Aer Lingus, in conjunction with Visit California, recently took a group of agents on an educational trip to California to mark the launch of the Aer Lingus direct service from Dublin to San Francisco.
Following a quick 10-hour flight to the west coast, the group stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel, where some drinks had to be sampled at the Top of the Mark …just to get a view of the city you know!
The group took an old town trolley tour of San Francisco and a tour around the Bay. After that quick stop in SF, it was off to Yosemite in convoy – think more Thelma & Louise than Driving Miss Daisy – followed by fantastic views on a tour around Yosemite National Park.
Be advised, however, that when the guides tell you to not leave your food out for animals to hunt/scavenge for…..that advice DOES apply to travel agents too! Melanie Squires and Jennifer Dinneen seemed to think otherwise and met a hungry raccoon during the night who took an open packet of pretzels from their bedroom.
The group participated in some wine tasting at Buena Vista vineyard and Paradise Ridge vineyard, before parking up at the Flamingo Resort in Santa Rosa. One more vineyard and wine tasting tour at Benziger Family Winery before the (less than) one-hour trip back to San Francisco and home, stopping to take in some wonderful views of the Golden Gate bridge along the way.
Look out for Aer Lingus upcoming promotions where travel agents can be in with chance to earn places on the following educational trips: 1. Destination New England in conjunction with Visit USA; 2. Orlando in conjunction with Orlando Flex Ticket – both trips will offer opportunities to travel from either Dublin or Shannon to the USA.
The group comprised Jennifer Dinneen (Abbey Travel); Caitriona Duffy (Cassidy Travel); Melanie Squires (BookaBed); Deirdre Sweeny (Sunway); Stephen Hutchinson (Barrhead Travel); Jill Maguire (American Sky); Denise Breen (American Holidays); Michelle Anderson (Topflight Worldwide); Sue Cahill (Travel Counsellors); James Mead (Visit California); Marie Moroney (World Travel Centre); Stephen Byrne (Club Travel); Sarah Moore (Trailfinders); and Ivan Beacom (Aer Lingus).
