Who’s your holiday hero?
Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Living Seas Centre Manager, Flamborough
Ant channels his passion for the marine environment at the trust’s flagship visitor site on a headland surrounded by nature – from puffins to whales and rare migratory birds to the South Landing beach.
At the forefront of national marine conservation, Ant’s duties include designing education programmes for visiting schools, encouraging public rockpooling, beach cleans and shoreline surveys, and sourcing locally produced and ethically made items.
He also manages a pop-up visitor centre up the coast at Boggle Hole and has received positive feedback from schools, teachers and visitors. Visitor Experience Assistant, Brunel’s SS Great Britain, Bristol
Diagnosed with Asperger’s as a child, Ryan has developed the confidence to give tours and greet visitors. His positive and inspiring attitude touches everyone and he is frequently mentioned in the visitor book and on TripAdvisor reviews. When a group of adults with learning difficulties visited, Ryan said he had Asperger’s and the leader expressed how valuable that interaction had been.
Consistently generating new ideas, his work also inspires colleagues – a speech to the entire workforce resulted in a standing ovation (and tears!). CEO and Administrator, QuirkyAccom.com, London
Established eight years ago, this small online firm run by Jess offers a specialist directory of quirky holiday accommodation. Built upon her passion for independent travel and a desire to challenge people to never settle for an ordinary holiday again, her ongoing role is to manage and inspire her team to extend and improve the property directory, stay ahead of trends, and provide free specialist advice to property owners to optimise their popularity.
She gives all of her profits to charities, raising £100,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support, Rainbow Trust, Friends of the Earth, Kidney Research UK and Right to Play UK. ■ British Airways ‘jumbo retro’ has taken to the skies.
The flag carrier has painted a Boeing 747 in the livery of its predecessor British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) as part of the celebrations to mark its centenary.
Its forerunner company, Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited (AT&T), launched the world’s first daily international scheduled air service between London and Paris in August 1919.
The livery was on the BOAC fleet between 1964 and 1974 and the jumbo headed first to New York City and back before entering general service on BA’s 747-operated routes.
The aircraft (reg: G-BYGC) can be monitored on online flight trackers which will feature a special image of the livery, which will remain on the plane until it retires in 2023.
By then, BA aims to have retired the majority of its 747 fleet, replacing them with new jetlag-busting state-of-the-art long-haul aircraft such as Airbus A350s and Boeing 787 Dreamliners. ba.com ■ Travellers with hidden disabilities are getting a helping hand with a new scheme from Virgin Atlantic.
Sir Richard Branson’s airline says research reveals that 19% of people have a disability which makes flying difficult and they are introducing systems to make it accessible to all.
There will be extensive training for staff and a free identifier badge to get help from the Virgin Atlantic Special Assistance team.
They can arrange for travellers to be escorted through the airport, have access to priority boarding and reserve seating where necessary.
virginatlantic.com