President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) Patricia Affonso-Dass (pictured above with CHTA Director General and CEO Frank Comito) hailed the diversity of the region, its incredible natural beauty and people as core strengths as she called for the Caribbean to be better known as the most welcoming region in the world.

Kicking off the 37th annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace, the Caribbean’s largest tourism marketing event, in Montego Bay, Jamaica yesterday evening, the Barbados-based hotelier said it was time to change the way the world references the region, “from the most tourism-dependent in the world to the world’s most desirable, most tolerant and inclusive, most welcoming, most hospitable, most facilitative and investment-friendly, and most environmentally sensitive region in the world.”

Speaking on behalf of the region’s preeminent private sector trade association and its 33 national hotel and tourism associations, the president warmly welcomed delegates to the conference.

Caribbean Travel Marketplace is hosting the largest group of buyers in its history from the widest number of countries. Sixty new buyer companies out of about 145 have joined the conference this year and CHTA is welcoming the largest contingent of Chinese travel buyers to date along with new buyer companies from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, India, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Poland, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

“Our relationship with you, our buyer partners, and your active engagement in promoting and selling our region is integral to the sustainability of our economies and, by extension, the livelihood of our people, and I would like to encourage you to get more actively engaged with the association,” she implored. “The diversity of buyers attending Marketplace from around the world ironically reflects the diversity of our Caribbean offerings – a united region with an incredible array of offerings with their own distinct natural beauty, history and culture. This is one of our core strengths,” she added.

Pointing to the region’s people, she wants the Caribbean to be known as a region where genuine service is delivered by “regionally proud, highly trained professionals who understand the critical importance of their role and their importance to the success, sustainability and economic viability of the region.”

Affonso-Dass, who has championed the theme of “people development” even prior to assuming the role of president last year, asserted that the people of the region are “our most important asset and our most marketable commodity.”

In a world that often appears dominated by divisiveness, fear and uncertainty, the CHTA president’s dream is for the Caribbean region “to continue to stand strong and united, to be synonymous with a genuine welcome, an authentic experience and excellent service delivered with soul and pride.”

She told the 1,000 delegates attending the opening reception that “more and more of our customers are telling us that what they are seeking is a personal connection with our people, a genuine experience, and an opportunity to feel that their being here makes a positive difference. Our responsibility is to ensure that our people have the right training, real opportunities for development and a chance to derive the greatest value for themselves and their families from the industry in which they work.”

2019 Caribbean Hotelier of The Year

Sunil Chatrani, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Elegant Hotels Group, is the Caribbean’s 2019 Hotelier of the Year. The Guyanese-born, Barbados-based hotelier received the top honor at the CHTA’s opening event in Montego Bay. Pictured above Hotelier Sunil Chatrani (center) receives his award from CHTA’s Director General Frank Comito (left) and CHTA President Patricia Affonso-Dass.

Chatrani has worked in hotel operations for more than 20 years and currently presides over Elegant’s operations of seven hotels and resorts in Barbados, including Crystal Cove Hotel, Turtle Beach Resort, Waves Hotel and Spa, The House, Colony Club Hotel, Tamarind and Treasure Beach Hotel. The group also includes the acclaimed Daphne’s Restaurant on Barbados’ west coast, sister eatery to Daphne’s Restaurant in London.

The exceptional hotelier joined Elegant Hotels Group in 2010, and under his leadership the group recently signed its first management contract in Antigua (with Hodges Bay Resort & Spa) as well as a sales and marketing agreement with The Landings Resort and Spa in St. Lucia.

“It is very overwhelming. The truth is all of us in the industry work very hard on a daily basis and so many other hoteliers are deserving of this,” said an elated Chatrani, who thanked the team at Elegant Hotels and his family for their support.

Chatrani’s winning developmental strategy builds the profitability of each property with a focused three-step program: Refurbish, Reposition, Reprice. This strategy promotes continuous investment and improvement.

In addition to day-to-day maintenance and regular refurbishment, Chatrani also manages a central fund for financing larger projects each year. He believes that this, as well as the group’s outstanding training and service programs, generates tangible improvements in the guest experience at the Elegant Hotels Group properties.

“Sunil is a true Caribbean success story,” opined Frank Comito, CHTA’s CEO and Director General. “His professional accomplishments have been outstanding, and his commitment to staff and community development is nothing short of exemplary.”

Chatrani was Chairman of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association from 2014 to 2016. During the first part of his tenure, he ensured that agreements which helped all hotels finalize access to duty-free concessions were legislated. He is currently Chairman of the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) and the Barbados Tourism Product Authority (BTPA).

In other CHTA news the CHTA president thanked those in attendance who are supporting the CHTA Education Foundation, calling on more of the delegates to invest in the region’s people. To date the foundation has awarded scholarships to more than 400 Caribbean nationals and in 2018 provided certificate training to several hundred employees.

Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2019 is produced by CHTA in collaboration with co-hosts the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association, the Jamaica Tourist Board and the Jamaica Ministry of Tourism. It is the leading event in the Caribbean tourism industry where delegates from Caribbean countries meet with buyers from more than 20 markets.

This year’s host sponsors are Appleton Estate Rum Experience, Interval International, Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association, Jamaica Tourist Board, Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, JetBlue Vacations, MasterCard, Sandals and Scotiabank, while Platinum sponsors include 7 Pillars: Marketing on Demand, Adara, AMResorts, Figment Design, Marketplace Excellence, OBMI, Sojern, STR, TravelClick, Travelzoo, and the United States Virgin Islands.

Gold sponsors are AeroMD, American Airlines, ARDA, Arrivalist, Best Western International, BlackDoctor.Org, Bonnier Corporation, Caribbean Airlines, Caribbean Journal, Condé Nast Traveler, Delta Air Lines, The Discoverer, EPICA, Expedia Group, FirstCaribbean International Bank, Flip.to, Golf Channel, HCP Media, HEBS Digital, Matador Network, Meredith, NextPax, The New York Times, Northstar Travel Group, Prevue magazine, Questex, Rainmaker, Recommend magazine, Robb Report, Simpleview, SiteMinder, St. Maarten, St. Martin, TL Cooper Media, travAlliancemedia, Travel + Leisure, Travel Relations, TravPRO Mobile, TripAdvisor, Trip Mate, and The Wall Street Journal.

Caribbean Hotel and Travel Association, www.caribbeanhotelandtourism.com

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