tourism boards and tour operators in Brazil and Norway, the ATTA is offering an unprecedented array of familiarization trips for Summit delegates to coincide with the conferences. Each of the more than 20 adventure excursions offered between the two Summit events vary between two and nine days and are intended as new product scouting opportunities to reveal unique and authentic adventures for future development.
Nominal fees will be charged for all adventures in Brazil. In Norway, adventure excursions will be made available at no cost for tour operators, specialty adventure travel agents and journalists, while nominal fees will be charged to other Summit delegates and guests.
Before the ATWS-South America program, the ATTA, the Brazilian Ecotourism and Adventure Travel Trade Association (ABETA), and EMBRATUR, the Brazilian Tourism Board are providing a compelling blend of Brazilian nature, adventure, culture and discovery by offering 15 itineraries to more than 20 destinations, including World Heritage Sites, National Parks and Biosphere Reserves. Following the official Summit’s conference close in Brazil, all Summit delegates on September 7th also may participate for free in a series of five, “Adventure Day” options including rafting, trekking, zip-line, and orienteering options the day after the conference.
Delegates attending the Norway Summit have a choice of a variety of multi-day adventure outings both prior to and after the shipboard conference. Activities include a wild reindeer safari, sea kayaking, guided hiking, skiing, kayaking, rafting, climbing, glacier trekking, fishing and cultural immersion among others. ATTA’s Summit in Norway aboard the Midnatsol is a voyage from Tromsø to Bergen via Norway’s fjords. Special on-shore opening and closing events will be held in Tromsø and Bergen respectively, and the voyage includes numerous port-city visits, including special on-shore adventure activities at Trondheim and Ålesund. Upon the close of the event in Bergen on October 25, all Summit delegates will be offered as series of free, guided in-city cultural adventures prior to the official closing of the event.
Familiarization tours are sponsored by the ATTA, Innovation Norway (the Tourism Board of Norway), Fjord Norway, and partners, Tromsø, Bergen and Hurtigruten (formerly Norwegian Coastal Voyage).
According to Chris Doyle, Vice President of the ATTA, “These familiarization trips offer our host destinations the opportunity to fully showcase their adventure travel potential, and to connect visiting operators, agents and journalists with local suppliers. Norway and Brazil recognize the business potential for showcasing their hospitality and adventure options first-hand to the hundreds of industry professionals attending each of these distinct events.”
Summit and adventure excursion information is available at www.adventuretravelworldsummit.com. Delegate registration fees and special transportation and accommodation packages for each Summit vary distinctly between each event.
Major Sponsors of the ATTA and both 2008 Adventure Travel World Summits include ExOfficio travel clothing, Men’s Journal magazine, and W.L. Gore and Associates -makers of Gore-Tex. Key Sponsors include Adventure Central, Alpine Tourist Commission, Best of the Alps, Brazil, Chile, Innovation Norway, and National Geographic Adventure. 
Survey of Adventure Travel Industry’s Understanding of Carbon Offsets Mandates Education, Strategic Planning
June 17, 2008
BURLINGTON, VT, June 2008 – NativeEnergy, a leader in the carbon offset industry, conducted a May 15 phone-in live Webinar and informal survey with 50 members of the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) to review the relationship of carbon offsets to adventure travel.
Veteran online travel expert Richard Edwards of NativeEnergy, co-presented the program titled “The Role of Carbon Offsets in Adventure Travel.” He reports that through an informal survey, the session’s outcome “reveals a desire among tour operators to use carbon offsets in a broader responsible travel strategy, a belief that the consumer is ready and willing to help foot part of the bill and the pressing need for more education across all levels.”
“Some of the informal survey results were very revealing,” reports Edwards. Just 51% of all respondents admitted they had a clear understanding of what carbon offsets were and how the voluntary offset market works. When asked if they had a carbon offset program currently in place, 84% said they did not. But 86% felt that the carbon offset market could be a positive part of the solution to climate change.
“This feedback clearly showed that there is a positive feeling about carbon offset programs within the adventure travel industry. Folks just need to better understand how it works and who is going to pay for it,” concludes Edwards.
Participating in the live Webinar and interactive survey were tour operators, destination marketing organizations, gear manufacturers and various non-profit organizations. Working with Edwards on the presentation was Brian Mullis of Sustainable Travel International.
Edwards reports that it was most well attended Webinar that the ATTA has done to date.
The Webinar, in its entirety, is offered free to industry players and the public online at www.adventuretravelnews.com.
The results of the online survey revealed:
What is the biggest obstacle for you in implementing a Carbon Offset program?
- Haven’t had time to investigate thoroughly: 57%
- Lack of Credibility: 20%
- Other: 23%
Do carbon offsets and your green/sustainable program contribute to a positive ROI for your company?
- The jury is still out: 63%
- We’ll never be able to track it: 13%
- Yes: 25%
Coming into this Webinar do you feel you have a clear idea of what carbon offsets are and how the voluntary offset market works?
- Yes: 20%
- No: 29%
- Pretty Clear: 31%
- Some idea but I’m missing a few key details: 20%
Do you think it’s best to offer a voluntary opt-in program or include Carbon Offsets in your pricing?
- Include in pricing: 32%
- Voluntary opt-in: 40%
- Voluntary opt-out: 28%
Do you currently have a Carbon Offset program in place?
- No: 84%
- Yes: 16%
Do you think your clients would be willing to pay more for a trip if Carbon Offsets were included in your pricing?
- Maybe: 59%
- No: 7%
- Yes: 33%
Is the carbon offset market a positive part of the solution to climate change or a negative distraction?
- Positive part of the solution: 39%
- It can be positive if better regulated: 47%
- Negative distraction and not a part of the solution: 14%
About NativeEnergy (www.nativeenergy.com/): NativeEnergy’s travel division is committed to reducing the environmental impacts of the tourism industry, while helping entities work more efficiently as businesses. Offering organizations and individuals a means to compensate for their global warming pollution and effectively power their businesses and homes with renewable energy, NativeEnergy provides RECs and offsets from a variety of operating projects across America. Through its novel approach of bringing upfront payment to renewable projects for the estimated future carbon offsets, NativeEnergy enables its clients to help directly finance the construction of specific new wind farms and other renewable energy projects. NativeEnergy has become the trusted choice of many leading environmentally and socially responsible businesses and organizations.
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For more information please contact: Widness & Wiggins PR:
Sara Widness / 802-234-6704 / sara@widnesspr.com
Dave Wiggins / 303-554-8821 / d.wiggins@comcast.net
Trusted Adventures Alliance Asks Travelers to Join the Anti-Staycation Movement
June 17, 2008
Inflation and Cost of Living Worries Forcing Many to Consider Forgoing Summer Vacations
BOULDER, Colorado, – The summer vacation is under attack. Record prices at the pump and on grocery shelves are taking a chunk out of holiday budgets. In the ensuing frenzy, the media has created a new word and concept… the “staycation.” But one group of active travel professionals refuses to sit idly by and watch the demise of this year’s annual right to escape.
In a recent emailing to over 100,000 adventure enthusiasts, Trusted Adventures travel alliance, has raised the call to join the “anti-staycation” movement.
“Honestly,” writes alliance director Dave Wiggins, “who ever thought a week or more at home could replace the rest and rejuvenation a real vacation can bring?” At home, he explains, “you’re stuck staring at a house that needs painting, a lawn mower that needs pushing or another trip to the local mall or over-packed swimming pool.”
Instead, Wiggins suggests, you should be out “discovering a new country and its cuisine, rafting a remote desert canyon, biking and hiking, fishing and having fun.”
In its mailing, which can be viewed online, the eight member companies of Trusted Adventures offer their best summer trips with prime spaces still available. Diverse offerings include walking in Wales, family fun in Yellowstone, rafting in Utah’s Canyonlands and Idaho’s Salmon River Canyons, spa vacations in Ecuador, bear viewing in Alaska and even an Indiana Jones-style expedition to the Maya discovery site of the original Crystal Skull in Belize.
Some trips come with special discounted pricing and all encourage you to park the car and burn the natural, renewable energy of hiking, paddling, pedaling and horseback riding. Since rates were set nearly a year ago before inflated gas and food prices were factored in, summer trips in 2008 offer exceptional value.
“Nothing at home can replace the renewal of spirit made possible by a real vacation escape,” says Wiggins.
Trusted Adventures was established in 2005 and is made up of eight distinguished members: Austin-Lehman Adventures, Wildland Adventures, Euro-Bike & Walking Tours, Western River Expeditions, Myths and Mountains, The Wayfarers, ROW Adventures and Great Alaska International Adventure Vacations. The alliance helps match active individuals, families and groups with nature and culture adventures, walking, rafting, cycling and trekking vacations throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa. The company’s website offers fast and dependable one-stop shopping for over 350 unique trips to over 85 destinations worldwide. Visit them online at www.trustedadventures.com/.
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