TORONTO — The Aussie Specialist Program now has 1,000+ agents in Canada and Tourism Australia marked the milestone with special gifts for the 1000th Specialist, right in her agency.

Danielle Berton, a Travel Consultant at Groupe Voyages VP in Montreal, recently became the 1,000th Aussie Specialist in Canada. The ASP is Tourism Australia’s global training program for international travel sellers.

Marie-Hélène Jacques, General Manager, Groupe Voyages VP; Danielle Berton, 1000th certified Aussie Specialist in Canada; Serge Lamarre, Tourism Australia Account Manager, Quebec

Three years ago the ASP underwent a “significant re-launch”, says Tourism Australia, introducing a new digital platform with interactive training modules. At the time of the re-launch, there were less than 300 qualified ASP agents in Canada.

Since Berton became the 1,000th specialist, the number has continued to grow with 1,076 qualified ASP agents and 309 trainees now coast-to-coast in Canada.

Tourism Australia celebrated the occasion with a surprise visit to Berton’s Groupe Voyages office in Montreal to congratulate Berton in person. Tourism Australia also presented Berton with an Aussie-inspired prize that included a retro-style Tourism Australia carry-on bag to celebrate the organization’s 50th anniversary, a bottle of Aussie wine, a cap, thermal bottle, notebook and pen plus a Visa gift card.

Benefits of becoming an Aussie Specialist include access to training modules and sales resources, travel club offers, invitations to attend exclusive events and monthly e-newsletter updates.

Those interested in becoming a qualified Aussie Specialist can enroll at www.aussiespecialist.com/en-ca.