Black Tomato, Award-Winning U.K. Travel Company, Arrives in the U.S.

London - April 3, 2008 – Black Tomato, the award-winning London-based travel company that specializes in creating exceptional travel experiences with a hip twist, has launched its U.S. website: www.blacktomatotravel.com.  Based on the insight that "your time is precious, your time-off even more so,”  Black Tomato creates tailor-made experiences that ensure travelers make the most of every minute away and bring back a suitcase full of bragging rights.

Catering to hard-working, hard-playing and discerning affluents with a taste for the unique and exclusive, Black Tomato travels to the four corners of the world, and countless spots in between, to find rare and wonderful experiences for its growing clientele. [The name, Black Tomato (“blák to-máh-to”), is inspired by a beautiful and rare species of the ubiquitous fruit.]

“Black Tomato sees travel as a lifestyle, not just a product,” said co-founder Tom Marchant in announcing the U.S. website.  “It’s about getting under the skin of a destination and off the beaten path. Let’s face it: Black Tomato is not your parents’ travel agency. We will make sure each Black Tomato journey is one of the most memorable and fulfilling experiences one can have while traveling.”

Black Tomato was founded on the conviction that travel is a mindset and not just about the destination. Key to Black Tomato’s DNA is that while the world may have been discovered, it has yet to be fully explored.

The Black Tomato experience begins in the planning with a trip to the website. Chucking commodity-oriented and conventional travel lingo for a friendly, conversational tone, blacktomatotravel.com is designed to get customers engaged and excited about creating a custom travel itinerary. With interactive features that are practical and easy to use, Black Tomato makes the planning process fun, starting with the playful “Panic Button” for the “under planned” traveler.  When activated, the “Panic Button” directs customers to last-minute vacation planning ideas and services that include a reassuring, knowledgeable voice at the other end of the line.

For those stuck on where to go and in need of ideas, the “Departures Board” is a fun-to-use, yet highly practical, search function that generates travel suggestions based on the traveler’s desired pulse (activity level), perspiration (climate) and patience (travel distance).

Putting the focus on what travelers want to do when they are away, Black Tomato’s website groups opportunities according to suggested potential (and “tweakable”) itineraries labeled “Escape Time,” “Action Time,” “Sports Time,” “Stylish Time,” “Intrepid Time,” “Inspiring Time,” “Hangout Time,” and “From Scratch” – the latter signifying the ultimate bespoke travel experience. Travelers can ask Black Tomato for advice on whether a trip is right for them by clicking on “Convince Me”.

Incorporated into every Black Tomato trip are “Essential Extras” that include hand-picked music and reading selections based on the traveler’s preferences and delivered prior to departure. Back-to-reality pampering, meant to avoid the real world for a few more hours, includes either a complimentary pair of AMC Movie Theatre tickets or a month's free membership to Netflix with a predetermined DVD of choice awaiting their return.  To catch-up on current events while guests are away the latest issue of TIME Magazine awaits their arrival.

Thanks to a talented, well-connected team of travel experts and a website rich in content and creativity, Black Tomato has quickly risen to the forefront of the U.K.’s bespoke travel industry. It has won many accolades and widespread recognition including Condé Nast Traveller UK Hotlist’s “One’s to Watch,” Gentleman’s Quarterly UK “100 Best Things in the World,” “Part of Travel’s New World Order,” The Sunday Times and the prestigious Observer and Guardian best travel website of the UK for the last two years running. Vanity Fair has branded them “The guys who have zipped travel agents into the contemporary and are supremely professional in everything they do.”

ABOUT BLACK TOMATO

Award-winning and innovative, Black Tomato was founded in a London flat by three 26-year-old guys who ditched the corporate fast track to spend their days pursuing their passion for travel and sharing it with their peers. It has quickly risen to the forefront of the U.K. bespoke travel industry, thanks to a talented, well-connected team of travel experts and a website rich in content and creativity.

In 2008, the company officially “crossed the pond,” launching a website for U.S. customers and laying plans for a New York sales office by the end of the year. www.blacktomatotravel.com 1.877.815.1497

 
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