Voyages Jules Verne, the UK based tour operator, has been recognised for its web strategy at the 2007 Travolution Awards in London.
The popular tour operator, which relaunched its website in January 2006, won Best Tour Operator Website, beating off competition from nine nominees in the same category, including Leger Holidays, Thomson and Kuoni.co.uk.

The revamp of www.vjv.co.uk, which was undertaken by award winning web design specialist Fortune Cookie, saw the addition of an interactive map and an online a content management system, as part of a drive to capture the essence of the golden age of travel. 

Since launching the site unique visitors have climbed by 36% and the online bookings have increased by 50%.
Seeing off other hot contenders for the award, David Pattison, Head of Product & Marketing, Voyages Jules Verne, commented: “We are flattered yet very proud to have won this prestigious award, especially against such a high standard of competition. Websites don’t create themselves and there were a number of personnel involved in realising the successful end product. Fortune Cookie was excellent in following our brief and were always able to find solutions to our sometimes awkward requirements.”
He added: “The ever-evolving world of website technology presents us with constant challenges and possibilities but we will always feel that accuracy, clarity and simplicity still outweigh flashy presentations. Nevertheless there is still room for a degree of style and panache that reflects our company ethos and image.”
Commenting on the results, Kevin May, editor of Travolution, said:
“In an incredibly competitive category, Voyages Jules Verne managed to tick all the right boxes with our panel of judges. The look and feel of the site suits the audience perfectly and it is of enormous credit to the VJV team that they have managed to create something that is attractive, functional and innovative.”

The Travolution Awards judging panel said: “A fantastic website. Voyages Jules Verne has managed to combine fun and inspiration in a way that really works online.”

Voyages Jules Verne plans to continue investing in the usability of the site through web analytics, customer comments and competitor benchmarking.

Fortune Cookie, which has an impressive portfolio of clients in the travel industry including Europcar, Small Luxury Hotels of the World and Reed Travel Exhibitions, received a quartet of shortlist nominations in the 2007 Travolution Awards on behalf of travel sector clients Kuoni UK and Voyages Jules Verne.

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