Can I simply begin by wishing you a happy new year!
2020 was a year to remember for all the wrong reasons; a year that will have lasting memories for us and an immense impact on the lives of our children.
At Sunvil, doing our best to survive the year has saved us from many of the psychological impacts of the pandemic; yet the loss of Issy, our financial controller, to Covid in the spring of 2020 has left us all with memories of happier times.
I don’t think any of us believed, way back in March 2020, that January 2021 would leave us facing the same problems and it now looks as if the various lock-downs to which we are all subject will last for a further month or two. The vaccine has been the one ray of hope and certainly I cannot wait for my turn, which hopefully will be in February.
I have missed travel terribly over the last year. It is the loss of contact with our overseas colleagues that hurts the most and no amount of virtual access will make up for the lack of physical contact.
Personally, I face 2021 with much optimism and, judging by the number of bookings we have for the summer, it is clear that many of you share that optimism and our popular properties are already well sold. With the assurance that the vaccine programme has brought to many, it will be interesting to see how quickly confidence in travel will return in January and February.
Though the pandemic has brought our industry to its knees, I hope that we have learned the environmental lessons which had begun to plague tourism. Sunvil, along with many others in travel, will campaign for more control and common sense going forward and that the excesses of the previous 10 years will not be repeated.
There are all kinds of promises being offered in the market as we launch into 2021. After 50 years in this industry there are none that I haven’t heard before. Our own promise is to offer service with a human touch; fairness in our dealings with you; efficient communication; and, above all, a human voice at the end of the phone, because I am sure the ups and downs of travel during these difficult times will need understanding and flexibility.
I hope you will entrust us with your future holiday arrangements and good luck!
Noel Josephides, Chairman
