NEW YORK -- CTS Viaggi, the leading student and youth travel
company in Italy, opened an office in New York as part of a plan to
expand into the North American market.
Called CTS Travel USA, the New York office plans to appoint a
network of retail agents around the country to distribute its
packages and products, according to Cezary Cwintal, director of the
North American operation.
"If they're already selling to the student and youth travel
community, we'd love to hear from them," Cwintal said.
If not, "this might be a way for agents to increase their
revenue, if they want to get into something new and different."
CTS Travel USA will sell only through appointed agents, he said,
adding that details of the program are being finalized.
The new CTS office also will handle arrangements for incoming
business from the firm's operations in Europe, which include
offices in London and Paris as well as 148 retail locations in
Italy.
Cwintal has been in the industry here for 18 years, having held
executive-level jobs with a number of operators specializing in
central and eastern Europe.
CTS Viaggi's basic products include discounted air tickets, rail
passes, student and youth cards, language courses and
working-abroad programs.
The New York office also will market adventure travel and
ecotours and will handle land arrangements tailored to young
travelers and students, including packages for spring break.
Cwintal said the New York office expects to reach a first-year
volume of about $10 million.
CTS will mark the facility's opening with a series of special
package offers in the coming weeks.
"Student, youth and teacher travel is a very thriving niche in
our industry, and we're very pleased with 25 years of success in
our home market of Italy," said Roberto Corbella, managing director
of CTS Viaggi.
"We felt the time was right to build on our success by taking
advantage of the current long-term economic and demographic trends
in America," Corbella said.
"The booming growth and spending of the so-called Generation Y
offer an unprecedented opportunity with plenty of upside
potential."
CTS Viaggi is a member of the International Student Travel
Confederation, the Student Air Travel Association and the
Federation of International Youth Travel Organizations.
The company's home office has a Web site at www.cts.it, but Cwintal
said the new U.S. operation plans to build its own Web site for
this market. The address will be www.ctstravelusa.com.
CTS Travel USA is located at 350 Fifth Ave., Suite 7813, New
York.
Phone: (877) 287-6665 or (212) 760-1287
Fax: (212) 760-0022
E-mail: [email protected]