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Displaying items by tag: ITAA Travel Awards

29th January 2018

MSC Cruises: 'Best Main Stream Cruise Company' at Irish Travel Industry Awards

#CruiseLiners – The cruise and ferry industries were among those gathered at the annual Irish Travel Industry Awards held in association with Aer Lingus.

The prestigious gala awards of the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) ceremony took place recently in the Mansion House, Dublin, where more than 500 travel and tourism professionals from around the world attended. Adding to the glamour, broadcaster, Miriam O’Callaghan was this year's Master of Ceremonies.

Among the big winners on the night from the cruise and ferry industries, were MSC Cruises that was awarded ‘Best Main Stream Cruise Company’. This category has been dominated by Miami USA based, Royal Caribbean since the awards were inaugurated in 2011. The Italian founded Mediterranean Shipping Company are a global cruise operator based in Switzerland. 

Irish Ferries took the title for ‘Best Ferry Company’ which Afloat adds is the eight-consecutive year that the Dublin based transport shipping company has won this award. Voting in this category of the annual ITAA awards that began also eight years ago, were cast by travel agents and their staff from across Ireland.

In the overall ITAA awards, Manning Travel, who are based in Kilkenny, won the title of ITAA Travel Agency of Year 2018 with under ten employees, whilst Tour America was crowned the ITAA Travel Agency of Year 2018 with over ten employees. Both of the winning agencies were praised for their stand-out customer service, their first-rate expertise and the wide range of travel options available to customers.

The annual event is designed to showcase excellence within the industry and the difficult job of judging the Member Award Winners falls to an independent panel of judges, chaired by Bill Smith. Supplier Award Winners were voted upon by Irish travel agents.

The awards are an initiative of the ITTA in association with Aer Lingus, and supported by Travelsavers, Travelcentres and Worldchoice. 

Listed below are the award winners exclusively from those of the cruise and ferry industries.

CRUISE & FERRY CATEGORY - SPONSORED BY TURKISH AIRLINES

BEST MAIN STREAM CRUISE COMPANY
MSC Cruises

BEST PREMIUM CRUISE COMPANY
Celebrity Cruises

BEST SPECIALIST CRUISE COMPANY (INCLUDING RIVER)
Uniworld River Cruises

BEST ULTRA LUXURY CRUISE COMPANY
Silversea Cruises

BEST FERRY COMPANY
Irish Ferries

SUPPLIER STAFF / TRAVEL MEDIA CATEGORY - SPONSORED BY IRELAND WEST AIRPORT

BEST SUPPLIER SUPPORT TEAM
MSC Cruises

BEST SUPPLIER REPRESENTATIVE
Rebecca Kelly - MSC Cruises

For further information on the ITAA click their website here.

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15th January 2017

Cruise & Ferry Finalists: Irish Travel Industry Awards 2017

Hurtigruten's 'Milleninnium' class Norwegian coastal voyages cruiseship Trollfjord that can also take cars. The 2002 built vessel made a promotional call to Dun Laoghaire Harbour early in her career.

#Awards&Shows – The Irish Travel Industry Awards ceremony is to take place in Dublin on 26 January in the historic surroundings of the Round Room of the Mansion House.

The annual awards are an initiative of the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) with the support of Worldchoice and Travelsavers. The awards are the premier awards for suppliers and travel agents in Ireland.

Among the many categories are the ITAA Supplier Finalists representing the Cruise (ship: Magellan) industry and Ferry sectors. They along with each category are listed below:

Best General Cruise Company:

Celebrity Cruises
Fred Olsen Cruise Lines
MSC Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line
Royal Caribbean International

Best Ultra Luxury Cruise Company:

Azamara Club Cruises
Celebrity Cruises
Silversea Cruises

Best Specialist Cruise Company (including River):

Hurtigruten
Riviera Travel
Silversea Cruises
Uniworld River Cruises

Best Ferry Company:

Brittany Ferries
Doolan 2 Aran Ferries
Irish Ferries
Stena Line

Afloat also takes this opportunity to highlight the annual public Holiday World Show's which too are to be held this month as detailed below.

Jan 20-22 2017 Holiday World. Titanic Exhibition Centre, Belfast

Jan 27-29 2017 Holiday World, RDS Simmonscourt, Dublin

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28th January 2016

Travel Experts Award Ferry Company for Sixth Successive Year

#FerryAward - Voted Ireland’s Best Ferry Company 2016 for the 6th year in succession was Irish Ferries at the Irish Travel Industry Awards (ITAA) held recently in the Mansion House, Dublin.

An initiative of the ITAA, the award in the category of Ferry & Cruise was presented to the company on foot of votes cast by Irish travel agents and suppliers.

Accepting the award, Irish Ferries head of passenger sales Dermot Merrigan thanked travel agents for their support, adding: ‘Irish Ferries is extremely honoured that our efforts to provide the highest possible level of service continue to be recognised, not only by our industry but especially by some of the hardest workers in it – our travel agents.'

The award follows the 'Best Ferry Company 2015' title awarded to the operator at the Irish Travel Trade News Awards in November.

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26th January 2015

Cruise & Ferry Winners of ITAA Industry Travel Awards 2015

Cruise & Ferry Winners of ITAA Industry Travel Awards 2015

#TravelWinners – Celebrity Cruise along with Irish Ferries were among the winners at the Irish Travel Agents Association's Industry Travel Awards 2015 held recently in Dublin's Mansion House.

The premier travel awards presented by Miriam O'Callaghan during a Gala Diner included the category of Cruise & Ferry which was sponsored by the Port of Cork Company.

Below are the four sub-category winners:

Best General Cruise Company: Royal Caribbean International

Best Ultra Luxury Cruise Company: Celebrity Cruises

Best Specialist Cruise Company: Uniworld

And the fourth and final award for Best Ferry Company went to Irish Ferries

In the category for Agency Services Provider sponsored by Travelbiz.ie, the following sub-category awards included those from the Cruise Industry.

Best Supplier Support Team: MSC Cruises

Best Supplier Representative: Rebecca Kelly – MSC Cruises

For a complete listing of all categories and links to photo-presentations.

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Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

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