The Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands team, which consists of five members, was created as the “first point of contact” for agents looking to sell the new programme, which went live with the trade a week ago.

The programme includes underwater tours of the Great Barrier Reef, train journeys across the outback of Australia and a helicopter excursion over a live volcano in Rotorua, New Zealand.

Kevin Preston, product and training manager for Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, told TTG that the new team, which includes two new employees, was chosen for the “extensive, first-hand experience” they could each offer agents.

“Every member of the team has travelled extensively to Australia or New Zealand and we have a few who have lived in the destinations, which only adds to the knowledge and advice they’re able to give to agents,” Preston said.

If Only managing director Brendan Maguire said the operator had “recruited some of the best in the industry” to run the destinations, adding: “Their wealth of knowledge and expertise ensures that we can offer our agents hotels, resorts, cruises and tours that fit seamlessly with If Only’s existing products.”

To coincide with the new programme, print brochures will be sent out to If Only’s agent partners by mid-September, while the operator’s business development managers will visit agents in-store over the course of the month.

If Only will also host a series of agent events, including in London, Birmingham and Glasgow, during which travel consultants can meet suppliers and receive training.