Air Tahiti Nui has announced a code-share arrangement with Air New
Zealand that will see the French Polynesia-based airline assume
some of the Kiwi carrier’s routes from Los Angeles to Papeete. The
arrangement took effect on April 2.
Both airlines will continue to fly separately between Auckland,
New Zealand, and Tahiti using code-share capacity on each other’s
flights.
The agreement, announced by Air Tahiti Nui’s vice president for
the Americas Nicholas Panza, follows on the heels of an
announcement in September that American Airlines’ AAdvantage
members can now accrue and redeem miles on all Air Tahiti
flights.
Air Tahiti Nui, the flag carrier of French Polynesia, currently
flies daily from Los Angeles to Papeete’s Faa’a International
Airport and also has service three times a week from New York’s JFK
to Papeete.
According to Panza, who is based in Los Angeles, the arrangement
with Air New Zealand is a win-win for both carriers.
“We benefit from Air New Zealand’s marketing strength in North
America,” said Panza, “while Air New Zealand can now use its
equipment on other routes and in other gateway cities.”
But such arrangements can often prove difficult psychologically,
said one airline industry executive, who asked to not be named.
“It’s often about ego,” he said. “For example, Air New Zealand
needs to come to grips with the fact that they will no longer fly
those routes. They are going to put passengers on another carrier.
But the real question for both sides is, ‘Can we achieve cost
savings but keep up our revenue flow?’ Obviously, they’ve both
decided they can.”
In addition to its new routes, Air Tahiti Nui will also resume its
popular “honeymoon” service between Los Angeles and Papeete, with
flights leaving Monday night and arriving in Tahiti the next
morning in time to allow newlyweds to make connections from North
American gateways.
Air Tahiti Nui began service in 1998. The airline has a fleet of
five A340-300 wide bodies, with no plane over five years old, and
within five to seven years, the carrier expects to switch over
exclusively to long-haul 787s or A350s.
To bolster its Los Angeles to Papeete route further, the carrier
will add another flight during the peak season, from June to
October.
Those departures will be in addition to the airline’s daily
Papeete to Los Angeles to Paris flights. Traditionally, Air France
and AOM flew from Paris to Papeete, but in 2002, when AOM folded,
Air Tahiti Nui took over the routes.
www.airtahitinui-usa.com
www.airnewzealand.com
Travel Guard Offers Free Assistance to Greek Cruise
Ship Evacuees
AIG Travel Guard announced that it will provide emergency
travel services and medical assistance services free to evacuees of
the Sea Diamond cruise ship and their families after it ran aground
and began taking on water off the Greek Island of Santorini on
April 5.
Of the 1,200 passengers aboard, three-quarters are American,
including many groups of U.S. college students.
The services Travel Guard is offering to those affected include
emergency medical arrangements, cash wire transfers from their
families, passport replacement, translation services, message
relay, along with emergency travel arrangements, such as airline or
hotel reservations, and luggage tracking.
“We want to do whatever we can to help those involved and have
made arrangements to properly staff our travel assistance
coordinators to accommodate the stranded American evacuees,” said
Dan McGinnity, AIG Travel Guard vice president.
Family members seeking these services for their relatives can call
Travel Guard’s 24-hour service center at 800-826-1300. From Greece,
evacuees can call 00800-1809-201-2429.
www.travelguard.com
Gay Couples to Wed at Disney
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts has changed its weddings
policy and will now allow same-sex couples to purchase its Fairy
Tale Wedding packages and hold weddings or commitment ceremonies at
its parks.
Disney previously had permitted gay couples to organize their own
wedding or commitment ceremonies at ballrooms or other venues at
its resort hotels. The change allows them to buy Fairy Tale Wedding
packages and hold the events at Cinderella’s Castle or other
locations inside the parks and have options such as attendance by
Mickey and Minnie Mouse in formal wear that are available for such
ceremonies. The packages start at $8,000.
“It’s the right thing to do,” said Donn Walker, a company
spokesman. “We had received an inquiry from a gay couple and they
were told they didn’t have access to the Fairy Tale Wedding
programs. We debated about it internally and decided it was time to
make the program more inclusive.”
In the four days since the change in policy was enacted, Disney
has received e-mails both in support and in opposition of its move,
Walker said.
“The bottom line is that our business is all about hospitality and
we want to make sure that everyone feels welcomed and respected,”
he said.
www.disney.com
AVC to Open Florida Office
America’s Vacation Center (AVC) recently announced plans
to open an office in South Florida by the third quarter of this
year. By launching a new office, the travel agency aims to provide
increased support to their network of independently owned and
operated affiliates, as well as deepen relationships with nearby
cruise vendors.
“Cruise vendors have been asking us to open an office in South
Florida for years, and we were waiting for the right time,” said
Brad Anderson, co-president of AVC. “Not only will this expansion
enhance our level of support for our agents, but it will also put
us in the cruising hub of the world.”
The new AVC office will focus primarily on support, and AVC will
maintain its global headquarters in San Diego.
“Carnival Cruise Lines is thrilled that AVC is opening a new
office in South Florida,” said Vicki Freed, senior vice president
of sales and marketing of Carnival Cruise Lines. “By having an AVC
office at our fingertips, we look forward to furthering our already
strong relationship with the company.”
800-521-2597
www.joinavc.com
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