Honeymoon cruise discount

Business & Travel Editors

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 4, 2002

Discount travel site Hotwire today announced a partnership with CruisesOnly, the world's largest cruise agency and a division of MyTravel USA. This partnership gives Hotwire customers access to all of CruisesOnly's guaranteed best rates on more than 25,000 cruise itineraries worldwide.

In addition to great pricing, the site boasts 24/7 customer care, cruise ship reviews by past clients, 360-degree virtual tours of more than 80 cruise ships and resource information on more than 25,000 sailings. There is also CruisesOnly's award-winning original content, including cruise and destination articles, professional ship reviews, and guides to honeymoon and family cruising.

CruisesOnly negotiates discount deals with all the major international cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line and Disney Cruise Line.

"We are proud to give our customers the opportunity to now search and buy cruises through our alignment with CruisesOnly," said Gregg Brockway, Hotwire executive vice president, corporate development. "This gives our leisure customers yet another option for a great budget vacation."

"Our 30 years of experience and expert cruise consultants will help Hotwire's 17 million registered users select the very best cruise vacation values at the very best prices," said Don Walker, vice president advertising and marketing programs for CruisesOnly.

About Hotwire

Hotwire (www.hotwire.com) is a leading discount travel site where flexibility means savings for leisure travelers. By only partnering with trusted travel brands, Hotwire allows travelers to buy higher quality travel for a lower price. It works because Hotwire matches the needs of two groups: customers who can be flexible about their choice of airline, hotel and rental car company in order to save money, and suppliers who have excess seats, rooms and cars they want to fill. Hotwire works with more than 30 domestic and international airlines, including all seven U.S. full-service major airlines: American Airlines, America West, Continental, Delta Air Lines, Northwest, United and U.S. Airways. In addition, Hotwire partners include more than 6,000 top hotels in 375 U.S., Canadian and Caribbean destinations, and several major car rental companies. Hotwire is a private corporation based in San Francisco, California. The company launched its services in October 2000, with investments from the Texas Pacific Group and six major airlines.

About MyTravel USA

MyTravel USA, a subsidiary of MyTravel Group plc, is a leading distributor of travel products. The company offers cruise vacations, vacation packages, domestic and international airline tickets and European auto rentals. Additionally, the company is a leading provider of specialized hotel programs and services and incentive travel programs. These services are provided to both travel agents and travelers, and offer a unique combination of specialized expertise, the ability to compare options from multiple travel providers and competitive prices.

MyTravel Group plc has 15 million customers from 24 countries around the world. The Group operates over 80 principal brands, 93 hotels and resort properties, 52 aircraft, four cruise ships and employs more than 29,000 people. The Group has market leading positions in leisure travel in the UK, Scandinavia and North America. MyTravel Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange.