Posted by: Editor on Jul 31, 2006 – 10:34 AM
newsandinfo The new level of cooperation between the region’s tourism public and private sectors will be reflected at this year’s leading Caribbean tourism information exchange and networking event, the 29th Annual Caribbean Tourism Conference (CTC-29), which is taking place Oct. 22-25 on Grand Bahama Island.
The stage is already set with the selection of a theme – Cooperation, Innovation, Rejuvenation: Creating a Brand New Caribbean — that encapsulates the current status of Caribbean tourism and invites conference delegates to become centrally involved in the energy that propels this industry, the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), organizers of the conference, has said.
“Ever since the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation and Understanding last year between CTO, the Caribbean’s leading tourism development agency, and the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA), its private sector partner, at CTC-28 in the United States Virgin Islands, the spirit of cooperation has influenced a range of relationships at all levels,” said Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, secretary general of the CTO.
“That cooperation has spawned fresh, new thinking and is inspiring tourism practitioners in both the public and private sector to think more creatively and innovatively about the future,” added Vanderpool-Wallace. “Industry planners are realizing that when the forces of innovation work together, there is no limit to what can be accomplished.”
Earlier this year, CTO and CHA obtained joint ownership of the “Caribbean” brand and launched a new and vibrant Caribbean logo. This new Caribbean brand will also be the focus of the conference theme’s double entendre, a “Brand New” Caribbean.
“CTC-29 will not only provide the opportunity for delegates to participate in the evolution and development of this new ‘Caribbean’ brand, it will also demonstrate how they can benefit from it in ways, up until now, that never seemed possible,” Vanderpool-Wallace said.
The CTO, along with the Islands of the Bahamas, is currently finalizing the conference program, which is also expected to reflect the organization’s dedication to attracting the brightest and sharpest minds to Caribbean tourism in order to help rejuvenate and re-energize the industry while ensuring that visitors to the region enjoy a vacation experience that is of the highest quality.
The Westin and Sheraton Our Lucaya Resort on Grand Bahama Island is the host hotel for the CTC-29, which will be preceded by meetings of the ministers and commissioners of tourism; the Board of Directors and various CTO committees as well as events for travel agents and the media.
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The Caribbean Tourism Organization
The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), with headquarters in Barbados and marketing operations in New York, London and Toronto, is the Caribbean’s tourism development agency and comprises membership of over 30 governments and a myriad of private sector entities.
The CTO’s mission is to provide to and through its members, the services and information needed for the development of sustainable tourism for the economic and social benefit of the Caribbean people.
The organization provides specialized support and technical assistance to member countries in the areas of marketing, human resource development, research and statistics, information technology and sustainable tourism development. The CTO disseminates information on behalf of its member governments to consumers and the travel trade.
CTO’s New York office is located at
80 Broad Street,
32nd Floor,
New York, NY 10004,
USA;
Tel: (212) 635-9530;
Fax: (212) 635-9511;
E-mail: ctony@caribtourism.com
CTO’s London office is located at
22 The Quadrant,
Richmond,
Surrey
TW9 1BP,
England.
Tel: 011 44 208 948 0057;
Fax: 011 44 208 948 0067;
E-mail: ctolondon@caribtourism.com;
CTO Canada is located at
2 Bloor Street West,
Suite 2601,
Toronto,
Ontario M4W 3E2,
Canada.
Tel: (416) 935 0767;
Fax: (416) 935 0939.
E-mail ctotoronto@caribtourism.com
CTO Headquarters is located at
One Financial Place,
Collymore Rock,
St. Michael,
Barbados;
Tel: (246) 427-5242;
Fax: (246) 429-3065;
E-mail: ctobarbados@caribtourism.com
For more information, please visit www.doitcaribbean.com or www.onecaribbean.org