In one of the cooler team partnerships to emerge from esports in recent times, Copenhagen Flames have partnered with travel service Travel Sense to offer packages and trips for events around the world.
The first two trips available to book are the ELEAGUE Major in Atlanta 2017 (January 27-31st) and Dreamhack Leipzig (January 13-15th). The price for the Dreamhack package is set at 3,450 Danish Krone (£388) whilst for ELEAGUE it’s 9,990 kr. (£1124).
This includes flights and travel to and from the airport, hotel accommodation, breakfast, event entry and a guide.
There are zero interest financing options available in a bid to make it more available to a wider range, and the transparency in pricing is an excellent start. They’ve not gone down the frustrating but common ‘contact us for prices’ roads, and for what it includes both current trips seems a fair price. In the case of Dreamhack for example the hotel stay included is the 4* Novum Hotel Aviva Leipzig.
As the press release on the Flames’ site stated this also includes “no more shady ticket sellers, impossible timetables or broken promises”.
To our knowledge this partnership is the first of its kind, and should go some way in offering esports fans an easy way to experience events around the world.
Allan Ravn, a partner in Travel Sense, said of the arrangement: “Travel Sense is always in search of new initiatives and trends in the world of sports, and esports is, no doubt, just powering up.
“Copenhagen Flames have an in-depth knowledge when it comes to esports. The understanding of innovation as well as the energetic approach shown was something we simply couldn’t turn down. Our first goal is to determine exactly what the need is in the esports industry, and thereafter, how we can provide people with the best possible experience. After this, the next step is, hopefully, a notable expansion of this area of business.”
Steffen Thomsen, Founder and CEO of the Copenhagen Flames, stated: “Here at Flames, we’ve been saying that we want to lift Danish esports to new heights.
“We want to lead the way. Everything from football travels to Formula 1 travels already exist, so why not esports travels? There are events all over the world in amazing venues and wonderful cities. Travel Sense is the perfect partner with their innovative approach and their massive travel expertise. With just a few clicks, you’re now able to book a complete esports travel package with everything included.”
Thomsen will also be joining the trips as a guide. He commented: “I’ll try to make the trips as comfortable and eventful as possible. I hope that the offer will be welcomed as it’s something I’m really looking forward to.
“I know from personal experience that booking both fly, hotel, tickets and so on quickly can become a bit chaotic to say the least. With this, that chaotic feeling is no more.”
We interviewed Steffen not too long ago shortly after he’d made the decision to focus full time on growing the organisation. He’s fully embracing the drive to step up Denmark’s esports scene and make it a leading force, indeed he is already a strong believer that it is amongst the strongest.
He told us: “I am constantly pushing the boundaries of what we can do and achieve with esports in Denmark specifically. Look at the amount of talent we have?
We had 10 players attending the LoL Worlds, at one point three of the top 10 CSGO teams were Danish. Astralis are number one now. We’ve won the FIFA World Cup three times out of the past five. In Dota 2, Johan “n0tail” Sundstein just won his third major. A historic achievement!
“I believe we are among the strongest nations, not only in Europe, but in the World. And no one knows about in Denmark. That has to change.”
Esports Insider: We love this. With odd locations for some tournaments arranging travel and accommodation for events can quickly become a headache and suck out the fun. With the Flames and Steffen Thomsen, there’s a person involved who’s endemic, loves and is dedicated to the industry.
Coupled with an experienced travel agency with a background in offering sports travel packages, not to mention transparency in pricing and the hotels included, we’re confident that this’ll prove a hit.
