Travel & Cruise Castlemaine is thrilled to be a finalist in the prestigious National Travel Industry Awards for the ‘Most Outstanding Travel Agency – Leisure Category.
Travel & Cruise proprietor Fiona Oliver said they are absolutely delighted to be recognised after what has been an extremely tough couple of years for independent travel agents in light of the challenges faced with covid.
“We are absolutely elated to have been shortlisted as a finalist with four other incredible small businesses which have managed to defy the odds and get through this terrible time,” Fiona said.
“In the initial weeks of covid we worked to help many local people get home from overseas, even those who hadn’t booked their trips with us,” Fiona said.
“We also worked hard to help many international travellers get home as the crisis took hold, borders slammed shut and international travel ground to a halt,” she said.
In the painstaking months that followed the team knew they would have to pivot if they were going to keep afloat.
“We diversified to offer a wide array of travel themed homewares and merchandise and more recently we purchased our own bus to offer trips and group tours.
“We have held an extremely successful Silo Tour and we are gearing up to hold a tour to the Tesselaar Tulip Festival shortly, and have plans underway to hold another Silo Tour, this time taking a different route,” Fiona said.
“It is also fantastic to see people getting back into interstate and international travel. We recently enjoyed a guided tour on the Ghan and we have been busy tailoring trips for local residents to a wide array of destinations,” she said.
Fiona looks forward to attending the Australian Federation of Travel Agents Limited (AFTA) event in Sydney in October which will be a real celebration of the industry.
“It’s just starting to sink in that this is quite a big deal. Awards include Most Outstanding Airline, Cruise Operator, Accommodation Supporter and Travel Wholesaler – the who’s who of the travel industry will be there!” she said.
“I even had the CEO of Travellers Choice ring to congratulate us!”
Fiona thanked all those who have continued to support the local business during this incredibly challenging time.
“We wouldn’t be here without our community. Many think you can get a better deal if you shop online or go to bigger firms in Bendigo, but you don’t get the customer service and expertise that you do when you book through your local agency and the support just isn’t there when you need it,” she said.
“Thanks to our affiliation with Travellers Choice we have that buying power to get you great deals with that unbeatable personal touch,” she said.