Great Britain ranks first as this year's most popular destination for European tours and vacation packages, with Italy and France behind in second and third place, respectively. So says the United States Tour Operators Association, a respected grouping of the best American-based companies sending people like you and me abroad. And among top European cities and regions, London placed first, a combo of Italian cities and areas second, Paris coming in third. Part of the reason is the British Tourist Authority's fantastic campaign to bring Britain back from the Foot-and-mouth disease some months back, and to recover from the effects of September 11th as well.
The total number of inquiries to BTA in the USA nearly doubled during 2001 compared to 2000. Phone calls went down, Internet inquiries rose by more than 160% over the year before.
So the Brits have decided to anticipate your needs, and have set up an innovative text chat link on their site, www.travelbritain.org. Here, you can have live, text-based conversations with the BTA travel experts on any subject you wish. The BTA says it believes it is the first national tourist office in the USA to use this kind of technology.
On the site, you get an interactive link to make simultaneous contact with travel consultants, who are able to guide you through the pages as well as to provide additional information or advice. In addition, visitors to the web site can sign up for a customized monthly e-newsletter, called "Britain Your Way," featuring information pertinent to their specific travel plans based on interests they have selected. Go to www.travelbritain.org/yourway.
By clicking on the Live Chat icon on the home page, you can get in touch with the experts during regular business hours, which are as follows:
Phone the BTA at 877/899-8391 weekdays between 9 and 6 daily (Eastern Time). On the Web site mentioned above, click on Live Chat. If you want to walk in, visit the New York office at 551 Fifth Avenue (701) at 45th Street, daily from 9 to 6. In Chicago, the Britain Visitor Center is at 625 North Michigan Avenue (1001), 9 to 5 weekdays. You can also e-mail the BTA travel center in New York at travelinfo@bta.org.uk.