The Official E-Newsletter of the Caribbean Tourism
OrganizationMessage from CTO
Chairman, the Hon. Harold Lovell, Minister of Tourism, Antigua & Barbuda
February
is the month of love and, with romance in the air, it is a wonderful
time for people to think about the Caribbean. The Caribbean has long
been considered as the ultimate place for a romantic escape and that
continues to this day. In fact, the romance sector—particularly destination
weddings—continues to be a vibrant aspect of our business. A recent
story by USA Today cited the destination weddings market as
being particularly resilient in the Caribbean. Why? Because we provide
that rare combination of beauty, convenience and value. As the global
economic struggles continue, we as a region need to continue to emphasize
that value keeping in mind that value doesn’t have to mean discount.
For savvy travelers, value is knowing that they will get the finest service,
receive extra incentives and know that their increasingly tight discretionary
time and income will be well spent. In order 
to remain competitive internationally,
the Caribbean must continue to find new ways to provide value and keep
the love flowing all year long. For our part at the Caribbean Tourism
Organization, we continue to work with our partners in both the private
and public sectors to explore new ideas and opportunities, leaving no
stone unturned to help create additional business and attention for the
region. We are committed to romancing, so to speak, our target audiences
for their business each and every day to ensure that love for The Caribbean
is a year-round affair.
Planning Continues
for Caribbean Week’s Return to NY
Preparations
continue for the return of the popular Caribbean Week celebration in New
York, June 8–12, organized by the Caribbean Tourism Development Company.
Sponsorship opportunities are available for a number of events and highlights
include: special Caribbean chef promotional activities June 8–9; meeting
of the Council of Ministers and Commissioners of Tourism and CHTA officials,
as well as a Caribbean Fair on June 10; workshops for travel agents and the
Caribbean Diaspora, a media marketplace and awards luncheon, as well as an
exciting "Caribbean Treats—Food, Rum & Rhythm" celebration
at NY City's famed Roseland on June 11; and a Caribbean Marketing Conference,
Caribbean Meeting and Incentive Travel Showcase, Allied Awards Luncheon,
and closing press conference on June 12. The event will culminate on the
evening of June 12 with the highly anticipated Governments of the Caribbean
State Ball to be held at The Plaza.
Immediately
preceding Caribbean Week in New York, delegates from the region will travel
to Washington, D.C. for the Second Annual Caribbean Tourism Summit (ACTS),
June 8–10. This event will be business-focused and include meetings on
Capitol Hill as well as internal meetings with CTO and CHTA officials.
For more information on Caribbean Week New York or ACTS, call the CTO’s NY office at 212-635-9530 or log on to www.onecaribbean.org
Caribbean Scores
High in TripAdvisor “Traveler’s Choice Awards”
TripAdvisor
users love the Caribbean! A wealth of Caribbean destinations and resorts
earned high honors in TripAdvisor’s annual Travelers’ Choice Awards for 2009.
The annual honor, based on consumer feedback of TripAdvisors more than 10
million members, is a representation of the unbiased opinions of real travelers,
awarded by the world’s largest online travel community.
Destinations including Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bonaire, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Martin and Turks and Caicos were represented in various global categories such as Top 10 Best for Families, Top 10 Best for Romance, Top 10 Best All-inclusives, Top 100 Best Luxury and Top 100 Best Bargains.
A Tasty Spotlight
on Canada
The
Caribbean will be in the spotlight at Place Bonaventure Exhibition Hall,
in Montreal Quebec to celebrate the 10th anniversary of A Taste of the Caribbean
Festival on May 31st. The goal of the event is to give everyone a taste of
Caribbean culture.
Dishes prepared by visiting celebrity chefs and local Montreal chefs will demonstrate Caribbean cooking at the all day event which will be filled with an exciting combination of the cultural aspects of the Caribbean—from tasting delicacies to music to dance demonstrations to art displays to a Caribbean Marketplace. There will be Caribbean vacation give-aways and representatives from the Caribbean will be on hand to give information on their various islands and travel choices throughout the region.
For more information visit www.atasteofthecaribbean.ca.
CTO UK Kicks
Off Million Homes Campaign
The CTO UK Chapter kicked off its 2009 promotional campaign in January
with a full colour, 24-page Caribbean supplement inserted in the popular Daily Mail Weekend Magazine, with further distribution in the Telegraph
Magazine.
CTO UK and Europe marketing director Julia Hendry said, “This magazine delivers a real slice of Caribbean colour and inspiration in the middle of the grey British winter and economic downturn at a particularly important period for bookings. Although 2009 is set to be a tough and uncertain year for the entire travel industry, the supplement is a sign of the Caribbean gearing itself up to face the challenges with a coordinated and proactive approach to ensure the region is kept front of mind for consumers."
The magazine cost and distribution is fully-funded by the advertising from partners such as tour operators, hoteliers and tourist boards. It was also made available at the National Wedding Shows in Newcastle between 31 January and 1 February and at London ExCel between 7 and 8 February. The CTO will also distribute the magazine through a direct mail campaign. For more information visit www.caribbean.co.uk or call the CTO on 020 8948 0057.
Enhancements to Help
CTO Chapters Grow
The
CTO Chapters continue to expand and evolve with some exciting new initiatives.
Among them:
• An E-learning partnership through Travel Agent Magazine to help agents enhance their knowledge of the region.
• The creation of a media library and resource center from which you will be able to send videos, brochures and deals to clients.
• An online festival and events calendar for easy access.
• A new rewards program for top producing agents.
• An agent community for social networking among USA, Canadian and Caribbean travel agents.
• A greatly improved Chapter agent database system.
According to the CTO’s Interim Secretary General Hugh Riley, “It is our belief that these enhancements will only strengthen the CTO chapters and make it even easier for them to be profitable in selling the Caribbean and provide value to their membership.”
Another equally important enhancement is the streamlining of the financial operation of the Chapters with the goal of making the accounting process more efficient. By streamlining the accounting system and providing additional educational and organizational enhancements it is the CTO’s desire to help Chapters grow and provide the tools necessary to meet the overall objectives and strategies of the organization. The CTO also hopes to serve agents in markets where a CTO Chapter may not exist and eventually see new Chapters formed. Stay tuned for additional updates and thanks to all our CTO Chapters for their hard work in selling the Caribbean!
Caribbean Making News
The
media is talking about the Caribbean! Recent positive exposure from the
last month has included a front page travel section story in the New
York Times, coverage on ABC’s Good Morning America, a story on the
Caribbean destination weddings market in USA Today and features
in the NY
Post, CNBC
and MSNBC.com., among others. You can view recent media coverage for yourself
on www.onecaribbean.org in
a new section, "CTO and the Caribbean In
the News". This special section is designed to showcase where and
when Caribbean destinations are being talked about in the press. Be sure
to check it out: http://www.onecaribbean.org/newsandmediacenter/
inthenews/default.aspx
CTO On the Road
Last
issue, we reported on CTO's participation in ABAV - Fair of the Americas,
the largest travel trade exhibition in Latin America which took place in
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from October 22–24, 2008.
CTO's participation in ABAV was aimed at initiating discussions with travel industry personnel in the Latin American market to stimulate added interest in developing tour packages to the Caribbean and gaining a clear understanding of other marketplace opportunities to increase Brazil's Caribbean productivity, such as charter operations.
These member destinations were represented: Aruba, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Guyana, St. Maarten, Suriname and Venezuela. It is anticipated that the Caribbean will participate in ABAV 2009—October 21–23. Destinations interested in sharing the Caribbean stand should send an email to allen@caribtourism.com.
To ensure you continue to receive CTO News, please add our address to your safe sender list. Please do not reply to this email. The Caribbean Tourism Organization values our relationship with our members and partners and their privacy. Please send any comments, suggestions or complaints or let us know if you wish to no longer receive this publication to ctoNY@caribtourism.com