Showcase Antigua Barbuda begins today with the Destination Roundtable, leading off the three day event scheduled from June 8 – June 10.
The Destination Roundtable, a new initiative introduced to Showcase Antigua and Barbuda, brought tourism stakeholders together for an interactive discussion on the future of the tourism sector on Antigua and Barbuda.
Minister of Tourism and Investment, The Honourable Charles Fernandez presented on Vision 2032, a people-centred vision crafted through investigation of the tourism product and in consultation with tourism stakeholders including industry leaders, tourism operators and the general public.
“When we listened to our stakeholders, and what was important to them, it was clear that the vision for the tourism industry of Antigua and Barbuda would need to be characterized by sustainability, authentic experiences, benefits to Antiguans and Barbudans, a strong legislative and policy framework, and a highly qualified labour force.
Through stakeholder feedback, a Vision 2032 statement was formed. The Vision 2032 statement reads:
βπΎπ ππππππππ π¨ππππππ πππ π©πππππ π ππ πππ πππππππππ π ππππππππππ ππ πππ πͺππππππππ ππππππ πππ ππππ πππππ . πΎπ ππππππππ π πππππππππ πππππππππ πππ πππππππππ πππππππππππ ππππ πππππππππ πππ ππππππ πππππππ, πππππππ, π ππππππππ πππ ππππππ ππ ππππ π¨ππππππ πππ π©πππππ π. πΎπ ππππππππ π πππ πππ πππ πππππ -πππππ πππππππ πππ πππππ ππππ ππππππππ πππ ππππππππ π ππππππππππ ππ π¨ππππππ πππ π©πππππ π πππ ππππππ πππ πππππ πππ ππ ππππππ ππ πππ ππππππππ πππ πππππ ππππ ππ π ππππππ ππππ πππππππππ πππ πππππππ πππππππππ ππππ πππππ πππ ππππππ ππ πππ πππππππ πππ πππππ π πππππ π.β
The Minister called on stakeholders to get involved in making this vision a reality.
The Hon. Denise Charles, Minister of Tourism, International Transport and Maritime Initiatives, Dominica, was the feature speaker at the event. She called for regional integration and the need for the Caribbean islands to collaborate as we worked towards recovering from the pandemic.
Colin C. James, CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority offered a comprehensive destination overview on activities within the source markets and tourism developments.
The discussion also saw speakers from varying companies making presentations that provided insight into future marketing trends, trends in travel, the future of air travel, and the post pandemic traveler.
Speakers included: Paula Whitehead, Strategic Director, Resort Marketing International, Michael Pewther, Head of International, Frontier Airlines, Helena Beard, Contributing Writer TravelMole and Mariel Polanco, Marketing Manager, Expedia.
Now in its 7th year, Showcase Antigua Barbuda is the premier travel trade business to business event, for Antigua and Barbuda. The annual B2B event hosted by the Antigua & Barbuda Hotels and Tourism Association, in collaboration with the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, attracts major tour operators from the Caribbean, Latin America, North America, the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United Arab Emirates.
The event which has been absent from the destinationβs calendar for the past two years due to the pandemic, focuses on networking with one-on-one meetings with Antigua and Barbudaβs leading tourism and hospitality related businesses, and provides attendees the opportunity to directly experience the destinationβs offerings of, Culture & Heritage, Wellness, Romance, as well as Yachting & Sailing.
Ministry of Tourism, and Investment.
