CLIA Cruise360 conference educational trip awarded to PRIDE Travel by Rocky Mountaineer and Fairmont Hotels to explore the wonders of Canada's Rockies

PRIDE Travel awarded educational trip at Cruise360 industry conference, consisting of 12 days through Canada's rocky mountains. First-hand trips and experience differentiates PRIDE Travel from the transactional and sales focus of other agencies. Owner & COO Samuel Nathan DePetris added, "We are not just sellers of travel; we are explorers and bring this level of expertise to our clients." End Quote

We are not just sellers of travel; we are explorers and bring this level of expertise to our clients.

Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA (1888PressRelease) May 16, 2009 - Earlier this month, PRIDE Travel was awarded an educational trip from attendance at the Cruise Line Industry Association's Cruise360 Industry conference seminars. The award consists of a 12 day journey through Canada's rocky mountain region on the amazing Rocky Mountaineer luxury train. PRIDE Travel's co-owners Marc R Kassouf and Samuel Nathan DePetris will explore the region in opulance aboard Rocky Mountaineer’s Gold Leaf service cars while staying in Fairmont historic hotel properties in Vancouver, Whistler, Banff, Lake Louise, and Jasper.

Elegant Canadian hospitality and exquisite service will be experienced first hand in order to better understand the details and nuances of this unique product for travel clients. Mr. Kassouf was quick to point that "this will be another amazing first hand reference we will have for our clients... we can provide so much more in terms of service and personalization once we have explored the destination and products ourselves". This approach, pervasively evident through all of PRIDE Travel's travel consultations and bookings, differentiates the company's custom tailored approach from the transactional and sales focused approach of most other agencies. Mr. DePetris estimates that he and Mr. Kassouf share an estimated 35 years of extensive first-hand travel experience worldwide, adding "We are not just sellers of travel; we are explorers and bring this level of expertise to our clients."

A group excursion of this Grand Circle journey, tentatively for the 2010 summer season, is planned, with details forthcoming. In the meantime, Mr Kassouf and Mr DePetris will be keeping a detailed travel journal to be shared with clients in a newsletter and posted on PRIDE Travel's website.

About PRIDE Travel

Pride Travel of Long Beach, California is a full service agency specializing in cruise, tour package, villa, and condo rentals. We also offer our community the full breadth of travel products and expertise. While we cater to the needs of Gays and Lesbians in the LGBTQ community, we are 'hetero friendly' and frequently book many individuals, couples, and families with children on trips and vacations worldwide. Pride Travel is an award-winning agency that has been recognized for our active participation and contributions to our local and LGBTQ communities. We also hold many travel industry certifications and accreditations, as well as official certification by destination and country visitor’s bureaus; we are active members and certified by the Travel Institute, the Cruise Line Industry Association, and the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association. For more details about our credentials, please visit our website at www.pridetravelonline.com and click on About Us or call at 562.432.3888.

About Rocky Mountaineer Vacations

Rocky Mountaineer offers unique Canadian vacation packages and four spectacular rail routes through British Columbia and Alberta. Best known for the world-acclaimed Rocky Mountaineer train, a two-day, all daylight rail journey through Canada’s West and the Canadian Rockies, the company also offers trips onboard the Whistler Mountaineer train, a daily three-hour experience between North Vancouver and Whistler, BC. Since its inception in 1990, the company has grown to become the largest privately owned passenger rail service in North America and welcomed its one millionth guest in 2008. In 2007, Rocky Mountaineer was honoured with the World Travel Award as "World’s Leading Travel Experience by Train" for the third consecutive year and named by National Geographic as one of the "World’s Greatest Trips."

About Fairmont Hotels

A leader in the global hospitality industry, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a celebrated collection of distinctive hotels, which includes iconic landmarks like Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Québec City, Kenya's Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club, and London's The Savoy. Fairmont hotels are one-of-a-kind properties where sophisticated travelers can discover culturally rich experiences that are authentic to the destination. Situated in some of the most exclusive and pristine areas in the world, Fairmont is committed to responsible tourism and is an industry leader in sustainable hotel management with its award-winning Green Partnership program. Fairmont's portfolio includes 56 world-class hotels, with plans to develop over 30 new properties in the coming years in destinations as diverse as Shanghai, The Philippines and India. For more information or reservations, please call 1-800-441-1414 or visit www.fairmont.com.

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