Seatrade Cruise News is part of the Informa Markets Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.

Former NCL exec spearheads Traveltek's Americas expansion

516b372b73ca8dfe956e203346e92a37
Francis Riley's Americas team will promote Traveltek’s dynamic travel and cruise packaging technology
UK-based Traveltek Group appointed cruise industry veteran Francis Riley to lead its ambitious expansion strategy in the Americas.

The former SVP international sales, marketing and operations at Norwegian Cruise Line, signed on with the global travel technology specialist as SVP sales, based at the company’s US headquarters in Miami.

Riley is joined by three new US-based sales executives with cruise and leisure experience who will support Traveltek’s business development drive in North and South America, with more appointment announcements imminent.

Under Riley’s guidance, the company’s Americas team will promote Traveltek’s dynamic travel and cruise packaging technology. This web-based technology enables agencies and tour operators to package and sell complex itineraries that include flights, hotels, tours, transfers, car rental, cruises, attractions tickets and more.

'Traveltek is well placed to capitalise on growing demand for technology solutions in the North and South American travel markets with its vast portfolio of advanced tools allowing agents, tour operators and cruise specialists to customise holiday packages according to their customers’ unique requirements,' Riley said.

Besides his long association with NCL, Riley held senior positions across several continents with Thomas Cook, British Airways and Tourico Holidays.

Before Traveltek, he was responsible for sales, operations, passenger services and marketing for Europe, Middle East and Africa at NCL, as well as overseeing the company’s UK headquarters in Southampton, its European offices in Wiesbaden and Malta and its international consumer marketing operation in Miami, covering Latin America, Asia and Australia.

The three new business development managers joining Riley’s team are Ivonne Turcios and Yenedi Perez, both to be based at Traveltek’s Miami office, and Clarice Bongolan, who will be responsible for driving US West Coast sales from the company’s Los Angeles office.

Bongolan is a former luxury travel adviser at Kontiki Tours in Los Angeles, Perez most recently worked for Cruise & Tours Center and Doral Travel and, before that, NCL in Miami, and Turcios was a new business development manager at Amadeus in Miami.

Traveltek is growing its global footprint with other new regional offices recently established in the Middle East (Dubai) and Asia (Hong Kong and Singapore).