Providing key information in a no-frills format for professionals who travel to write, edit, broadcast or create images

• 
  service available in 206 countries worldwide on over 565 mobile networks
  

• 
  up to 80% off the cost of making a call from abroad
  

• 
  free to receive calls in 65 countries
  

• 
  free to receive an incoming SMS and sending an SMS is 10p in Europe and 34p for the rest of the World.
  
• 
  voicemail service accessible from any location
  

• 
  no line rental, contract or service fees
  

• 
  pay as you go with no penalties for non use
  

• 
  full itemised billing
  

All æther mobile SIMs have a UK telephone number; +44 7.

Visit : www.aether-mobile.com. Contact : Samantha Osborough at samantha.osborough@aether-mobile.com.

32. Red Mangrove Galapagos Lodges

Widness & Wiggins is now representing Red Mangrove Galapagos Lodges, which offers a land-based alternative to exploring the Galapagos that heretofore was a cruise-only destination.

With upscale waterfront lodges strategically situated on Santa Cruz, Isabela and Floreana it is the only company offering high quality, branded accommodations and services on multiple islands in the Galapagos.
Widness and Wiggins specialises in adventure, active and eco-responsible tourism companies.
Visit : www.redmangrove.com. To discuss press visits contact Dave Wiggins dave@travelnewssource.com.

33. Health retreat press trips on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Alliance members are invited to apply for places on a five-day health retreat press trips to Vancouver Island (held monthly) that will focus on cleansing and detoxification.

Those attending will be able to place features in health and wellness travel publications.
Visit : www.vancouverisland.com. Contact : Pamela Irving at livingcomms@telus.net.
England’s Atlantic Links, South West England

 

England’s Atlantic Links, a group of five premier golf courses in the South West of England, will be pleased to offer press trips to Alliance members in return for guaranteed commissions.

 

This quintet of legendary clubs comprises the undiscovered gems of :

• 
  Burnham & Berrow in Somerset
  
• 
  Royal North Devon and Saunton in Devon, and
  
• 
  St Enodoc and Trevose in Cornwall
  

Visit : www.atlantic-links.co.uk Contact : Helen Heady at helen@headypr.co.uk.

35. The Red Lion Inn, Stathern, Leicestershire UK

Michelin-starred chef, Sean Hope, will be demonstrating a 3-course menu at The Red Lion Inn, his historic traditional village pub at Stathern, Leicestershire on Tuesday 26 October and Tuesday 30 November 2010.

Sean Hope has appeared on BBC2 ‘Hairy Bikers’ and ITV’s ‘Real Cooks’ with Gino D’Acampo (star of I’m a Celebrity…) and is shortly to be featured in a new TV programme by FIVE called ‘Street Market Chefs’.
Tickets cost £35, including lunch with a complimentary glass of wine and copies of the demonstrated recipes to take away.
Visit : www.theredlioninn.co.uk. For a press ticket contact Linda Parkhouse at parkhousepr@aol.com.

Working with the Alliance

The following travel partners and agencies have registered with the Alliance and are keen to work with Alliance travel writers, editors, broadcasters and photographers.
Other Alliance partners and agencies can be found at www.itwalliance.com.

36. 
    Partners

Lot Valley
Organising the development of tourism in the Lot Valley, Southern France around inland navigation.
Visit : www.lot-valley.com. Contact : Stephanie Khaou at lotvalley1@gmail.com
lowcostholidays.com
lowcostholidays.com offers an unbeatable service to enable our customers to put together their perfect holiday at the lowest market price available. With our team of travel experts and our unique technology, lowcostholidays.com is able to offer not only the lowest priced flights and cheapest accommodation but also an extensive range of other holiday options including transfers, insurance, airport parking and car hire.
Visit : www.lowcostholidays.com. Contact : Kathryn Pouwer at kathrynp@lowcostholidays.com

Reveal Greece
Reveal Greece specialises in up-scale concierge and luxury rentals services in Greece.
Visit : www.reveal-greece.com. Contact : Eleni Koi at ek@reveal-greece.com
Warwick Travel
Warwick Travel is a full service travel agency serving the global community since 1975. Warwick Travel has two physical offices, both located in Virginia, with professional travel counselors standing by to help you with all your travel needs and dreams.
Visit : www.warwicktravel.com. Contact : LaDonna Allen at l_allen@warwicktravel.com
maiden-voyage.com
maiden-voyage.com is a global social network for professional women who travel for business. Visit : www.maiden-voyage.com. Contact Carolyn Pearson at carolyn@maiden-voyage.org.

The Harlowe Group LLC
The Harlowe Group runs a unique collection of properties worldwide. Visit : www.harlowegroup.com. Contact : Tracey Harlowe at tracey@harlowegroup.com.

1. Cayman Islands Department of Tourism and Quintas da Madeira

PR representatives for the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism and Quintas da Madeira. Visit : www.caymanislands.com. Contact :Laura Shelbourne at laura@laurashelbourne.com

2. Destination Travel Dubrovnik

Destination Travel provides the full range of services for travel to Croatia including lodging or a transfer, or something more complex such as arranging of an all-inclusive package, sight-seeing excursions, or fully-serviced conferences, is the right choice.

Visit : www.destinationtraveldubrovnik.com. Contact :Damir Dobroslavic at damir@destinationtraveldubrovnik.com

3. Epicurean Ways

Epicurean Ways designs and organizes culinary tours in Spain. Tours can include cooking classes, wine tours, artisan product tastings. Trips for meeting the creators of Spanish food and wine. Custom groups, chef-led groups and wine groups are welcomed.

Visit : www. epicureanways.com. Contact : Jane Gregg at jane@epicureanways.com

5. Equador Travel

Equador Travel runs tours that cover all aspects of travel throughout Ecuador and Perú. Visit : www.equadortravel.com. Sebastian Sierra at sebastian@ecuadortraveler.com

9. Ska Travel

Ska Travel is a travel and tour company based in London which specialises in flights and tours to Africa particularly Ghana.

Visit : www.skatravelservices.com. Contact : Seth Anorson at skatravel@hotmail.co.uk

10. MexicaChica Getaways

MexicaChica Getaways is a group travel company that provides luxury learning vacation to women. Thematic workshops include art, culinary, Spanish immersion and Fitness getaways.

Visit : www.mexicachita.com. Contact : Claudette Elizondo at claudette@mexicachica.com
Goin’ Off Safaris
Goin’ Off Safaris is a locally owned and run business showcasing the very best secrets of South Australia’s untouched Eyre Peninsula through local knowledge and love for the area.

These take in jagged coastlines and spectacular, rugged uninterrupted cliff-top views, to footprint-free pristine beaches and untamed national parks filled with birds and other native wildlife.

Other optional activities include hand-feeding kangaroos and koalas, sand-boarding towering dunes, snorkeling and kayaking in crystal clear waters, surf fishing the beaches, cruising the beautiful waters of Coffins Bay, exploring the Talia Caves, trekking part of the Great Australian Bight, relaxing after a private massage or soaking up the sun!

Visit : www.goinoffsafaris.com.au. Contact : David Doudle at info@goinoffsafaris.com.au.

Agencies

BCPR
BCPR is one of the UK’s leading boutique travel and lifestyle PR consultancies. As an independent public relations consultancy, Beth Cooper PR offers its clients a bespoke, personalised service.
The teams are small and perfectly formed, are experts in travel and have been lucky enough to work with some of the world’s most glamorous brands. Boutique bolt-holes, high-end hotels, destination resorts, tourism bodies and tour operators across all five continents – BCPR consistently delivers great results across the board!
Visit : www.bethcooperpr.co.uk. Contact : Gael Lucas at gael@bethcooperpr.co.uk
Naefe PR
Katrin Naefe is a public relations consultant with more than 10 years experience in

the planning and implementation of international, UK and German communication programmes.

Visit : www.naefepr.co.uk. Contact : Katrin Naefe katrin@naefepr.co.uk

Core Communications : Utah
Core Communications is now handling the US state Utah account.
Utah is home to five national parks (Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Zion), 43 state parks, seven national monuments and two national recreation areas.
It has the Rocky Mountains in the North with fabulous skiing (including the Olympic town of Park City) and the Desert Southwest.
Visit : www.utah.travel. Contact : Caroline Corfield-Rose at caroline@corecommunications.co.uk.
Mercury PR : UK West Country press trips
Cornish based PR agency Mercury PR is able to provide press visit opportunities to the far West of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly for journalists with a commission or able to secure a commission for a travel destination feature.
Press visits are able to be offered in September and October for those wanting to run features in late 2010 and early 2011.

1. The Isles of Scilly

The UK's only Island archipelago, which lies in the Gulf Stream, 28 miles off the tip of Lands End, the Isles of Scilly - five inhabited and over 100 uninhabited Islands offer stunning white sand beaches, crystal clear azure waters, flora and fauna that cannot be found anywhere in the UK.

www.simplyscilly.co.uk
St Ives
The picturesque fishing harbour is now home to a wonderful array of boutique shops, pubs, restaurants, galleries, the Leach Pottery and of course the Tate.
Aspects Holidays has over 200 holiday properties in and around St Ives, from ultra modern penthouse apartments to fisherman's cottages and former artists studios.
www.stives-cornwall.co.uk
West Cornwall
Venture past Padstow and St Ives and the there are some simply stunning locations the further West you head, that still remain for many who visit Cornwall, untapped.
Coves like Lamorna and Prussia, stunning beaches of Sennen, Gwenver and Porthcurno and fantastic fishing villages steeped in history such as Newlyn and Mousehole.
West Cornwall Cottage Holidays is the leading holiday accommodation provider in this area with over 150 properties in wonderful locations in the West of Cornwall - perfect for exploring this unspoiled tip of the UK.
www.westcornwallcottageholidays.com
Contact Karen Baker at karen@mercury-pr.co.uk.

News

Celebrity Cruises
Celebrity Cruises has designed three new 12–night itineraries sailing roundtrip out of Istanbul. The introduction of these new itineraries marks the first time the cruise line has offered roundtrip cruises from the city on the famed Bosphorus Strait that connects Asia and Europe.

 

Visit : www.celebritycruises.co.uk. Contact : Briony Peters at bpeters@rccl.com.

WinAir
WinAir has resumed its service between major Caribbean hubs and Dominica.
Located between the French islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique in the Eastern Caribbean, the independent nation of Dominica is the largest and most mountainous of the Windward Islands.
Visit www.fly-winair.com. Contact : Marie Rosa at system@enr-corp.com.

1. Trekking in eastern Bhutan

The Merak & Sakteng region of Bhutan is scheduled to open to the world for the first time in September 2010.

From 8 to 18 May 2011, One World Trekking is offering a small group of twelve trekkers the opportunity to participate on a research trek through this culturally unique and remote area of eastern Bhutan.
Visit : www.OneWorldTrekking.com. Contact : Andy Crisconi at andy.crisconi@oneworldtrekking.com.

2. Prague City Card sightseeing pass

Smart card technology operator the Leisure Pass Group has expanded into its fifth country with the Prague City Card sightseeing pass.

The Prague City Card includes admission to attractions such as Prague Castle, the Old Town Hall, the Charles Bridge Towers, plus many more cathedrals, palaces, museums and gardens.
The company also operates sightseeing cards in the UK, US, Sweden and France.
Visit : www.praguecitycard.com. Contact : Katie Wright at katie.wright@sirenpr.co.uk

Leads

Alliance members looking to take advantage of any of the following leads should be on assignment, with a commission or able to obtain one.
Mystartguide.com
Mystartguide.com is an Open Directory that provides links to tourism, travel and destination websites for all countries in the world.
Visit : www.mystartguide.com/visitors. Contact : Johan Schoonen at johan@mystartguide.com.
Nisbet Plantation, Nevis
Nisbet Plantation on the island of Nevis has been voted the #1 resort in the Caribbean and #6 in the world on the World’s Best Awards list. Part of a two-island nation with St. Kitts, Nevis is hailed as one of the remaining unspoiled places on earth.
Visit www.NisbetPlantation.com. Julie Harper at julie@madiganpratt.com.
Aqua, Hawaii
Aqua has 17 properties located across the islands of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Lanai and Molokai, Hawaii ranging from budget conscious hotels, full service resorts to the Aqua Boutique Collection.

 

Visit : www.aquaresorts.com. Samantha Preece at samantha@firstpr.co.uk.

Caley Cruisers
Caley Cruisers in Inverness has recently launched a luxury new love boat built for two as the latest addition to its 29-strong floating fleet, aimed at enticing romantic couples and honeymooners looking for intimate breaks in the Highlands to explore the waterways of the Great Glen, including Loch Ness and the Caledonian Canal.

Visit: www.caleycruisers.com.  Contact: Caroline Keith at caroline@thekeithconsultancy.co.uk.

What’s on

Information for professional travel writes, editors, broadcasters and photographers on annual events and celebrations worldwide.

3. Dominican Republic Fashion Week 2010

18th to 23rd October 2010
The Caribbean’s main fashion event. This year, the event will be dedicated to Dominican fashion designer Oscar de la Renta.
Visit : www.godominicanrepublic.com. Contact : Estjher Smith at esp@esthersmith.biz.
Events in the Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel, Florida
The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel in southwest Florida includes: Sanibel & Captiva islands, Fort Myers Beach, Fort Myers, Bonita Springs, Estero, Cape Coral, Pine Island, Boca Grande & Outer islands, North Fort Myers, Lehigh Acres.


21st Annual "Ding" Darling Days, J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge,
Sanibel Island
17-23 October 2010

A week of eco-activities with free refuge tram tours and live wildlife presentations, birding and kayaking tours and environmental speakers. The festival celebrates the birthday of the refuge's namesake, conservationist and Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist J. N. "Ding" Darling.

Visit : www.dingdarlingdays.com.                          
 

25th Annual Octoberfest, Cape Coral
22-24 and 29-31 October 2010

The celebration of German culture, food, music and dancing hosted by the German-American Club includes authentic musical groups from Germany. 

Visit : www.gasc-capecoral.com.

24th Annual American Sandsculpting Championship Festival, Fort Myers Beach
10 to 14November 2010

Twenty master sculptors will create complex works of art including dolphins, great blue herons, giant computers, entwined lovers and Neptune, god of the seas:

Visit : www.sandfestival.com

Annual Christmas Luminary Trail and Open House, Sanibel and Captiva islands
3 and 4 December 2010

This event draws visitors from all over the world as they join local residents to celebrate the season. 

Visit : www.sanibel-captiva.org.
Holiday Nights at the Edison & Ford Winter Estates, Fort Myers
10 December to 1 January 2010

Millions of lights celebrate Thomas Edison's contribution to modern life and the festivity of the season at this 34-year Lee County tradition enjoyed by more than 30,000 visitors each year. Lights and decorations fill 20 acres of gardens, the restored Edison buildings and the Estates’ historic homes.

Visit : www.efwefla.org.

Visit www.fortmyers-sanibel.com. Contact : Hamilton, Nancy at NHamilton@leegov.com.

The Montserrat Volcano Half Marathon

27 November 2010

The 2nd Montserrat Volcano Half Marathon will take place on Saturday 27 November 2010 along a route that takes in some of the key tourism attractions on the island including the active Soufrière Hills Volcano.
Visit www.volcanorunner.com and www.visitmontserrat.com. Contact : Tom Panagos at tom@saltmarshpr.co.uk.
Women's Fiction Festival, Matera, Italy

23 to 28 September 2010 (annual, 7th)

Only international writers' conference where writers learn about the market, sell their books and find a literary agent. Includes conferences, workshops, talks with authors and the presentation of the Baccante Literary Prize to a writer who has made major contributions to women's fiction.
Visit : www.womensfictionfestival.com. Contact : Mariateresa Cascino at mtcascino@womensfictionfestival.com.

Melbourne International Arts Festival, Australia

08 to 23 October 2010 (annual)

One of Australia's leading arts festivals.Features dance, theatre, music, visual arts, multimedia and outdoor events.
Visit : www.melbournefestival.com.au. Contact : Prue Bassett at p.bassett@melbournefestival.com.au.

Reasons to write about

Alliance members looking to take advantage of any of the following should be on assignment, with a commission or able to obtain one.

Asian Art in London
Eskenazi Limited, one of the world’s most respected dealers in Chinese art, is celebrating its golden jubilee with an exhibition of twelve exceptional pieces which have been acquired over the past ten years and set aside especially for this event.
Twelve Chinese Masterworks will be held at 10 Clifford Street, London from Thursday 4 to Tuesday 30 November 2010.
The exhibition coincides with the 13^th staging of Asian Art in London, 4 to 13 November 2010, an annual event that unites London’s leading Asian art dealers, major auction houses and societies in a series of selling exhibitions, auctions, receptions, lectures and seminars that attract visitors from around the world.
Visit : www.asianartinlondon.com. Contact : Annie Roper at annie@suebond.co.uk.
Black rhino in Namabia
Fifteen black rhino have been released into the 13,500 sq km Kunene region of North West Namibia in a project supported by Conservancy Safaris Namibia in collaboration with WWF.
Namibia is home to the largest free roaming population of black rhino in the world and the newest additions are being released into the Puros and Orumpembe conservancies of Kunene.
Conservancy Safaris’ tours offer in-depth excursions into this vast, arid land, giving guests an insider’s view of community-based conservation in action.
With 100% of the ownership of Conservancy Safaris Namibia vested in the Himba and Herero people, there is a real incentive for local communities to protect their natural heritage and stamp out poaching, one of the biggest threats to this endangered species.
Visit : www.kcs-namibia.com.na. Jovanka Ristich at jovanka@independent-pr.co.uk.
Iceland’s new volcanic craters
The recent eruptions in Iceland have created two new volcanic craters and a new lava field in Iceland and visitors can get up close on a three-day trekking tour.
The new craters and lava field, located at Fimmvörduháls, have been christened Magni and Módi, after the sons of Thor, the Norse God of Thunder.

The names were chosen because of the craters’ proximity to Thórsmörk Nature Reserve, which means ‘Thor’s Woods’. The new lava field is now called Godahraun after Godaland, the name of the area in which it is located.

Fimmvörduháls is one of Iceland’s most popular hiking trails, running between Skogarfoss waterfall and Thórsmörk. The three-day trekking tour with Iceland Mountain Guides takes intrepid travellers between the recently-created volcanoes.
Beginning in Thórsmörk, hikers will pass by the Godahraun lava flow which is still hot and steaming and see the new craters whilst on Fimmvörduháls, before overnighting in a simple mountain hut between the between the glaciers Eyjafjallajökull, (site of the most recent volcanic eruption) and Mýrdalsjökull. The next day the trek will descend into Skógar along the gorges of the Skógaá River.
Visit www.mountainguides.is. Contact : Clair Horwood at clair@saltmarshpr.co.uk.

5. Vancouver Island, Canada

The small chain of islands, situated between Vancouver and Victoria in the province’s Georgia Strait, is being promoted as an arts archipelago.

Salt Spring Island, the most populated of the southern Gulf Islands, has a dozen art galleries, many tucked, charmingly, in the woods. While on the island, there is the popular, artistically-bent summer Saturday Market and sculpture-filled gardens at the quaint Hastings House Country House Hotel.
The remaining southern Gulf Islands also have artists studios and workshops year-round.
Visit : www.HelloBC.com/gulfislands and www.hellobc.com/vancouverislandmedia. Contact : Carla Mont at Carla.Mont@gov.bc.ca.
The west coast of the North Highlands of Scotland

 

1. Scotland’s only global geo-park

Stretching from Loch Erribol as far north as Cape Wrath, this 2000 sq km area offers a different type of trip for adventurous families, ramblers and outdoor lovers.

 

2. Inverewe Garden : a garden which is warmed by the Gulf Stream and able to sustain exotic plants from across the world – take a ranger guided walk to round off the visit.

 

3. Gruinard Beach : Overlooked by imposing mountains such as An Teallach

 

4. A Hebridean Whale cruise Spot Minke Whale, Porpoise Dolphin and even Basking Sharks on the Atlantic. On the horizon are the Outer Hebrides while to the south are the majestic peaks of the Isle of Skye.

 

5. Handa Island The largest breeding colony of Guillemots in the UK – approx 120,00 breeding pairs. Also puffin, fulmar, shag, razorbill, artic and great skuas, kittiwake, gulls and terns. Boat trips around the island depart twice daily

 

Visit www.northhighlandsscotland.com. Kirsty McNaught at kirsty.mcnaught@robson-brown.co.uk.

Top 10 natural wildlife encounters in South Africa

6. Whale Watching

A major highlight on any trip to the Western Cape is seeing the Southern Right and Humpback Whales. Whale season takes place from June until November.

7. Boulders Beach

The beautiful beach at Boulders is famous not only for its turquoise tidal pools and giant granite boulders, but for its colony of over 3000 jackass penguins.

8. Great White Sharks

The Western Cape is renowned for sightings of Great White Sharks, particularly in areas like Gansbaai where the past-time of cage diving with sharks has become extremely popular.

9. Seal Island

A land mass located off False Bay known as Seal Island is home to a huge number of Cape Fur Seals and a wealth of bird life. Because of the dense population of seals, Seal Island also attracts a number of Great White Sharks.

10. Bird Island Nature Reserve

100 metres offshore of Lambert’s Bay is Bird Island - one of only six sites world-wide where Cape Gannets breed. It is also the only breeding site easily accessible to the public.

12. Karoo National Park

Dominated by the Nuweveld Mountains, The Karoo National Park is home to unique fauna including 20 pairs of black eagle and five different tortoises (the highest density of species per equivalent area in the world) as well as Cape Mountain Zebra and Springbok.

13. Cederberg Wilderness Area

Rugged mountainous terrain covering 71 000 hectares, The Cederberg Wilderness Area is renowned for the spectacular landscapes and rocky outcrops. The local mammal population includes leopard, baboon, grey rehbok, dassie, duiker and honey badger.

14. Goukamma Nature and Marine Reserve

This nature reserve is situated across 14 kilometres of coastline (and 2 500 hectares). View Southern Right Whales and Dolphins and sight land creatures such as grysbok, bushbuck, bushpig. Goukamma has over 220 species of birds.

15. De Hoop Nature Reserve

At De Hoop you’ll find the rare bontebok, eland, baboon and occasional leopard. Marine mammals such as seals, dolphins, and Southern Right Whales are plentiful. There are 260 species of birdlife both resident and migratory.

16. Monkeyland

Situated in Plettenberg Bay this eco-tourism sanctuary is the world’s first and (currently only) multi-species free-roaming sanctuary. Here the primates are free-roaming in a beautiful eco-friendly setting.

17. Destination South Africa

The Alliance has produced Destination South Africa, a detailed media dossier for the country. Copies from Ashley@itwalliance.com.

Visit : www.southafrica.net. Alliance members who are interested in South Africa and the chance to visit the country to produce features and images should contact Ntsiki Mpulo at ntsiki@uk.southafrica.net.

A place to stay

Alliance members looking to take advantage of any of the following opportunities should be on assignment, with a commission or able to obtain one.
GoldenEye, Jamaica
The new GoldenEye Hotel & Resort in the village of Oracabessa Bay on Jamaica’s North Coast will open this November. The Island Outpost property is owned by Chris Blackwell, Jamaica-raised founder of Island Records.
GoldenEye was the Jamaica home of author Ian Fleming and the location where he penned all 14 James Bond novels. Fleming’s original desk still stands in his former villa today.
Visit www.GoldenEye.com. Contact : Louise Swanne at louise.swanne@rivapr.co.uk.
Middlethorpe Hall, York UK
Middlethorpe Hall in York will be happy to offer DB&B and use of the Spa to Alliance members able to place a review. Visit : www.middlethorpe.com. Daisy Parker at daisy@iscott.co.uk.

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