With the world’s tourism industry at the beginning of a major shakeup regarding flight bookings via travel websites, the V.I. Tourism Department has made a move to clear up confusion when it comes to flights and tour packages to the territory.
Recently the territory’s major carrier, American Airlines, announced that customers could no longer book flights on the major online booking agencies Orbitz and Expedia.
Delta Airlines followed with its announcement that its flights could no longer be reserved on the less-important online booking agencies CheapOAir, OneTravel and BookIt. These moves impact the options available to potential visitors to book air and land packaged vacations to the territory.
“We recognize that American Airlines’ and Delta’s decisions to withdraw flight listings from these popular online travel sites, which represent a significant source of packages sold to the territory on these airlines, have the potential to create a serious impact on travel,” Tourism Commissioner Beverly Nicholson-Doty said in a press release issued Thursday.
Because of the Three Kings Day holiday, no one could be reached at Tourism for further comment.
To clarify traveler questions and remind potential visitors of the many remaining options to book packaged vacations, the Tourism Department developed a dedicated section on its website www.visitusvi.com that provides an updated list of tour operators and online travel sites that continue to offer air and land packaged vacations to the territory featuring American Airlines and/or Delta Air Lines. Find that section at www.visitusvi.com/travel_transportation/from_here.
To generate awareness, the Tourism Department sent out an announcement to key members of the travel industry and consumer media and will also distribute updates via its Twitter and Facebook pages.
“We are reaching out to travelers via travel trade and leisure travel media outlets, as well as social media platforms, to remind them of the online and offline tour operators who continue to offer U.S.V.I. trips featuring American Airlines and/or Delta Air Lines service. Our goal is to ensure a balance of supporting all available channels for travelers to book packaged travel to the territory,” Nicholson-Doty said.
Travel service providers that continue to offer trips to the territory featuring American Airlines and/or Delta Air Lines service include the following:
• www.AAVacations.com, 800-321-2121
• www.CheapCaribbean.com, 800-915-2322
• www.BookIt.com, 888-782-9722
• www.Travelocity.com, 888-872-8356
• The Mark Travel Corporation, www.marktravel.com, 414-228-7472
• Travel Impressions, www.travimp.com, 877-AXP-2471
• Apple Vacations, www.applevacations.com, 800-517-2000
• Classic Vacations, www.classicvacations.com, 800-635-1333
• Enjoy Vacations, www.enjoyvacations.com, 888-705-6575
• Libgo, www.libertytravel.com, 888-271-1584
• Funjet Vacations, www.funjet.com, 888-558-6654
• American Express Vacations, www.americanexpressvacations.com, 800-335-3342
Travelers with questions about where they can book a packaged vacation featuring American Airlines and/or Delta Air Lines should call the Tourism Department at 800-372-8784 or email their questions to info@usvitourism.vi.