 Miami—Peter Odle, owner and managing director of the 76-room Mango Bay Hotel in Barbados assumed the presidency of the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA) with a new pledge: “Unity through Consultation and Communication.” In his inaugural speech during the Closing Gala of the 2006 Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference, Odle appealed to the CHA to unify with other members of the Caribbean travel and meetings industry. “It is clear to me that one of the first steps is that we do all that is necessary to be a more effective leader in regional tourism while strengthening our relationships with other Caribbean Tourism Partners, particularly the CTO” said Odle.
Odle also wants to broaden membership and encourage a more pan-Caribbean marketing philosophy. "It is also the right time for the CHA to launch a vigorous membership drive that must reach out to all properties across the Caribbean who could benefit from our training programs," said Odle. "We must include more properties from the Dutch, French and Spanish speaking Caribbean… the Caribbean is not generally seen as a region of separate resorts by travelers nor by industry buyers. It is seen as a holistic destination. Therefore, we too must also stop seeing ourselves as a fragmented group of individual islands and begin to be more integrated."
The Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference was held June 25-28, 2006, at the Hyatt Regency Miami. More than 1,000 delegates—representing hotel and tourism businesses from 30 countries—attended the event. In conjunction with the Conference, American Express held its annual ‘Salute to the Stars of the Caribbean’ Awards Luncheon. Avril Patricia Culley, activities coordinator, Aruba Phoenix Beach Resort, was awarded 2006 Employee of the Year, and Raymond V. Lowe, maintenance manager, at Green Turtle Club in Bahamas was awarded 2006 Supervisor of the Year.
"This year we noticed that volunteering and community-based work is an increasingly growing trend and is becoming an essential aspect of the nominations," said Dianelys Rodríguez, vice president of American Express Establishment Services—Latin America & Caribbean. "We are even more pleased that the tourism industry is recognizing the impact of these social responsibility initiatives."
In addition to Odle assuming the CHA presidency, other CHA officers were announced: First Vice President—Allen Chastanet of Coco Resort, St. Lucia; Second Vice President—Jeremy MacVean, Comfort Suites Paradise Island, Bahamas; Third Vice President— Richard Doumeng, Bolongo Bay Beach Resort, St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands; Fourth Vice President—John Lynch, Sandals, Jamaica; Fifth Vice President—Enrique de Marchena, Sun Village Resorts, Dominican Republic,; Treasurer—Jag Mehta, SuperClubs, Jamaica; outgoing CHA President, Berthia Parle, MBE, Bay Gardens, St. Lucia, assumed the office of Chairwoman.
The CHA is dedicated to excellence in hospitality, and sustainable growth in tourism aims to be a regional forum advancing the Caribbean hotel, tourism and meetings industry. The members of CHA represent the entire spectrum of hospitality industry’s private sector, including 835 member hotels in 36 national hotel associations and 520 allied members including airline executives, tour operators, travel agents, and restaurant suppliers. |
