Sir Richard Branson Announces the Launch of Virgin Vacations, a New Company Under Virgin Ltd.Business Editors & Travel Writers NORWALK,Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 6, 2002 Sir Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950 in Shamley Green, Surrey, England), is a British entrepreneur, best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 , Chairman of Virgin Atlantic Airways airways Anatomy The 'pipes'–trachea, bronchi, bronchioles–through which air passes to and from the alveoli. See Small airways. , is pleased to announce the launch of Virgin Vacations Virgin Vacations is the inclusive tour arm of Virgin Atlantic Airways featuring land components (hotel packages, tours, etc.) in combination with Virgin Atlantic air to London. It was initially established in 1994. , a new subsidiary company of Virgin Atlantic, Ltd. Since 1994, the vacation division flourished as part of Virgin Atlantic Airways, offering inclusive tour The term inclusive tour (IT) is used to describe a commercial arrangement where a company commonly referred to as a tour operator organises package holidays that include accommodation in addition to transportation. packages from the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. to Great Britain Great Britain, officially United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, constitutional monarchy (2005 est. pop. 60,441,000), 94,226 sq mi (244,044 sq km), on the British Isles, off W Europe. The country is often referred to simply as Britain. and other European destinations. Now, doing business as Virgin Vacations, their first plan of action was to add the option to purchase air-only tickets on Virgin Atlantic. They have created a new reservation center, specifically geared to handle the calls for requests on airfares to London, as well as other international cities. These additional cities will be serviced by partner airlines, and include Dublin, Paris, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Madrid and more. Additionally, they will offer a la carte menus for rental car, hotel and other add-on options allowing customers to buy their air separately and add as many or as few land components as they choose. Also on the horizon, is the expansion of Virgin Vacations' inclusive tour product line. They will begin to develop air and land inclusive vacations to include the top leisure destinations within the United States, such as Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. and Orlando, and eventually expand this worldwide. Sir Richard comments, "This is an exciting venture for us. We are delighted to be able to expand vacation and travel options to the leisure market within the United States and internationally. We believe we can offer quality and value, integrated with a fun experience, and this will separate us from the competition. We also realize the leisure market has changed over the years, and we want to be able to offer clients the options to buy their vacations in whatever manner they choose, whether it's all inclusive or personally created by the customer." Virgin Vacations will continue to work closely with the other Virgin companies to provide as unique a travel experience as possible. "Virgin Vacations is a perfect outlet for us to showcase not only what we can do with vacations, but also the Virgin brand," adds Richard. Wherever possible, they will introduce and incorporate other Virgin companies into the program to include areas of travel, entertainment, shopping, lifestyle and more. Virgin Vacations currently features Virgin Trains in one of their air/hotel/rail packages in Great Britain, and they work with Virgin Publishing to create their exclusive London City London City may refer to:
Virgin Vacations currently offers city packages, fly/drive programs, barging, biking, and walking tours, and they recently partnered with Cunard and Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, or Elizabeth, may refer to: Living people
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All of their inclusive tour packages can be booked on their easy to navigate (1) "Surfing the Web." To move from page to page on the Web. (2) To move through the menu structure in a software application. web site, where you'll find the most up-to-date pricing, specials, and product information. You can even request a brochure online. Just log on to www.virgin.com/vacations. You may also call them directly at 1-888-YES-VIRGIN (1-888-937-8474). Hours of operation are Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time. For air only requests, please call 1-800-253-8649. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 11:00 am-8:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time. The new web site for air only bookings will be launching soon. |
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