THOMAS Cook Sport has appointed Bonvo Travel as the official travel agent partner in Singapore for its suite of English Premier League (EPL) Match Break packages.
As part of the deal, Bonvo will offer Singapore-based Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur fans the chance to watch live EPL home matches for the duration of the 2012-13 season.
Match Breaks, which typically include match tickets, overnight accommodation, match day programme and a stadium tour, will be rolled out for Manchester United games first. Packages to catch the other EPL clubs live will be added over the next three months.
Bonvo and Thomas Cook will work together to secure transfers and accommodation for guests, while Bonvo will oversee other relevant ground arrangements. Both Bonvo and Thomas Cook are expecting the average Singapore customer to stay for at least six days.
According to Joachim Steffen, managing director of Bonvo Travel’s parent company, Q Lifestyle, some 280 Match Breaks were sold via the Thomas Cook Sport website to Singaporeans in 2011.
“The (sports tourism) market is growing consecutively in Asia year-on-year. Coming to Asia is a whole new undertaking for Thomas Cook Sport, and we hope to be able to extend Match Breaks to fans across the region,” said Huw Wigley, business development manager, Thomas Cook Sport.
Wigley added that expansion to China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea was on the cards.
In addition, packages to view live cricket, rugby, Wimbledon matches and Formula One races will be introduced at a later stage. Plans to target incentive groups are also in the pipeline.
