Caribbean News
Turks and Caicos Returns to CHTA Caribbean Marketplace
San Juan, Puerto Rico, October 12, 2022 – The Turks & Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association (TCHTA) and Turks and Caicos Tourist Board presented an impressive representation at the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s 40th annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace held October 3rd-5th.
The region’s largest travel forum made a high-energy and heartwarming return to its live format this year, hosted by Discover Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Hotel & Tourism Association.
Karen Whitt, TCHTA Board Director and Marketing Chair for the regional event shared, “It was a beautiful reunion of the travel community. After nearly 3 years of virtual communications, the excitement to engage with travel partners and friends was palpable. As Lead for the event, I was very proud to have such strong participation from Turks and Caicos. There is a beautiful shift happening right now as the region is moving into a mode of growth, so to have our destination here ensuring our brand is front and center is priceless.”
The TCHTA, Turks & Caicos Tourist Board, The Hartling Group properties, Ocean Club Resorts, Tides Grace Bay, interCaribbean Airways, The Somerset, Villa Renaissance, and Seven Stars Resort were all a part of the delegation representing ‘brand TCI’.
Tanya Duelfer, Managing Director of U.S. Operations for Ocean Club Resorts shared why Ocean Club Resorts is always represented at the annual Marketplace, “Events like this where you can talk with your island and at-large partners is tremendously effective on keeping a pulse on the industry and market trends.” As for the feeling of the entire event she said, “It was good to finally be back, in person. We’ve worked hard over the years to establish Ocean Club Resorts within the TCI resort community and build strong relationships with our market partners. Being together in person…it’s so important for those relationships.”
This year, the Destination Resilience Awards were introduced with Turks and Caicos claiming the number one spot in the Human Resources and Staffing Category won by Grace Bay Car Rentals & Sales. The company nabbed the top stop by demonstrating their ability to maintain their employees throughout closure, support community food basket initiatives, provide personal and professional development opportunities to team members, new developments in the business operation, and their focus on sustainability. TCHTA CEO, Stacy Cox, accepted the award of GBCR’s behalf.
More than 1100 delegates from 28 countries, representatives from 19 buyer markets, and 350 supplier companies attended this year’s Marketplace resulting in over 14,000 appointments. The regional forum saw new interest with buyers from Latvia, Poland, Mexico, and India participating for the first time.
The meeting floor was busy throughout, and the State of the Caribbean Hospitality Industry Address delivered by CHTA President Nicola Madden-Greig revealed that the Caribbean has now shifted from recovery to growth mode with affluent travellers driving that momentum. Data shows that the South America market should be a focus for the region, and that sustainable policies must be at the forefront of the region’s growth plan. She also told travel stakeholders that regional and multi-destination travel is another growth opportunity to be explored.
A key component of the Caribbean Marketplace is the destinations’ opportunity for an up-close and personal experience with the fourth estate. Updates, new brand campaigns, new developments, and features are shared with local, regional, and international journalists.
The Turks and Caicos press conference was led by CEO of the TCHTA, Stacy Cox, and Acting Director of the Tourist Board, Mary Lightbourne. Starting off the session with a vibrant video presentation produced by TCHTA members Visual Storytelling and SOS Media, Cox and Lightbourne shared industry updates on recent and upcoming resort openings; the $25m investment slated for the cruise sector; plans for the new Providenciales and South Caicos terminals; the destination’s recent awards and sustainability efforts; and the ongoing DMO transition. Feedback from media was outstanding, and interest remains piqued for projects in the pipeline in Turks and Caicos.
With forty-five appointments in two days, Turks and Caicos is still trending as a top destination among buyers and their clients. The TCHTA CEO shared, “There is nothing quite like these touchpoints with the travel community to gauge interest from buyers. We couldn’t be more pleased with the positive feedback we’ve received. Turks and Caicos is still top of mind for travel.”
Cox was also the recipient of a commemorative plaque in appreciation of her leadership as President of the Caribbean Society of Hotel Association Executives (CSHAE) from 2017-2020. “Reconnecting with fellow Association Executives from the region was also an invaluable part of the experience. This is always a great opportunity to hear how other destinations are faring, share best practices, and build relationships with incoming executives for continued dialogue and partnership with our brothers and sisters in the region.”
Marketplace is set apart as the Caribbean’s largest tourism marketing event and is one that many TCHTA member properties ensure is a part of their annual marketing calendar. Snjezana Andrews, General Manager of The Somerset on Grace Bay, shared her property’s interest in attending, “The event, I feel, could not have been at a more opportune time to re-energize our base, revitalize existing relationships that may have fell off and make new ones; a great “meet and greet” to put faces to names and actually restore the human connection of face-to-face interactions. The buyers were vibrant and ready to link with its industry partners, and based on the overall feel of the event, the sellers showed just as much enthusiasm. I know that I did! … Kudos to CHTA for making this all possible again as we all travel the road back to normalcy!”
The CHTA has announced that it will likely produce the next Caribbean Marketplace event as soon as Spring 2023, with a host destination to be announced soon.