Westside International Travel Inc. Takes Home a Gold Magellan Award for Website Marketing
NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - Oct 2, 2013) - Travel Weekly announced the winners of The 2013 Magellan Awards and ALTOUR is thrilled to recognize our affiliate agency, Westside International Travel Inc. as a Gold Magellan award winner in the category of individual travel agency website marketing.. With entries from across the U.S. and around the world, the Magellan Award winners represent the best in the travel industry and salute the outstanding travel professionals behind it all.
Westside International Travel Inc. retooled its website, creating an environment that attracts new customers. "Almost all of the clients derived from our new website are using the services of a travel agent for the first time ever. The site offers easy to use search tools on every page," said Peter and Sharon Bernhardt, owners of Westside International.
What distinguishes this site is the incorporation of highly visual and interactive delivery of product information that speaks to younger travelers; Couples, All Inclusive Packages, Honeymoons, Destination Weddings and, Family Travel; integrating all with a social media aspect that engages the shopper through Facebook, video, and photos. Westside uses Passport Online supplier content to build unique facets including: a dedicated river cruise microsite, customized search tools, highlighted consortia specials, exclusive customized group space, and email marketing.
The Magellan awards is the premier awards program honoring a broad range of industry segments including Hotels and Resorts, Cruise Lines, Online Travel Services, Airlines and Airports, Travel Agents and Agencies, Tour Operators and Car Rental Companies.
"Once again, the bar was raised by Magellan entrants," said Arnie Weissmann, editor in chief of Travel Weekly. "The creativity that travel industry marketers and designers display to inspire travel and enhance the travel experience continues to impress our expert judges and readers. The winners are not just the most talented and creative people in the travel industry -- they are among the most creative and talented of any industry."
The Magellan Awards are judged and overseen by a one-of-a-kind panel of top travel professionals representing the best names and most accomplished leaders from the industry. In determining winners, entries do not compete with one another, instead they are judged against a standard of excellence based on the long experience of Travel Weekly. To uphold this high standard of excellence, a category may have multiple winners, or may have no winners at all.
For a complete list of silver and gold winners, please visit www.travelweeklyawards.com.
About Westside International Inc. (http://www.westsideintltravel.com)
Westside International Travel Inc. is a full service travel agency specializing in moderate to luxury cruise, family and group travel arrangements available to purchase with flexible payment terms or layaway vacation planning. They have a staff of 10 travel professionals with a minimum of 17 years experience traveling the globe, storing those experiences gained along the way. They have cruise specialists that have experienced over 130 vessels and land & tour specialists that have traveled and/or escorted other travelers to six of the seven continents. Their group specialists can facilitate groups of 15 or 150 with the same energy and expertise.
ALTOUR, established in 1991, is one of the world's leading independent travel organizations with a workforce of over 1,200 professionals in sixty offices on three continents headquartered in New York and with key offices in Los Angeles, Jeffersonville, Minneapolis, London and Paris. With $1.5 billion turnover in 2012, ALTOUR is ranked 13th on the Travel Weekly Power List, the #1 agency in Los Angeles by the LA Business Journal and among the largest agencies in the UK by Buying Business Travel and is recognized as an international industry leader providing essential travel and service solutions the world over. The company's core remains its renowned business travel management capabilities, with divisions dedicated to such diverse fields as leisure travel, performance improvement, sports travel, entertainment travel, as well as meetings and event services. ALTOUR's principal divisions are complemented by flexible sister companies providing private air charter services and limousine services. ALTOUR has been named to the "CMI 25" as one of Corporate Meetings & Incentives' best in the industry. For more information please visit www.ALTOUR.com.
