Let us give you your time back.
We are Personal Travel Consultants
Fully ABTA and ATOL Protected
ABTA No:K9413
Happy Weekend everyone. Not long before you can book your Disney Dining and Dinks Package with Disney. 18th April will soon be here. Register your interest with us by messaging us and we will get on the case as soon as the 18th Arrives.
Passport Price Increase
🌎 ATTENTION ❗️
Passport prices are increasing on Thursday 11th April 2024 🌎
Here’s are the new application fee changes that will take effect.
Act NOW to Save Money!
Standard Online applications 🛜
👉 Adult: £82.50 to £88.50 (+£6)
👉 Child: £53.50 to £57.50 (+£4)
Standard Postal applications ✉️
👉Adult: £93 to £100 (+£7)
👉 Child: £64 to £69 (+£5)
Fast track (one-week service) 🏃♀️ 💨
👉Adult: £155 to £166.50 (+£11.50)
👉 Child: £126 to £135.50 (+£9.50)
Premium (same-day service) ⭐️
👉Adult: £193.50 to £207.50 (+£14)
(Not applicable for children)
Do you go with a travel agent/consultant or do it alone. Two stories to help you make your mind up.
Story 1
A family man has booked their family holiday going to Europe with his Family including a 8 month of child. They had booked everything 8 months before travel as the price was good. 5 Months to go the flights have been cancelled, so holiday will be cancelled. What to do? Nothing this was a booking with ourselves. We knew this was cancelled and so did some options for the Family to get their holiday back on track. We came up with the three options that are available – (1) Full Refund as we are ABTA and ATOL Registered – (2) Change holiday to another location and if more then will have to pay the extra – (3) Change to the holiday to another day to leave. We got the answers to these then phoned the Client to make them aware of the cancellation and to offer the support of someone having their holiday cancelled. We had prices for the options listed above and within Half an hour they had decided to leave two days after their original date they planed to go and managed to get the holiday £50 cheaper for them. Again we did everything and then just sent them the confirmation of the holiday change and done all the phone calls and paperwork for the client. This is the service that we expect to provide you.
Story 2
Had a client who wanted to go somewhere exotic and, on a budget, and limited on the dates that they can travel. Booked a Holiday to the fantastic Island of Mauritius. Everything was paid for and 6 days before travel the flight again was cancelled. We as the travel agent/consultant was on our own holiday when we got the news of this. We then called the company that we had used for the holiday to discuss options. This was not as easy as there were fewer flights out there and also different company policies. It took us some time to liaise with all involved due to us being in another far away country but after 5 Days of phone calls and discussions with Clients along with a number of options to them we managed to sort out their holiday and they went a day later and was given the difference in price back to them. The clients were happy as they had confidence in that we would get their holiday sorted and they spoke to us for around 5 mins to us whilst we done all the work which amounted to over 10 hours of phone calls. Another happy customer and shows the level of service expected of us (even when on holiday ourselves)
You hear of horror stories of people having to sort their own holidays out when they get cancelled and at times loose a lot of money and ruin their holiday plans. This is a big risk when booking a holiday through some companies and the customer service they offer is really poor. If booking everything separately or with some companies, you don’t have that ABTA protection either and so again a big risk of losing money as you have no protection there. Also as shown above the time that it takes to sort issues out is not just a quick phone call, using an agent/consultant they do all the calls and so give you all that time back. It does not just stop there. Issues at airports and whilst on holiday happen. Again, when this happens you contact your consultant/agent, and they should be able to overcome these issues for you. Its amazing what they can do from anywhere in the world. Here at Ohana Travel you have the emergency numbers of issues by the tour operators and companies that we use but we go even further and everyone who travels with us also gets a further emergency number directly to ourselves, so you are never alone when travelling.
So, when looking at booking your next holiday decide how much is your holiday worth in your time and money. Most holidays do go to plan, but it is when something goes wrong how much is that worth!!!
Hope everyone had a great Easter. If you wished you were away then make sure you book your holiday for next eater with us. Enjoy the rest of the week.
Check out our new facebook group Ohana Florida. Here you can chat ask questions and also look at the information that is on this site to either get excited or prepare for your next Florida Holiday. This is a friendly group and welcome people to ask questions, let everyone know of their experiences and more. Come and join and see some of the offers we have posted on this page as well.
Check out our new page in our offers section. We will bringing offers from the well known brands to show our prices in comparison to their public sites. Give us a call and see what price we can offer you.
Birmingham looks set to be the first major UK airport to allow passengers to carry more than 100ml off liquid in their hand-luggage after installing new 3D security scanners.
The airport is the only major gateway in the UK to confirm it is on track to roll out the new scanners for all passengers by the Government’s deadline of 1 June.
While other major airports such as Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Glasgow have already swapped some of their old scanners for the new technology, Birmingham is the only one so far to guarantee 3D scanners will be used for all passengers from June.
It will mean that passengers flying from the airport won’t need to remove large electronic gadgets like laptops and tablets from their hand luggage, and they’ll be able to carry liquids in bottles of up to two litres.
Birmingham Airport CEO Nick Barton said: “Birmingham Airport has invested £60m in a new security hall and scanning equipment. From the 1 June our customers will start to see the benefits of the new security systems as we roll them out which will result in a speedier, simpler pre-flight security screening process for our customers.”
London City Airport and Teesside Airport were the first UK airports to fully install the new scanners and scrap the 100ml rules, but they are much smaller than Birmingham, which handled more than 11m passengers last year. London City saw 3.4m travellers pass through in 2023, while Teesside’s figures sat close to 200,000.
EasyJet this week launched its first flights from Birmingham, from where it is operating to 16 destinations, nine of which will be served year-round.
Heathrow – which has 146 security lanes – said it is investing more than £1bn in new scanners but is yet to give a date for completion.
Gatwick said it has made ‘significant progress’ in installing 3D scanners in both terminals, and plans to have its rollout completed by the first quarter of 2025.
London Luton Airport told us that it is ‘continuing to work towards the June deadline’ but didn’t confirm it will have all the scanners in place by then.
Likewise, Manchester, East Midlands and Stansted airports are currently rolling out the new technology and expect the full programme to be completed by 2025, but they’ve given no set date.
Edinburgh Airport also confirmed it will have a number of new scanners in place by June, with the remainder by the end of the year. Glasgow Airport said it is working on the changes, but did not give specific completion dates.
Birmingham is reminding passengers that until 1 June they must comply with existing hand luggage rules, and even after that date, they should check the latest hand luggage rules for all airports on their itinerary when packing for a trip.
In Europe, it is a similar picture to the UK with airports gradually adding technology with trial lanes in place in many destinations. As far as popular tourist spots go, Majorca’s Palma Airport is expected to be ready by the end of 2024 and Malaga in 2025.
ABTA has written to the Government ahead of this year’s Budget to set out its priorities for the industry, including offering business rate support for retail stores.
Writing to the Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, ABTA has said its submission ‘emphasises the importance of outbound travel and tourism to the UK economy, and the popularity of overseas holidays with the public’.
ABTA added with a General Election expected within a year, it was important to represent the industry.
The letter includes a focus on business rates support for retail businesses, as many are still paying off COVID debts and facing higher operational costs.
It also calls for a review of the UK’s regulatory, taxation, and business support frameworks to help the industry’s transition to net zero and ‘ensure the UK is best placed to maximise associated job creation and economic opportunities’.
ABTA Director of Public Affairs Luke Petherbridge said: “It is always important to press home the policies which will help our sector to thrive, ahead of any Budget. But with a General Election certain in the next 12 months, it’s important to strongly represent travel and tourism both now and throughout the year.
“Our Budget submission is one of the many ways in which ABTA will be speaking with politicians across the political spectrum, to help realise our sector’s potential for growth and contribution to the UK economy.”
The spring Budget will take place on 6 March.
Aviation Minister Anthony Browne has promised an update on ATOL reform later this year.
Speaking to industry figures last night (Tuesday) at an event to celebrate 50 years of the ATOL scheme, he explained the Department of Transport (DfT) was working with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and all stakeholders to assess the options of the reform.
He said: “The sector does not stand still and ATOL reform will explore new ways to protect travellers.
“We will provide an update later this year on the reform.”
Earlier this month the CAA confirmed there would be a delay to the reform as it did not consult on final proposals at the end of last year as planned, saying the work is complex and it needs ‘more time to get it right’.
Anthony Browne was joined at the event held at the Speaker’s House at the Palace of Westminster by the Speaker of the House Sir Lindsay Hoyle and CAA Chair Sir Stephen Hillier.
Sir Stephen added the ATOL scheme will continue to serve as long as it ‘continues to adapt’ to rising consumer expectations.
“Yes there has been some delay, but it’s important we get it right,” he explained.
We are Travel Consultants using over 400 different suppliers and are part of the Not Just Travel Group, which is associated with Hays Travel. We are fully ABTA and ATOL protected, so you know you are in safe hands with us. We provide a friendly and professional service so all your travel needs are considered and met, and we go above and beyond the service you get from many other Travel Agents.
We work with a large quantity of suppliers such as TUI, JET2, Kuoni, Sandals, Royal Caribbean, P&O Cruises, Emirates Holidays to name just a few. There are many other tour operators that we use that are only accessible to the trade and again we have access to these along with all the wonderful offers that they bring with them,
Being part of the Not Just Travel Group we have a 5* Rating on Trustpilot.
Whether you're looking for a cruise, plane tickets, accommodation, or want a tour we have you covered. Simply tell us where you want to go and what you would like to do, and we'll get the holiday for you. We work directly with other companies to get the best deals. Once the holiday is booked it does not end there. We keep in contact with you to answer any questions and whilst you are away, we will provide you with an emergency number to text or call if there are any issues with the holiday. That way we can also be in contact with the suppliers should there be any issues. When you return we will make sure that contact is made to welcome you home.
We provide all the services expected and more, including insurance, event tickets and sporting event tickets. If you want to fly by private jet then this can be arranged, or should you want a private yacht then again we can facilitate this. If you want to hire a Lamborghini in Dubai for a day or two, we can make this happen too!
While working with us, we want you to be completely happy with the experience. If you have questions about us, our services or our products get in touch! We hope you continue to book with us for many years to come. We are rated 5* on Trustpilot.
Hi I am Darren and I am in my late forties now, nearly pushing on Fifty. In that time I have enjoyed many different holidays and experiences and have been married to Cath now for 8 years. We got married in Antigua and it was our dream wedding. I have helped a number of friends and family over the years book their dream holidays and I am now doing this for a living, as I want people to enjoy their holiday and relax from the moment that they contact Ohana Travel and give them the best service for holidays that they can get.
Something personal about me is that I enjoy many different hobbies, including but not limited to, going on holiday, anything aviation wise, fishing and watching movies.
My biggest thing is my family, and between Cath and me, we have four wonderful children, the youngest being 9 years old and the eldest now 21 years old. This is why I wanted to call our business Ohana as it means family and we would very much like to welcome you into it with the care and attention all families have.
Hi, I'm Cath, the other side of the partnership! Like Darren, I absolutely love my holidays, and have always been the one in my previous job that people would come to for advice about going on holiday. I feel extremely honoured that I can do this as a job now, and make other people's holidays as happy as mine!
As Darren said, apart from holidays, my family is my life, so I love spending as much time with them as I can, and getting involved with whatever their latest interests are! I love horse riding, and swimming, and when time allows, I enjoy going to the gym, but not for anything too intense these days!
As anyone who knows me will tell you, I also love cats, and have far too many of them, but as I like to say, there is no such thing as too many cats!
Being a mum to kids and cats, and working in my previous job for over 19 years looking after people, means that Customer Care is my main priority. I genuinely want people to have the best holiday ever, as I think they deserve that. Dream big, and we will make it happen for you!