The Departures Hall at Malta International Airport now has a full service travel agency. 21st Century KD Travel, a joint venture between 21st Century Travel of St Julian’s and KD Travel of Sliema and Msida opened a Lufthansa City Centre in the Departures Lounge at MIA.
Welcome speeches were delivered by company directors Kenneth De Martino and David Abela, followed by Rainer Schäfer, CEO of Lufthansa City Centre International International GmbH from Frankfurt, and MIA CEO Julian Jaeger.
“21st Century KD Travel identified a new opportunity at the airport due to changes in the requirements of the travel industry,” Mr De Martino said. “Low cost airlines have assisted in the development of the market and opened up new opportunities for the Maltese traveller, and those resident in Malta or passing through, who want to book flights, accommodation and other travel requirements at the last minute.
“As a travel agency, we want to take advantage of this situation because the airport is becoming a destination in its own right – an airport city. All the airlines appreciate that airline seats have zero value the moment an aircraft takes off; similarly, hoteliers will be the first to admit that rooms that are not filled by noon of a given day also remain unsold.”
Mr Abela said: “The general perception is that many people are buying direct on the internet. Official statistics prove otherwise as 61% of passengers check the internet for information but eventually buy their tickets from a travel agency.
“This is because people like to talk to people and not to machines and trust the competence and professionalism of our staff. Also passengers prefer secure payment methods. Having a travel agency in this brilliant location will service the requirements of all passengers, whether residents of Malta or tourists.
“Although 21st Century KD Travel is a Lufthansa City Centre, passengers can purchase tickets on all the world’s airlines and book cruises, hotel accommodation and other travel services.”
Mr Schäfer expressed pride in being in a position to bring people together for both private and corporate reasons. He said the Lufthansa City Center franchise started with a single agency in Germany in 1991 and now extends to over 500 agencies in 90 locations in 80 countries across all the continents of the world.
The values of Lufthansa City Centre included high quality service, trust in the work done, great relations and all to the highest benefit of the customer.
Mr Jaeger said the opening of the first travel agency at MIA followed the re-organisation of the landside of the airport, the moving of security and the opening of a number of commercial outlets both at ground level and at lower ground level. These include a jewellery shop, optician, fashion and travel goods, and the food court.
The airport is becoming a destination attracting locals who are not just travelling and this follows trends in other airports worldwide.
21st Century KD Travel looks forward to working with MIA to develop the airport city concept along with the various other outlets at the airport. The agency will be open for long hours until 7pm from Monday to Friday and also will be open on weekends and public holidays to make sure it gives a quality service and to enable the last-minute concept to work in practice.
Not only will clients have the opportunity to go to the airport to see what last-minute offers are available, like weekend breaks or short trip availability, but clients of the two local agencies will be able to collect travel documents and/or other travel services they may need just prior to their departure from MIA.
Among those present at the launch were German Ambassador Karl Andreas Freiherr Von Stenglin and Malta Tourism Authority chairman Sam Mifsud.