As the Australian holiday market begins to launch their Europe specials for 2012, Boronia Travel Centre, the ‘official travel agent’ to the Australian War Memorial, are advising Australian travellers to choose carefully when booking a tour package to the Gallipoli Battlefields.
Often people will conduct their initial search on the internet and see something that looks to be the best deal, but they haven’t factored in the right tour components that make a battlefield experience so special,” explains John Waller, CEO, Boronia Travel Centre.
“It might be the cheapest package available, although more often than not the tour guides are not qualified or have insufficient experience, the hotels are located far from the battlefield sites, or the tour lacks additional services such as locating family ancestors who fought in the war.
A better option for consumers is to investigate the battlefield tour guides “military history experience”, which Mr Waller advises “should be easily found on the website or brochure. A qualified historian should demonstrate a depth of knowledge that could educate and enhance the overall travel experience, and accompany the group throughout the entire tour.”
Boronia Travel Centre’s battlefield tours are designed and led by the Australian War Memorial’s curators and historians, and Mr Waller believes that “their tours are the most informative and in depth available. Their knowledge is unsurpassed and with the resources available to them can also assist with any family research.”
Another pitfall for the unwary consumer is the location of their hotel in relation to the battlefield site. Often they are located across the Dardanelles in Canakkale or further south, requiring several hours of travel time each day.
According to Mr Waller, “one of the great benefits of travelling with Boronia Travel Centre is that they are the only battlefield tour operator in Australia to spend six full days on the Peninsula, staying at an exclusive Turkish beach resort just minutes from Anzac Cove.”
Mr Waller further states that his team of travel consultants are “continually updating their knowledge of Gallipoli having travelled there annually are “ideally positioned” to meet our clients needs and travel requirements. “This is a real point of difference as many travel agents have never been to Gallipoli”.
And with a passion to provide both a commemorative and educational battlefield experience, Mr Waller concluded that staff “gain a sense of pride and satisfaction in creating tours that can touch the hearts of everyone involved, and which even become a personal pilgrimage for some”.
For more information visit:
www.boroniabattlefieldtours.com.au or call Boronia Travel Centre on 1800 035 350
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