A rollerblading turtle symbolizes the freedom of train travel

A rollerblading turtle is the protagonist of a delightful new ad from British train company Avanti West Coast, symbolizing the freedom and ease of train travel.

Tom Kuntz of MJZ directed the spot, by Adam&Eve/DDB, bringing his zany comedic touch to the story. It sees the turtle weave his way skilfully throught the streets and traffic of London, to the amazement of pedestrians, before escaping to the countryside, swiping some lettuce on the way. Feel-good '70s Arabic disco song, Zohra's "Badala Zamana," provides a perfect soundtrack. 

The spot ends with the tagline "This is how travel should feel." It comes as Avanti aims to encourage people back to traveling by train again following the pandemic. The campaign is running on broadcast in the U.K., along with print, out-of-home, digital and social media. Media was handled through the 7Stars. 

“We really want to inject a feel-good vibe when people think about travelling with us. That’s the purpose of this campaign,” said Kate Squires, marketing director, Avanti West Coast, in a statement. “We’re incredibly excited to bring people back on-board and shout about all of the great reasons why it’s the best way to get around. This is the perfect way to do it.”

With train services in the U.K. currently suffering from overcrowding, staff shortages, and cuts in services, we can only hope that we get back to feeling like rollerblading turtles in real life pretty soon.