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SECRETARY GENERAL CARIBBEAN TOURISM ORGANIZATION

Bridgetown, Barbados (28 Dec 2017) - This has been a challenging year for Caribbean tourism. While the first half of the year saw exciting growth in both tourism infrastructure and tourist arrivals over the previous year, in September we were hit hard by a series of unusual hurricanes that not only destroyed property, but also took the lives of many of our citizens. We must never forget the souls we lost along the way.

Physically, we will recover. Our Caribbean people are a resilient population. We will put the bricks and mortar back together and the hotels and vegetation will rise again and shine in the brilliant sunlight.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett travels to Geneva, Switzerland today (December 17, 2017) , to present the recently unveiled Montego Bay Declaration, to delegates attending the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) Closing Ceremony for the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017.

“The Declaration of Montego Bay will become incorporated in the documents and the outcomes of the International Year of Sustainability. This is the perhaps the biggest legacy that we could hope for as a small destination – that our name will be indelibly etched in the lexicon of tourism references so that children yet unborn, will know that Montego Bay existed,” said Minister Bartlett.

The 15-point Declaration was one of the major outcomes of the recently concluded UNWTO Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism held in Montego Bay from November 27 to 29. It was first presented by Minister Bartlett and Executive Director of the UNWTO, Carlos Vogeler, on November 29 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James.

Source: TravelWeekly

Facebook recently announced a change to its algorithm that will place content from users’ friends and families higher up in their News Feed than content published by Pages.

Social media experts said they were not surprised by the change and predicted it would likely affect agents who use Pages for marketing and lead generation to different degrees, depending on their usage level.

Source: Hotel News Resource

Travel Prices Set to Marginally Increase or Remain Flat for 2017; Geopolitical and Economic Uncertainty Mean Travel Managers Need to Remain Flexible and Agile 

New research out today highlights six key risks heading into 2017 that could impact both travel industry prices and the global economy as a whole. They are emerging market performance, financial market turbulence, geopolitical risks, uncertainty surrounding Brexit, potentially fluctuating U.S. interest rates and oil prices.

                             2016 African Diaspora World Tourism Awards & Travel ExpoThe African Diaspora World Tourism (ADWT) Awards and Travel Expo, will once again take place on AUGUST 26-28TH, 2016 in Atlanta, Ga. (USA) at the Westin Atlanta Airport (4736 Best Road).  After the success of the inaugural awards that was attended by people from around the world, the prestigious ADWT-Awards event will again be presented by African Diaspora Tourism with publisher Kitty J. Pope as the founder/director and executive producer of the historical event.

Co-presenter is the AD King Foundation and its Co-Founder/CEO Dr. Babs Onabanjo who serves as ADWT-Awards producer. Also Co-presenter and producer of this year’s awards event is socio-economic developer Rev. Dr. Eugene Franklin, founder/president and CEO of the Pan African Cultural Heritage Initiative. Lou D’Amore, founder/CEO of the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) is also partnering to help with the 2016 ADWT-Awards and Travel Expo.

Like the inaugural awards event, the 2016 week-end event will include the awards gala, cultural entertainment, a Hall of Fame Luncheon and the Travel Expo. In addition, this year’s ADWT-Awards event will feature two new components where event attendees can learn more about black cultural heritage tourism and also African culture.

                                                                                  Airline Black Box

Negril, Jamaica (May 22, 2016). An airline Black Box contains the DNA of a flight. During an airline catastrophe retrieving the Black Box ASAP is priority in order to reconstruct what took place.

I am suggesting that all future Black Boxes should be built with a casing that can only float, thereby making it easy to be located. The Black Box answers the questions of what-who- why-when & where relating to the accident.

First there were pillow menus, or maybe those came later, I can't be certain.

Then, someone thought of leaving some minty chocolates on those pillows. No sooner that was done and you would come back to the room at 6pm to find your bed neatly tucked in. Two slippers sit symmetrically positioned by the bedside, ready for you to strut your stuff in front of the 400 channel TV as you wait for that $40 salad to arrive . OK, there's no toothbrush within a mile of the bathroom, but those high-end brand conditioners sure take the frizz out of my hair, so dental hygiene be damned. That's just the beginning. Breakfast offers a decadent spread of food, with enough variety to have made an ancient Roman food orgy look bland. The orange juice is so smooth, it was probably squeezed by the delicate fingers of a concert pianist. Don't get me started on the carefully orchestrated and smile-infused table service. My serviette (because at this level it's not a napkin, please) gently draped over my lap, coffee ground just minutes ago and served in designer porcelain, only the spoonfeeding is lacking, lest I regress into a toddler I suppose. 

I love it. See, that is luxury. All of it.

(Flight Centre Award) NEW YORK, NY; April 7, 2016: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (3rd right), was presented with a Telly Award by Brennan Quesnele, Flight Centre USA Inc’s  Operations Director eCommerce (3rd left), during a recent meeting at Flight Centre. The Telly Awards honour the finest film and video productions, web and TV commercials and was awarded to GOGO Vacations for their online video “Paradise Found – Jamaica”. The video featured Carey Dennis, member of the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and Jamaica’s top attractions including the Rose Hall Great House, Green Grotto Caves, Martha Brae, Scotchies, Chukka Horseback Ride N’ Swim, Dolphin Cove. Minister Bartlett, who is visiting New York City to meet with strategic tourism partners to discuss his plans to drive new markets and forge new partnerships to grow Jamaica’s tourism, is accompanied by (from left) Christopher Dobson, JTB’s Business Development Manager; Donnie Dawson, Deputy Director of Tourism at JTB; Paul Pennicook, Director of Tourism; and Francine Carter Henry, JTB’s Tour Operators and Airlines Manager.

ContactL Alyssa Taffe Public Relations Officer Ministry of Tourism 64 Knutsford Boulevard Kingston 5 Tel: 920-4926-30, ext: 5989

DALLAS, TX - The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) is pleased to announce the Winners of the 2016 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards. The Awards, which were presented at a special ceremony during the 16th WTTC Global Summit in Dallas, Texas, USA showcase business leadership in sustainable tourism, celebrating ground breaking and inspiring initiatives across five categories.

The 2016 Winners are: Community Award: Expediciones Sierra Norte, Mexico Destination Award: Parkstad Limburg, Netherlands Environment Award: The Botswana Rhino Conservation Project by Wilderness Safaris, Botswana Innovation Award: Carmacal Carbon Calculator by ANVR - The Netherlands Travel Trade Association, Netherlands People Award: Youth Career Initiative, United Kingdom & worldwide Each year a group of independent judges from the private sector, academic institutions, non-profit organisations and government come together to select the Finalists and Winners of the Awards. The three-stage judging process is extremely rigorous and includes thorough on-site evaluations of all finalists.

This year it involved 36 judges and over 60 days of work in the field. David Scowsill, President and CEO, WTTC, says: “The 2016 winners of the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards are truly inspirational examples of tourism that has a long term vision. In a world of shrinking resources, with increasing pressure on cultural heritage and local traditions, these organisations are living proof that Travel & Tourism can be a force for good. These companies are showing clear leadership in the industry.”

NEW YORK, NY - JetBlue today announced further expansion of Mint, its award-winning take on the premium experience, to two new Caribbean destinations – St. Lucia and St. Maarten – and on additional new routes.

The expansion brings Mint customers to more destinations than ever:

• New seasonal service between New York and St. Lucia

Negril, Jamaica, W.I. January 18, 2016. Over thirteen years ago, Garry Sowerby, a four-time world record holder, long-distance driving, columnist and global adventurer, set out on an odyssey. On Friday 13th of November, 2002 hedrove from Whitehorse, in Canada's Yukon Territory, in pursuit of Dawson City's 'sourtoe cocktail'.  “The 'sourtoe cocktail' is an obscure rite of passage in the Yukon and I wanted to do it,” Garry said. But bad luck prevailed that Friday the 13th in 2002, so we tried it again looking for good luck,” Garry said.

Thirteen years later, Friday, November the 13th, he set out to do the drive again with his wife and editor, Lisa Calvi, to launch his book “Driven Mind”. It was the first of seven pop-up global launches planned for the next eleven months in places of significance chronicled in the book.  This ambitious goal was well-within reach of a man known in his industry as an adventurous trailblazer and holder of four world records for long distance driving, while circumnavigating the world, crossing 75 countries.

During an interview with the epic world traveler, Sowerby revealed that in 2015 he decided on an unconventional approach to launching Driven Mind by using the next six (6) locations to stage events that are inspired by stories in the book.  

ATLANTA (January 11, 2016) – In a bold, unprecedented move, today Bronner Brothers, Inc. (BB) announced it has assembled a preeminent group of celebrity stylists, beauty schools and motivators for its 69th Annual Bronner Bros. International Beauty Show. Billed “The Trilogy,” three platforms will combine to offer access to top level educators, trendsetting artists and inspiring leaders in the multi-cultural beauty industry. Approximately 30,000 licensed professionals and students are expected to attend the three-day convention, which takes place February 20-22, 2016 at the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) in Atlanta, GA. 

Widely regarded as the largest multi-cultural beauty show in the world, the Bronner Bros. International Beauty Show includes a highly anticipated 2016 Summer Trend Release featuring the celebrity stylists behind some of today’s most iconic looks.  A-list participants include Neal Farina (Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige), Sam Fine (Tyra Banks, Vanessa Williams, Patti LaBelle, Iman), Takisha Sturdivant-Drew (Kerry Washington, Sanaa Lathan, Amber Riley), Andre Walker (Oprah, Halle Berry) and Johnny Wright (First Lady Michelle Obama).   

In addition to trend presentations, attendees can learn from an all-star panel of Men’s barbering, skin, shave and hair masters at the “Pass the Mic” Barber Forum moderated by James Wealthy. The Ultimate Beauty Competition will showcase the work of students at Aveda, Empire, Paul Mitchell and Pro Way Hair Schools. This friendly display of school pride will challenge students to innovate by pushing the boundaries of traditional concepts. Closing out February’s trilogy experience is a “Power Session “with renowned motivational speaker Dr. Les Brown and co-founder of PriceLine, Jeff Hoffman.