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Ocean Holidays Signs a Further Two-year Deal with the O2, London

Last month the Ocean Holidays directors were delighted to announce that the company has extended its tenancy of suite #235 at the O2 Arena in Greenwich for two more years!!

Alongside our recent excellent news regarding the West Ham sponsorship deal, this is another fantastic opportunity for the company to grow its name and establish itself as one of the big players in the market – as well as offer staff, trade partners, friends and families the chance to witness some of the most fantastic events to grace our Capital!

Apprentice of the Year – Winner!

Our very own Michaela Gordon attended a lavish ceremony the Houses of Parliament in Central London on 20th July to receive her Apprentice of the Year Award from the Institute of Travel & Tourism.

This prestigious award is a unique opportunity for employers to reward their apprentice for hard work and dedication, not just to their job role, but to their NVQ qualification over 12 months. Michaela has excelled at Ocean Holidays, proving to be an integral part of the company and for that we are extremely proud – well done Michaela!

OCEAN HOLIDAYS SIGNS THREE-YEAR DEAL TO BECOME OFFICIAL TRAVEL SUPPLIER TO WEST HAM UNITED FOOTBALL CLUB

Ocean Holidays has signed a three-year partnership to become the official travel supplier for West Ham United Football Club.

The deal comes at an exciting time as the club prepares to move into its iconic new home stadium, previously used for the 2012 London Olympic games.

Ocean Holidays is run by two sets of brothers, Daniel and David Ox, and Harry and George Hastings. The award-winning company employs more than 150 people at its head-office in central Romford.

Harry Hastings, co-chief executive of Ocean Holidays, said: “We are thrilled to be supporting West Ham, our local premiership team, at this incredibly exciting time as they move into the London 2012 Olympic stadium.”

West Ham United’s vice-chairman Baroness Karren Brady CBE, said: “At a time when the club is expanding its global footprint, it is all the more important that we remain true to our roots. I am therefore delighted to be joining forces with a prominent local business, while continuing to grow the club’s international reach.

“On behalf of all at West Ham United, I would like to welcome Ocean Holidays on board and I hope this is the start of a very successful relationship over the coming years.”

Ocean Holidays’ brands, Ocean Florida, Ocean California and luxury division Winged Boots, specialise in tailor-made travel to destinations all over the world. Its travel experts will be able to assist the club in ensuring all travel arrangements are hassle-free, meaning the players are able to perform to their best ability on the pitch.

Daniel Ox, Ocean Holidays’ co-chief executive, added: “This is a landmark partnership for Ocean Holidays, one that we are confident will allow us to take the business to the next level, proving that businesses like ours are still investing post-Brexit.”

George Hastings, managing director of Ocean Florida, commented: “Ocean Florida is Europe’s largest independent Florida specialist. This, coupled with West Ham’s family-friendly policy, makes this a perfect match.”

The partnership forms an important part of Ocean Holidays’ strategy to broaden its reach. As part of the agreement, Ocean Holidays will be screening Ocean Florida’s debut TV advertisement on the new stadium’s two huge indoor digital screens, the largest in any European football stadium, and the group has access to exclusive hospitality at home games. The partnership also means Ocean Holidays will be offering exclusive travel deals to supporters, players and staff across social media channels, via the West Ham website, the match-day programme and the Ocean Florida site.

Ocean Holidays’ luxury division, Winged Boots, is also set to benefit from the partnership. David Ox, managing director of Winged Boots, commented: “We started out 14 years ago by organising bespoke trips for footballers and discerning city workers, and so this deal is a perfect fit for us.

“We’re looking forward to entertaining key contacts, customers and suppliers at this fabulous new ground. The team at Winged Boots will also be taking care of the travel arrangements for the team for overseas pre-season friendly matches, and mid-season warm weather training.”

To follow West Ham United FC this season,
visit their websitetwitter or Facebook pages.

For more media information contact:
Ocean Holidays: Louise Prior, louise@priorpr.com 07786 227572

About Ocean Holidays

Ocean Holidays was established in 2004 by two sets of brothers. It is privately-owned, and has been on a 50% growth path since 2012. Ocean Holidays has sent more than 250,000 holidaymakers overseas in the past 10 years.

Ocean Holidays’ headquarters in Romford, Essex comprises four distinct brands; Ocean Florida, Europe’s largest independent Florida holiday specialist; Winged Boots, a bespoke travel and hospitality specialist; Ocean California, specialist in complex itineraries to the West Coast of the USA; and, Ocean Beds, the largest wholesaler of Florida vacation homes to the global travel trade and based out of Kissimmee, Central Florida.

Current and recent accolades for the company and the management team in 2016 include:

  • The Business Ambassador Award for job creation in Florida presented by the Governor of Florida, Rick Scott in July 2016
  • Winner of the 2016 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award at the Travel and Hospitality British Hall of Fame ceremony in April 2016
  • Various awards and nominations from the Institute of Travel & Tourism and National Apprentice awards for services to employing apprentices aged 16 – 21
  • Nominated in the British Travel Awards as USA Tour operator of the year and Self-catering specialist of the year as Ocean Florida as well as luxury tour operator of the year as Winged Boots
  • Nominated as Tour Operator of the year in The Sun Travel awards

About West Ham

West Ham United is an East London based football club and a member of the Premier League. The new stadium is homed within the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford and has a capacity of 60,010, allowing West Ham to boast the highest number of season ticket holders in London. The new stadium stands adjacent to Westfield Stratford City, one of the largest shopping centres in Europe.

What ATOL Protection Means For You

In light of the recent announcement regarding the Low Cost Holidays Group, we just wanted to reassure and remind you that Ocean Holidays are ATOL protected (T7523) and supported by the Travel Trust Association (U0898). This means that any booking made through Ocean Holidays, including Ocean Beds, Ocean Florida, Ocean California and Winged Boots is 100% secure.

The importance of ATOL protection needs to be highlighted now more than ever. Did you know that if you book with a company who aren’t ATOL protected you could be stranded abroad or lose your money should anything go wrong? ATOL protection means you’ll be able to continue your holiday as planned or receive a full refund if you haven’t already travelled.

It’s easy to check if the company you want to book with is ATOL protected. Look out for the following logo in brochures, advertisements and on websites.

Each ATOL protected company will have a unique ATOL number which you can check over at www.packpeaceofmind.co.uk.

If you’ve booked through the Low Cost Holidays Group, our team of Travel Specialists are on hand to help re-book or re-protect your holiday so you don’t have to miss out.

Discover more about ATOL protection in the video below…

Ocean Beds and the wider Ocean Holidays Family is featured in the Travel Trade Gazette (TTG)!

Our very own Co-CEO Harry Hastings was interviewed by Katherine Lawrey of the TTG about the exciting developments in the Florida rental home market. Read the whole article below about how Ocean Beds proudly offers exact homes as well as allocation on arrival as one of the biggest receptive tour operators in the UK and USA. Read the full TTG article below:

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Ocean Holidays Enters Travel Hall Of Fame

Ocean Holidays co-founder, Harry Hastings was crowned 2016 Young Entrepreneur of the Year at the Travel and Hospitality Hall Of Fame. The company has firmly secured its place amongst leading brands, innovative thinkers and hard grafters in the travel industry with its first award of 2016.

The Young Entrepreneur of the Year title celebrates the enviable success achieved by the Ocean Holidays umbrella, under which Ocean Florida, Ocean California, Winged Boots and Ocean Beds trade.

It began in 2004 with Ocean Florida, a tour operator specialising in villa holidays to the Sunshine State. Since then, the five directors – George and Harry Hastings, David and Daniel Ox and Chris Ford have focused on USA and luxury travel and have grown Ocean Holidays to include a California specialist (Ocean California), a luxury tour operator (Winged Boots) and a receptive tour operator (Ocean Beds).

Hastings said: We saw an opportunity to focus on high-volume holidays to Florida and grabbed it. Since then we’ve grown our expertise and built an incredible team dedicated to bespoke USA and luxury itineraries

Ocean Holidays has a growth goal of 300% and a passenger total of 100,000 per year by 2020. Winning this award is a big step in building the company’s recognition and increasing its customer base across all four brands.

Hastings now sits in the Hall Of Fame amid legends of Florida travel, Sir Richard Branson and the late Sir Freddie Laker. Previous winners of the Young Entrepreneur Award also include Chris Loughlin of Travelzoo, Cheapflights’ Hugo Burge, Attraction Tickets Direct’s Oliver Brendon and Renaldo Scheepers, of A2B Travel Extras.

Ocean California Has Arrived!

We are extremely pleased and excited to announce that we have now launched the fourth brand that sits under the Ocean Holidays umbrella.
www.ocean-california.co.uk

Ocean California is a dedicated California travel specialist that sells some of the best itineraries, hotels and destinations across Golden State, from the outdoor experiences of Yosemite to the cool downtown nightlife of San Francisco. Our experienced travel experts are on-hand to help individuals, couples, families and friends plan their dream California getaway!

Ocean Florida #STAYWITHUS TV Ad

We are very excited to release the Ocean Florida #STAYWITHUS TV ad. The advert launched on Ocean Florida’s website and social media channels on Tuesday, 20th January, and featured on TV from Wednesday, 21st January on Sky 1

Featuring the strapline: ‘Stay with us and we’ll stay with you,’ we aimed to reinforce the message that a Florida villa will leave families with ever lasting memories that they’ll want to share for a lifetime.

Harry Hastings, Ocean Florida’s Joint Managing Director, said, “Our Kissimmee villas provide a great base for a Florida holiday close to Walt Disney World Resort. They’re also perfect for those wanting to combine the parks with Florida’s beaches on a multi-centre holiday. With more than 10 years of sending holidaymakers to Kissimmee, we are very excited to be on UK national TV for the first time with our #STAYWITHUS campaign. We are really proud to be continuing to showcase everything this fantastic destination has to offer.”

Watch our TV ad below: