Written on 20^th June 2018

Michael McIntyre Tour: Travel Companions

After smashing a world record in 2009 for his first sell-out comedy tour undertaking the most dates in UK arenas - Michael McIntyre went on to become one of Britain’s most popular TV comedians, and his rise to fame soon went global. Almost a decade on from his initial foray into arena performances, McIntyre’s crew remains largely the same. After all, with stats like that, there seems to be little worth changing.

Favourite Travel Company award winner at the TPi Awards 2018, The Appointment Group (TAG) was the chosen Travel Management Company for the tour’s travel arrangements. It's involvement with the McIntyre camp began last summer when the company was asked to source hotels in July 2017. “During this time we worked closely with Flo Howard and Managing Director Joe Norris from Off The Kerb to ensure all aspects of the touring travel needs were taken care of with ease,” stated Rachel Gosling, Operations Manager at TAG.

“The Appointment Group was tasked with arranging all aspects of travel for both the artist and crew parties. The artist party consists of 4 people; including Michael McIntyre himself, and the crew party totals 24 persons with 34 varying hotel stays. “As the tour was starting just 8 months from the time we received the brief, time was of the essence to ensure the very best hotels, at the very best rates were sourced. It’s at times like these our strong relationships with our preferred hotel suppliers comes into play, meaning we’re able to source great rates even in the toughest of situations during busy, peak times.”

The tour didn’t come without its challenges, however. The snowfall across the UK at the beginning of March caused some last minute, unexpected changes to the schedule (of the theatre section of the tour) resulting in the cancellation of several shows for the safety of the public. Penny Needham from TAG handled all aspects of the travel for this tour alongside colleague Cristina Broz. Needham commented: “This is where our expertise enabled us to react immediately, to ensure the travel arrangements for the shows affected were taken care of and rearranged at minimal cost and with ease.”

Having to make unexpected last minute flight changes and hotel cancellations can be challenging, however, having a team of experts onhand meant we were able to respond instantly to relieve the team at Off The Kerb of any worries and the shows were successfully re-arranged. “We have a great relationship with Off the Kerb and I thoroughly enjoy working with them on all of their comedy projects. It’s a long-standing relationship which we hope to further strengthen and continue for many years to come.”

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