Riviera Travel sales development manager Paul Mellon reports on his experience of visiting agents in store.

After two false starts last year, the opening of non-essential shops on the 12 April this year is hopefully the last time we will come out of lockdown and we can now return to some sort of normality.

Back in the summer, I wrote how it was great getting back out to see agents and that things were starting to look a little better. Nobody guessed we would be plunged back into not one, but two more lockdowns, so it was back to working from home.

This time, however, there is genuine belief that with the vaccine programme rolling on, we can get customers travelling again.

At Riviera, we’ve been keen to re-engage with our travel agent partners to update them on all the new products we have to offer. This includes our new small-ship, the 160 passenger MS Seaventure, and the introduction of the 190-passenger MV World Voyager, which will have three different itineraries for 2022, including two sailing from Portsmouth.

We also have a new river itinerary from Amsterdam to Cologne, along with our Riviera Plus product, offering added benefits for those on top deck cabins and suites.

As always, the field sales team and I at Riviera have made sure to check which agents are accepting shop visits and have been making appointments accordingly. We are following social distancing and sanitising rules.

There has been a difference this time visiting agents, with many saying their clients are more cautious than before about booking for the next few months and are therefore spending more time rebooking and refunding clients.

Being able to talk face-to-face with an agent (even behind a mask or a shield) has benefited both parties. Nothing beats speaking to our agent partners in person, offering assistance and building the strong relationships we have.

It’s good to be back doing the day job.