Your Stories: US specialist Michael Atkinson on how he keeps his knowledge up to date

The Hays Travel Bootle agent tells Andrew McQuarrie about his favourite destinations and taking part in the recent Brand USA megafam

Q. Where did you start in travel?
A. I’ve been in travel for 22 years. I started at Thomas Cook, but in 2019 they went into liquidation. I then went to World Travel Lounge, but they went into liquidation too, so in January I joined Hays Travel. Thomas Cook was all about its own products, but Hays is independent so you’re dealing with a lot more operators and selling the world more. But my core business has always been the US.

Q. Where did your interest in the US come from?
A. My passion has always been the US – I used to do my own holidays in America, visiting New York, Las Vegas and other major destinations. But there are so many states and you learn a lot from megafams.

What’s nice about America – and what’s nice when you’re promoting it – is that it’s so different. The west is so different from the east, and the south is a more relaxed place, whereas the north is very busy and hectic.

My passion has always been the US – I used to do my own holidays in America, visiting New York, Las Vegas and other major destinations

Q. What are your top-selling destinations?
A. At least 20% of what we do is the US, with Florida and New York being number one and two. But some people like to do a fly-drive – they might choose the Midwest, starting in Chicago – so it’s important to learn from the things you’ve done over the years. With a fly-drive, generally you’ll start from a big iconic city, so you might go from Chicago and do Route 66.

Q. How do you keep your US knowledge up to date?
A. Brand USA has the Global Marketplace platform and during the pandemic – for a couple of years – there were webinars every week, and every state would be on there offering training. The USA Discovery programme has badges for states, cities and attractions and I’ve done more than 60. There’s a mixture of all different information – not just destinations – that will give you more knowledge and itinerary experiences, which showcase what you can do. And Travel Weekly has things in it that I can use, as well.

Brand USA has the Global Marketplace platform and during the pandemic – for a couple of years – there were webinars every week

Q. What’s your favourite place in the USA?
A. That’s a very difficult question. I love the buzz of a big city such as New York or Los Angeles or Chicago, but I love the relaxation of Scottsdale, Arizona, which is a very exclusive area. Then you’ve got Mount Rushmore, the biggest attraction in South Dakota – it’s amazing. It took more than 10 years to construct and it’s surrounded by the Black Hills.

Q. Where do you most want to go next?
A. Alaska and Hawaii are probably the next two places I want to visit. And I’ve never been to Washington DC, either. Alaska’s got the mountains and the glaciers and the bears, whereas Hawaii has the volcanoes – so it’s hot versus cold.

I’m glad America is now back open and it’s great for Brits to be heading over there again. I like to do the Brand USA megafam every year – it always helps. People just go to the major destinations, so it’s about trying to promote different places and cities. For example, I’ve been three times to New York, but I prefer Chicago – it’s a cleaner environment and I think it’s a bit more accessible.

Alaska’s got the mountains and the glaciers and the bears, whereas Hawaii has the volcanoes – so it’s hot versus cold

Q. Tell us about your Cover Stars trip.
A. It was a competition that ran through Travel Weekly for 10 years. You had to promote yourself and why you wanted to do a particular trip and you had to get people to vote for you in the magazine. I was ringing around my colleagues and asking them to vote. In November 2014, I flew from Heathrow to Boston. We had three nights in Boston and then we went on to Cape Cod. In the New England area, the colours in the autumn are amazing.

Tell us about the most recent Brand USA megafam

The partnership was with British Airways and American Airlines, so you do as many bookings as you can and register them on the USA Discovery programme. I had 15 registrations from January to March. We flew to Atlanta and had two nights there, three nights in Alabama and the finale was in New York. Alabama surprised me most.

We went to Muscle Shoals, known as the recording capital of the world, as well as the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, the civil rights museum and the Baptist church

People were so friendly and there’s so much to do out there. They love their music and their food. It’s also so clean and everything is pedestrianised and pretty. We went to Muscle Shoals, known as the recording capital of the world, as well as the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, the civil rights museum and the Baptist church. I’ll definitely try to incorporate Alabama into clients’ trips to the south – if they don’t go, they’re missing out. Atlanta is a compact city, but with lots of attractions.

We went to the World of Coca-Cola, the big aquarium and we took the hop-on hopoff bus. And in New York, we went to the observation decks – including Edge, which sticks 80ft out of the building. You can see pretty much all around, it’s 100 storeys high, so it’s a good viewing point.