TravTalk India Online Magazine
The Tourism Office of Spain – Mumbai completed another of its hour-long webinar series in July that was exclusively designed for the Indian travel trade. Nine individuals who attended all the three webinars and participated in the educational quiz won Amazon gift vouchers.They share their experience and celebrate their win.
Kiran Chokshi, Manager, European Holidays
I learned a lot from the well-thought-out and engaging experiences shared by the expert presenters from diverse destinations such as the fascinating Jacobean pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, to the stunning past of Spain’s 15 UNESCO World Heritage cities, to the vibrant city of Valencia, giving us reasons and impressions of why Spain is one of the most visited countries in the world. The webinar gave us the inspiration to plan culturally rich experiences indulging in incredible gastronomy, thrilling experiences, and a lot more. We look forward to promoting Spain again.
Sneha MS, Junior Agent, SWISS Tours
It was a pleasure attending all the three webinars conducted by Spain. It was definitely a fantastic learning experience and gave me much more confidence to promote and sell the destination. I would definitely recommend the webinar; itwas time very well spent. The speaker was very knowledgeable and interesting throughout the session. It was very clear and understandable. I would like to thank the entire team for organising such excellent sessions! They provided valuable information and taught me so much more about Spain that I didn’t know. I look forward to attending more such webinars in the future and get to know the country even better. I am also grateful for the gift voucher that I received. It was all truly remarkable.
Sudhir Tuli, Director, Travel Instagram
While the world is agonised with COVID and is in recovery phase, Spain Tourism took an initiative to organise webinars which were really worthy. All the three webinars were fantastic giving great in-depth knowledge of Spanish culture, heritage and experiences which can be curated along in the itinerary. I would say it was really appreciative as even a layman can speak much about Spain after having seen all the webinars. There were experts of various regions who spoke at length with beautiful pictures and videos. I really appreciate if these webinars can also be uploaded on YouTube for trade assistance.
Sanjeev Sharma, Associate Director, Trius Holiday
During the lockdown, the online seminar was a reliable source of increasing our knowledge about the various cities and what else we can promote in Spain. Although we are selling Spain for a long time, still during these webinars we discovered so many new things which we have not explored although we have been in Spain. Like in the first session of Visit Valencia there was a good MICE event place which we are going to explore for sure. The second session about Follow the way of Saint James was completely new for us although we have heard about it & in the third session Spain’s heritage cities, some of them we have already visited but still found so many new things which we missed exploring; may be on next visit will do so. Overall, it was great fun!
Pranay Pednekar, CEO, Hridaan Holidays
Glad to know that I am the winner of the quiz. We will definitely keep on promoting Spain and wish to conduct as many MICE to FIT movements as possible for the forthcoming season. From pilgrimage routes to UNESCO World Heritage cities to local cuisines – everything that was highlighted in the webinars was so nicely covered. It provided a first-hand virtual experience and in-depth knowledge. It will not only assist us in selling the destination effectively, but also boost confidence in selling Spain to our present client base and aggressively target newer corporate and FIT clients.
Prinston Prakasia, Sales Manager, Travelust India
I had completed the Spain Specialist Program last year, so attending the webinars was like brushing up my knowledge on Spain. But the webinars gave a much deeper insight and practical knowledge about the destinations, especially Camino de Santiago. And the talk by the Indian guide who had gone for the Camino was what was really needed because it gave an insight from an Indian perspective. The video-rich presentation on the UNESCO world heritage sites was very good, informative and much better than just plain talk as pictures speak a thousand words and videos speak much more. I think the first webinar on Valencia was a good idea because most of the itinerary for Spain is just the two-city programme of Madrid and Barcelona, about which we know a lot.
Shalini Kalian, Manager, NCS Travels & Tours
I really appreciate this gesture from Spain Tourism board. All the three webinars were full of valuable information which will profit us immensely in future. I gained new knowledge which I will certainly apply to my work. There was a whole new content and useful tips which will help us sell Spain effectively as soon as the borders re-open. The quiz was very exciting as well. It was one of the reasons to keep us engrossed through all the webinars. I have always been very dedicated in selling Spain as a destination and will continue to do so! Thank you Spain Tourism for always keeping us motivated even during such times.
Neha Nagrani, Owner, Bourbon Holidays
All the webinars were very informative, specially from the point of view of a travel agent. Spain is such a beautiful and diverse country with its art and culture, nature, cuisines, amazing beaches and so much more. After attending the webinars, I believe it will be easy for us tour operators to guide our passengers accurately, based on their interests once travel to Spain opens up. I would love to discover Spain myself some day and experience the destination first-hand so I can advise my clients better! I eagerly look forward to attending more such webinars and learn many more facets about Spain.
Deepa Nagrani, Account Manager, SWISS Tours
All the three webinars of Spain were informative and gave insights into the major highlights with information about Valencia, the religious path of Spain, and Spain’s Heritage sites. This blend of topics and information will be helpful for me to cater to clients of various travel tastes. With these webinars, we were actually taken on a virtual tour that imparted immense knowledge about the country. Now we know so much more about present-day Spain and its fascinating history as well. However, we can’t have it all in a limited frame of time but it certainly gave us insight into major information about Spain.
TravelSafe with Turespaña
Tour operators can join its online campus to learn about Spain, what the destination is doing to ensure a safe experience for its visitors, as well as earn a Spain Expert Certificate issued by Turespaña. Turespaña has introduced TravelSafe, a microsite within its official web portal spain.info. TravelSafe is aimed to aid international travellers who wish to come to Spain. TravelSafe has an information system which is updated regularly on travel restrictions arising due to COVID-19. It allows travellers to consult the necessary information to enable organising their trip to Spain from 50 countries, including India.
More secure information is available about PCR tests, quarantines, as well as other prevention measures plus regulations before, during and after the trip. Detailed information on the specific measures in force in each of the autonomous community has also been made available. This microsite is the cornerstone of Turespaña’s communication strategy – ‘Travel Safe. Travel Again’. Please consult https://travelsafe.spain.info/en/ while planning holidays to Spain for your customers.
Spain Specialist Programme
The Spain Specialist Programme (SSP) is an e-learning platform designed by Turespaña to familiarise tourism professionals with Spanish culture, the regions of Spain, and its tourist attractions. The SSP is designed to give professionals the expertise they need to improve their relationship with their customers and increase their sales. All the SSP courses are free of charge, and can be taken how and when you want. Log onto the online campus at: http://campus.spain.travel/en-in/
