Johnson Johnrose
Monday, October 31, 2011
The Caribbean will celebrate its vibrancy, diversity and unique holiday attributes by observing Caribbean Tourism Month in November. CTO member countries have organised activities to bring attention to the importance of tourism to the Caribbean and to showcase the region's vibrant culture and rich heritage.
St. Kitts and Nevis, for example, which over the past six years celebrated Tourism Awareness Month in October, has moved its celebration to November to coincide with Caribbean Tourism Month. Grenada, which also observed Tourism Awareness Month in October, has shifted the celebrations to November as well. Grenada's tourism minister, Hon. Peter David, talks about the programme, as well as tourism education in schools, on CTO TV in the right column of this newsletter. Tobago's "diverse menu of activities for both residents and visitors" include a formal opening at the ANR Robinson International Airport on 31 October, Heritage Trail and "Know your Coast" tours, a secondary schools talent competition, a tourism caravan travelling across the island to highlight the impact of tourism on communities and a "Tourism's Got Talent" show among staff of the division of tourism. In addition, every Wednesday during Caribbean Tourism Month, passengers arriving at the ANR International Airport will be greeted with cultural presentations.
CTO will launch the Month with a live television programme discussing the importance of tourism to the Caribbean, as well as tourism education and Total Visitor Satisfaction. This programme will air on the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC's) cable channel, Carib Vision at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Caribbean Time (check local cable company for listing). The CMC will also broadcast a series of other programmes, produced by CTO, during the month.
As part of the Caribbean Tourism Month programme, CTO also mounted a five-day campaign in the Daily Mirror and the Sunday Mirror newspapers in the UK. '25,000in prizes were offered during the campaign, with support from British Airways - which provided a pair of tickets each day - Rex Resorts, Almond Resorts, the Dominican Republic Tourist Board, LaSource Grenada and Harlequin Hotels and Resorts.
The main objectives of Caribbean Tourism Month are to raise awareness among the people of the Caribbean as to the importance of tourism to the development of the region; to generate media coverage of the Caribbean and local tourism produce and to celebrate the diversity of the Caribbean tourism product. The theme is One Sea, One Sun, One Caribbean, however, member countries also incorporate their own local themes into the celebration.
