Anguilla Tourist Board honours travel industry partners with awards
Anguilla 40 Awards honour travel agents, tour operators, trade partners and travel media for helping to make Anguilla a destination of choice for the world’s most discerning travellers
New York, NY, USA (June 6, 2007) – As part of an ongoing celebration of the 40th anniversary of the island’s secession from St Kitt’s, the Anguilla Tourist Board last night honoured key travel industry partners with the Anguilla 40 Awards. The awards, presented as part of a gala dinner event at the Pierre Hotel, singled out a tour operator, travel agent, trade partner and travel media member who have been instrumental in the rise of Anguilla to its position as one of the premier island destinations for the world’s most discerning travellers.
“The transformation of our island, which began in the late ‘70s and accelerated during the ‘80s and ‘90s, has been nothing short of remarkable,” said Anguilla Director of Tourism, Amelia Vanterpool-Kubisch. “We enjoy one of the highest standards of living and per capita incomes in the Caribbean, we have full employment, and most importantly, through it all, we have retained the unique and distinctive character of our island.
“As we reflected on the immense strides we have made as a country, particularly in the area of tourism, we also acknowledged that our good fortune is due in large part to the unwavering support and generous efforts of our friends and partners in the travel industry,” Vanterpool-Kubisch continued.
The first award of the evening, the Anguilla 40 Travel Agent Award, went to Priscilla Alexander, president and founder of Protravel International. Over the past 23 years, Alexander has built her company into one of the world’s largest retail travel agencies, with 500 agents in more than 20 locations and multiple home site offices across the nation. In addition to robust business and group travel, Protravel is the largest independent seller of luxury vacations and boasts a client list that includes leading figures in the worlds of entertainment and finance.
“We are delighted to honour Priscilla Alexander for her profound dedication to our island and tourism industry,” said The Honorable Donna Banks, Special Advisor, Tourism, “and for her unmatched ability to inspire her agents to create unique and memorable experiences for each and every client.”
The Anguilla 40 Tour Operator Award went to Michelle Kassner, president of GOGO Worldwide Vacations. Kassner leads GOGO’s more than 20,000 travel agents at 50 offices across America. She has been instrumental not only in growing the company’s large and diverse product line, but also in expanding its educational learning conferences for agents and delivering up-to-the-minute information and resources through an agent-exclusive website.
“For more than half a century,” said Banks, “GOGO Worldwide Vacations has understood the value Americans place on travel agents to build and deliver extraordinary travel experiences, which, of course, is what Anguilla is all about.”
The Anguilla 40 Travel Writer Award was presented to renowned journalist Ian Keown, whose work in the world of high-end travel media is regularly found in leading publications, including Condé Nast Traveler, Departures, The New York Times and many others.
“Ian’s sophisticated eye for the best of the best has legions of devoted readers following his every adventure and in many cases, following close on his heels for their own journeys,” said Banks. “His brilliant descriptions of our understated chic, endless beaches and luxurious resorts’ experiences helped to define for the whole world what the Anguilla experience is all about.”
The evening’s final award honoured American Eagle. Now celebrating its 20th year of flights to the island, American Eagle was recognized for its role as one of Anguilla’s most valued travel partners.
“We truly cannot say enough about what our partnership with American Eagle has meant and continues to mean to our tourism efforts. We look forward to many more years together as we work to bring the whole world to our world,” concluded The Honorable Victor F Banks, Minister of Tourism.
To learn more about Anguilla, contact the Anguilla Tourist Board at 1-877-4 ANGUILLA.
For your FREE on-line Anguilla travel guide, visit www.caribbean.com.
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