The only weekly newsletter detailing essential trends, news and top executive moves in travel. Opportunities is a free newsletter that provides you with the vision to "see" travel industry opportunities in the making. Whether you are in sales, business development, guiding your company's growth or managing your career, reading opportunities will give you the advantage to succeed. Opportunities is another innovative tool brought to you by Travel Career Connexxions. For more information, visit our main Travel Job resource page.

This week in Opportunities:

Survey Forecasts Positive Summer Travel Outlook
NTA Supports Positive Forecast for Summer Travel
New Opportunities!
Networking Opportunities
Executive Movers! See who's going where?
Travel Executive Employment Report

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OPPORTUNITIES NEWS & TRENDS!

Survey Forecasts Positive Summer Travel Outlook

The outlook for travel both short term and long term continues to be bright, meaning job growth in the industry will most likely continue on track. Three out of four Americans plan to travel this summer, according to a recent survey conducted by Yahoo Travel and Harris Interactive. In addition, the average amount summer vacationers plan to spend is $1,756 per household, including transportation costs, accommodations, food expenses and entertainment. While 75 percent of Americans indicate they plan to take a summer vacation this year, 14 percent are still undecided on how or where they will be spending it. Overall, more respondents plan to spend their vacation at the beach (21 percent) and visiting family and friends (29 percent) this summer, rather than heading overseas (6 percent) or taking a cruise (5 percent). Younger respondents (18-34) plan to spend summer vacations at the beach (26 percent), visiting a national park/in the wilderness (13 percent), or sightseeing in a city (17 percent). The majority of Americans plan to go to more than one destination this summer (2.2 trips on average for those 18-34, compared to 1.6 for those 55 and older). The Yahoo Travel survey, conducted online by Harris Interactive, is based on responses from 2,245 U.S. adult consumers between May 10 and 12, and has a statistical precision of plus or minus four percentage points.

NTA Supports Positive Forecast for Summer Travel

Want more evidence that the travel industry is on the comeback trail? A survey from the National Tour Association (NTA) continues to show a positive outlook for current business and positive projections for future business. NTA tour operators, destination management organizations and tour supplier partners also shows increases across the board in 2004. According to the quarterly survey, 50 percent of NTA tour operators saw higher numbers of passengers served and 58 percent reported greater overall sales volume during the first quarter of 2004, compared with same period last year. Such numbers are the strongest reported since Sept. 11. Looking to the future, 60 percent of NTA's tour operators also expect greater numbers in the second and third quarter 2004. During the first quarter of 2004, 57 percent of tour suppliers recounted a greater number of customers compared to first quarter 2003. Meanwhile, New York/New York City and Alaska lead the list of the NTA tour operators' top selling summer destinations in North America. According to NTA's latest member survey, the top two are followed by a three-way tie among California, Niagara Falls, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.ntaonline.com.

OPPORTUNITIES WATCH!

NCL Readies Launch of U.S.-Flagged Cruise Unit

Norwegian Cruise Line's NCL America unit is ramping up plans to launch its American-flagged cruise line. NCL America said Margaret Awamura Inouye, wife of Sen. Daniel Innoye (D-Hawaii) will be the godmother of Pride of Aloha, when it is christened in a ceremony in Honolulu on July 4. Pride of Aloha, the former Norwegian Sky, will be the first modern U.S.-flag cruise ship in almost 50 years. Beginning July 4, the ship will sail seven-day roundtrip Hawaii itineraries, visiting all four main islands and giving passengers up to 96 hours in port. Ports of call will include Honolulu, Oahu; an overnight in Nawiliwili, Kauai; Hilo, Hawaii; Kona, Hawaiii; and an overnight in Kahului, Maui. But what's also unique about the new cruise product is that it will be staffed and crewed by Americans, meaning NCL has been actively hiring for its ship and other facilities.

Virgin USA Narrows Main Airport Choice

Virgin Atlantic Airways Chairman Richard Branson said the planned Virgin USA low-cost startup airline, tentatively set to launch early next year, has narrowed its choices for a home city to San Francisco or New York. The new airline originally had been considering Washington Dulles as a hub, but another low-cost airline, Independence Air, is scheduled to start service from there in June. Branson said the carrier, which does not yet have a name, route structure or airplanes, was considering buying roughly 50 aircraft from Boeing or Airbus. Earlier this year Virgin USA hired Delta executive Frederick Reid to be the new carrier's president and CEO, and more hiring is expected soon.

Israir Airlines Set To Make U.S. Debut

A new Israeli airline is set to hit the U.S. next month. Israir Airlines, which operates flights between Israel's Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv and cities in Europe and Africa, will launch nonstop service from New York to Tel Aviv on June 20. Israir's nonstop New York-Tel Aviv flights will be operated with Boeing 767-300 extended range aircraft, configured with 185 economy-class and 42 premium business-class seats. Initial service will be three times weekly with late evening departures from Terminal 4 at JFK on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Daily service is planned by 2005. For more information, visit www.israirairlines.com.

InterContinental Grows Hotels in China

InterContinental Hotels Group, which recently named the largest hotel company in the world in terms of the number of properties owned or under management, just keeps growing, especially in Asia. The company just signed nine new management contracts in China. Two of the nine new hotels will fly the Express by Holiday Inn flag. Of the other new hotels being added to the Group's portfolio, one is an InterContinental Hotel, three are Holiday Inn Hotels and three are Crowne Plaza Hotels.

New Seattle River Cruise Company Debuts

There's a new river-cruise company being formed in the Pacific Northwest. American Rivers Cruise Line, based in Seattle, has announced plans to buy the Columbia Queen, a river cruise ship that offers sailings on the Columbia, Snake and Williamette rivers. The new company, led by former Society Expeditions President Michael Lomax, expects close on the deal in June, and the ship would begin sailings in 2005. The Columbia Queen originally was part of the Delta Queen Steamboat Co., but was separated from its sister ships, the Delta Queen, the American Queen and the Mississippi Queen, during an auction in May 2002 after the Delta Queen Steamboat Co.'s parent company filed for bankruptcy. American Rivers Cruise Line reportedly will share the Seattle headquarters of Glacier Bay Cruiseline, along with reservations and other back-office functions, although it will operate independently.

Starwood Keeps Growing the W Hotels Brand

W Hotels, Starwood Hotels & Resorts' rapidly growing brand, will open its first resort property, the W Maldives-Fesdhu Resort in the Republic of Maldives, in late 2005. Starwood has formed a joint venture company with Universal Enterprises Ltd. that will develop and own this newly built resort featuring 80 overwater and beachfront villas on a private island. Starwood will own 50 percent of the resort. When it opens, The W Maldives will be the brand's 21st hotel and the third in the Asia Pacific region. The W Hotel concept was first introduced to the Asia Pacific with the opening of W Sydney in 2000. The W Seoul Walkerhill will debut in July 2004. The first W Hotel opened in New York in December 1998. There are now five hotels in New York City (W New York, W New York-The Court, W New York-The Tuscany, W New York-Union Square and W New York-Times Square) and 18 hotels brandwide. This summer W will open the W Montreal and the W Seoul Walkerhill, and W Hotels are under construction in Fort Lauderdale and Dallas.

Outrigger Hotels Keeps Adding Top Resorts

Hawaii-based Outrigger Hotels & Resorts keeps on expanding. Earlier this month it was selected to manage a boutique resort on Huahine, an island in French Polynesia. Last week it was named to manage its second hotel in New Zealand, the Outrigger at Clearwater Resort located on the South Island in Christchurch's lakes district. It also has announced major plans to expand hotels and facilities in Honolulu in the Waikiki area. For more information on the company, visit www.outrigger.com.

Orient-Express Hotels Expands into Barging

Orient-Express Hotels Ltd., which features 44 luxury leisure properties worldwide, is expanding its focus. The company has agreed to acquire Afloat in France, which owns five luxury canal barges in France that regularly cruise the canals of Burgundy and Provence during the tourist season. Orient-Express said it expects to use its Afloat in France acquisition as the core of a larger investment in this sector of the cruising business, meaning there could be more jobs created for this luxury travel company focused on the high-end market.

OPPORTUNITIES NETWORKING!

Network with Top Hotel Revenue Professionals!

If you're interested in a career in the nuts and bolts of hotel revenue and yield management, the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association's Revenue Management Strategy Conference may be a good place to network. Designed for revenue and yield management professionals, the conference will address critical issues and offer solutions and strategies for this very specific industry segment. The conference will take place at the Dallas Convention Center in conjunction with the HITEC 2004 conference. Included will be an "Ideas Fair" of four concurrent 30-minute breakout sessions that address four of the industry's top issues of concern. Each break-out session will be moderated by one of HSMAI's board members, who will later report-back to the general session on the "ideas" generated for each topic. The cost to participate is $195 for HSMAI Members ($245 after June 14) and $345 for non-members ($395 after June 14), which includes a one-year HSMAI membership. To register, visit www.hsmai.org.

Meet Top Industry Pros at Leisure Summit!

Here's more information on the Leisure Travel Summit, a conference and trade show aimed at travel agents that will feature a diverse group of travel industry suppliers. The Summit, sponsored by industry trade publications Travel Weekly and Travel Agent and meetings company Michael J. Pierson Associates, will take place June 11-12 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif. The show will feature four keynote speakers: Vicki Freed, senior vice president of Carnival Cruise Line, and David Preece, president and CEO of the Travel Institute, will speak at the first general session on Friday. Freed will discuss the challenges facing today's agents in a speech titled, "Decision 2004." Preece will lay out the Travel Institute's new mission. Robert Joselyn, president and CEO of Joselyn Tepper & Associates, will give a presentation on Saturday morning titled "Grabbing the Present by the Throat" and will discuss tools that will help agents improve profitability. Saturday night's program will conclude with Marc Mancini, president of Marc Mancini Consulting, whose presentation is titled, "Making a Difference: Why Travel Agents Matter." The educational program is rounded out with 40 destination and product workshops. The price for the conference is $89. For more information, visit www.leisuretravelsummit.com or call 866-310-6572.

OPPORTUNITIES EXECUTIVE MOVERS!

AIRLINES: Nancy Knipp has been named managing director-premium services for American Airlines. A 24-year veteran of American, Knipp will direct global operations for the 42 Admirals Club facilities, plus the Flagship Lounge, Arrivals Lounge and Admirals Club Executive Center facilities and other services for American's premium customers. She will be based at American's corporate headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. Knipp replaces Cathy Bradley Berg, who was recently named managing director-passenger sales for American's Western Division, based in Los Angeles. Knipp's most recent responsibilities include overseeing all aspects of American's operations throughout Japan, leading the airline through the biggest expansion in Japan in its 17-year history of operating in the country...Blue Star Jets, a growing private aviation company, has named Howard Moses as executive vice president and chief marketing officer. In his new role, Moses will be responsible for all marketing functions for the company. He will be located in the corporate headquarters in New York, and will work collaboratively with the six regional offices (Boston, Chicago, Boca Raton, Las Vegas, Los Angeles & Phoenix) in the United States as well as the European operation. Moses was last employed with SFX Sports Group, a division of Clear Channel Entertainment, managing the sales and marketing of divisional owned and operated sports events including The Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational. Prior to SFX Sports, Moses led the marketing, sales and business development efforts of Integrated Sports Marketing Group (formerly JustBalls.com), a sports products and affinity marketing start-up...Elite Flight Solutions Inc. named Gregory Meech as its new interim president to replace Michelle Mathis. Meech brings over 10 years of aviation experience from cargo operations to aircraft charter to commercial airline experience. He will be responsible for directing the company's current expansion phase, which coincides with an approval for more equity line funding in which Elite may draw additional funds up to approximately $8 million under an existing equity line of credit.

ASSOCIATIONS: The National Tour Association selected Cheryl Ealy, former vice president of sales for the Quad Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau, as director of sales and sponsorship executive. Ealy is a long-time veteran to the travel and tourism industry. She joined the Quad Cities CVB in 1999, where she was responsible for the development and implementation of the sales programs. In 2001, Ealy qualified as a Certified Meeting Professional and later completed this designation specializing in the group/niche travel field. She previously worked as an account executive for three advertising agencies and held positions with several hotel and casinos where she was instrumental in developing the sales and marketing plans. Ealy's new duties at NTA include managing the sponsorship sales for the NTA Tour Operator Spring Meet and Annual Convention, as well as managerial oversight of advertising sales on NTA's official publications. The National Tour Association is an organization of nearly 4,000 tourism professionals from 20 countries representing the packaged travel industry.

CRUISES: Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. named Mike Sutten as vice president and chief information officer. In his new role, Sutten will be responsible for the company's 350 information technology employees and contractors, their annual budget and their operational support of the global cruise-vacation company. He will report to Jack Williams, president and chief operating officer. Sutten previously served as vice president of Royal Caribbean's Information Technology Development Group, responsible for all facets of software development and implementations throughout the company. He joined Royal Caribbean in June 2000. Previously, he was with Koch Industries as chief technology officer, and with Sybase Products Groups as director of middleware programs. He also worked with General Electric's Advanced Technology Labs and General Dynamics Electronics Systems...Lars Clasen, president of Carnival Corp. subsidiary Seetours, is leaving to return to Rostock-based Deutsche Seereederei (DSR). Michael Thamm, Seetours' senior vice president-operations, will become president on June 1. Seetours' Richard Vogel retains his position as senior vice president-marketing and sales. Clasen returns to DSR as second managing director and will become the company's number two behind shareholding managing director Horst Rahe. Clasen will also become a partner in DSR, which is currently 100 percent owned by the Rahe family. Rahe and Clasen will jointly lead DSR's future expansion and its portfolio of five operating units: Reederei Hansa, Arkona, Deutsche Immobilien, Interschalt and DSR Global Invest Services, in the segments of shipping, tourism, real estate, maritime and industrial services as well as financial services.

DESTINATIONS: Rossi Ralenkotter, currently executive vice president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), will succeed Manny Cortez as the LVCVA's president and CEO. Cortez, who has served as LVCVA's president since 1991, will retire July 2. Ralenkotter has been with the LVCVA since 1973.

HOTELS: Resorts International Hotel Inc. appointed Mark Lefever as senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer. Lefever replaces Joseph Weis, who has been named senior vice president and chief information officer for the company. Prior to joining Resorts, Lefever was with Trump 29 Casino, a Native American Casino located in Coachella, Calif., where he was general manager. Lefever also served as chief operating officer and chief financial officer with Wynn Resorts and The Desert Inn Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, and chief financial officer for the Sheraton Casino in Tunica County, Miss. Prior to joining Sheraton, Lefever was with Arthur Andersen in Roseland, N.J., where he was a member of the firm's gaming and hospitality team...As part of Younan Properties Inc.'s purchase of Dallas-based hotel management company Platinum Portfolio, Ltd., Platinum's founder and chairman, Peter Bheda, was named president and COO of Younan Hotels Group, reporting to Zaya Younan, chairman and CEO of Younan Properties. Younan Properties recently launched a new division of its firm, Younan Hotels Group, with the purchase of Holiday Day Inn Select, a 377-room, full-service hotel located in Dallas, which had been managed by Platinum Portfolio, Ltd. Bheda has more than 30 years' experience as a senior executive in the hospitality industry. As the founder and CEO of Platinum Portfolio, Ltd., he managed individual and multiple hotels both as general manager and vice president of operations. Prior to starting his own company, he was vice president of operations and development for Patriot American Hospitality and Wyndham International...Jameson Inns, Inc., a leading hotel company, and owner and operator of Jameson Inn and Signature Inn hotels, announced that W. David Vining has joined the company as vice president of marketing. Vining's hospitality background includes senior positions at Holiday Inn Worldwide and Days Inns of America. In addition, he led North America advertising at Compaq Computer Corporation. His technology marketing also includes E*Trade and Peachtree Software...Millennium Hotels and Resorts has appointed Dwayne Keller as regional director of group sales-North America, where he will be responsible for developing, promoting and driving group business to the U.S. hotels while working with all property director of sales, general managers and regional sales staff. Prior to joining Millennium, Keller served as director of global sales for Raffles International Hotels and Resorts for seven years. He also has held the posts of senior sales manager for the Renaissance Atlanta Downtown and sales manager for the Renaissance Houston...The Kor Hotel Group has named Jennifer Dowd as its first in-house public relations manager. The parent company of Viceroy Santa Monica, Viceroy Palm Springs, Avalon Hotel and Maison 140 has appointed Dowd to drive the publicity and promotional efforts of its growing hospitality portfolio. Dowd most recently served as the West Coast director of N.Y.-based public relations and marketing firm IT Management Global and as marketing director for L.A-based hospitality interior design firm Barry Design Associates. While based in New York she was the founder and owner of Plume Public Relations, a boutique firm specializing in the luxury, fashion and lifestyle arenas...Accor has appointed Francis Lee as director of sales-Japan. The move follows Accor's recent accelerated hotel growth in Japan. The group recently announced plans for the Mercure Hotel Ginza Tokyo, which will open later this year and join an existing network of seven Accor hotels in Japan, including the Sofitel Tokyo, Sofitel the Cypress Nagoya, Novotels in Yokohama and Koshien, a Mercure at Narita Airport and two Formule 1 hotels at Numazu and Isesaki.

TRAVEL AGENTS: TraveLeaders, a large regional travel agency based in Florida, announced that Sergio Barrera, owner and founder of Miami-based Business Travel Advisors, Inc., has joined the company as president of Latin America Division, effective June 1. The appointment follows last week's agreement by American Leisure Holdings (AMLH) to purchase the majority share of TraveLeaders. AMLH is now pleased to report that it has also entered a letter of intent to acquire an equity position in Business Travel Advisors, which will continue to operate independently under the direction of Yamile Barrera out of its current Doral office. With nearly four decades of leadership in travel, Barrera has a proved track record of successfully leading travel distribution companies including Business Travel Advisors, and International Great Resorts, a wholesale travel operation specializing in tour packages to Mexico and the Caribbean. Barrera also has an extensive background in the meetings and incentive travel arena. Olga Ramudo, TraveLeaders' former vice president, Latin America Division, plans to leave the company at the end of May.

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