2018 : YEAR IN REVIEW
Two buses, two years and one big idea. This year has been a big one for us here at VTT. We survived the beast from the east, the long hot summer, watched as our team grew and evolved and welcomed passengers from over 32 different countries.
We’ve rounded together some of our highlights from the year and looking back on them makes us super excited for 2019… But that’s not the only reason why we’re excited… We have not one but TWO BIG pieces of news coming in the new year, so sorry to tease but, you’ll just have to watch this space!
BEAST FROM THE EAST
What a wild way to start 2018! Throughout the madness of it all though we managed to snap this serenely beautiful picture of Kitty in the Phoenix Park. One thing we learned from it though? Always keep a sliced pan in the freezer!
MEITHEAL & WTM
We were delighted to attend Meitheal; Failte Ireland’s annual event where delegates from all around the world come to speed date (literally) the Irish tourism sector… We’re still not recovered from the event but already looking forward to April 2019. We also flew over to the World Travel Market in London in November to meet with vendors from the globe and see what trends are predicted for 2019!
DREAM TEAM
We doubled the size of our team this year bringing on an extra host in the form of the lovely Shane, Ciara our sales and marketing executive, Ash our operations executive and Mark our transport manager. They say team work makes the dream work and they’re not wrong!
SECOND BIRTHDAY
We turned two in September and you can see how we celebrated. One rule we made though, there’ll be no terrible twos in 2019!
TOP 10 ON TRIPADVISOR
We made the top 10 on TripAdvisor for Food & Drink Tours. To say we were over the moon would be an understatement. Thank you to everyone who has ever taken the time out to write us a 5* review. It honestly means the world to us!
COLLABORATIONS
This year we collaborated with some of the biggest brands out there. We teamed up with Galaxy Chocolate and Aimee Connolly’s Sculpted by Aimee. It’s always an honor to be asked to be a part of brand launches and events and we can’t wait to see what collaborations 2019 brings. (left pic by Brian McEvoy).
OUR PASSENGERS
While reaching top 10s, attending trade events and collaborating with innovative and exciting brands is amazing there’s one thing that trumps it all. And that’s you! Our wonderful passengers who have made our dream into a reality with all your love and support. Seeing couples, families, friends and colleagues coming together to share their special moment on board with us makes us incredibly happy and proud. Hearing your stories and learning why you decided to come on board makes everything we do so much easier. It’s your stories that we remember and cherish.
Sean and James who chose to spend some of their wedding day on board with us. We picked them up in town and took the coast road to Howth before going back and dropping them to the Dean Hotel. The love and laughter that filled the bus that day will never be forgotten.
Joan was a very special guest who chose to have her 70th birthday on board with us. What made it extra special? Well, Joan was the very first female double deck bus driver in Ireland. She told us all her stories about driving around Dublin and believe it or not she actually had to make her own uniform!!
“My self and my mam brought by 91 yr old granda on the vintage tea tours few weeks back as a surprise. He was a bus conductor with CIE for 40 odd years so it was a real treat for him to be back on the bus he once worked on. I cant thank the lads enough for all they did for him. They made it really special and indulged my granda in listening to his work stories. They couldn’t do enough for us. But they were just as attentive to all the guests. The tea and sandwiches were delish and the deserts were yum! And the real treat was that you get to keep your cup at the end! Which we were all delighted about. Even after the trip was over they let us take several photos with granda and with the bus. Truly was the best day out we’ve had in a long time.” – Jen Mangan, Dublin.
The lovely Dolores who came all the way from Listowel, Co.Kerry to celebrate her 79th birthday with us. We had such a laugh with her.. She really made our day and I’d love to think we made hers.
The gorgeous Lauren who had her hen party on board. We wish you a lifetime of happiness.
The lovely ladies of Kenilworth Bowling Club. We took them on a customised tour of Dublin along the coast. We loved hearing their stories and memories about jumping on the back of buses like Kitty when they were younger. They even gave us some bowling tips on how best to play the game.
Thank you to everyone who came on board, waved from the streets as we drove by, raised a cup of tea in celebrations, sang with us, liked, shared and commented on our pictures and who shared their own stories with us we our forever grateful. Here’s to 2019. May it be a great one!!
All our love, the VTT team x.