BASSETERRE St. Kitts (March 28, 2011) – From March 14-17, 2011, representatives from St. Kitts interacted with top executives and decision-makers in the cruise industry at the 27th Annual Seatrade Cruise Shipping Miami Convention, held in chic Miami Beach, Florida.
The delegation from St. Kitts was made up of individuals from both the private and public sector, as follows:
Alfonso O'garro, Chairman of the Board of Directors, St. Kitts Tourism Authority
Donald Freeman, Member of the Board of Directors, St. Kitts Tourism Authority
Melnecia Marshall, Product Standards and Cruise Manager, St. Kitts Tourism Authority
Stacey Gilbert, Product Standards and Cruise Officer, St. Kitts Tourism Authority
Delcia King, Head of Corporate Affairs and Public Relations, St. Christopher Air And Sea Port Authority
Terrence Crossman, General Manager and CEO, St. Christopher Air And Sea Port Authority
Marcellus Phillip, Chief Financial Officer, St. Christopher Air And Sea Port Authority
Errol Douglas, Chairman of the Board Directors, Urban Development Corporation
Errington Fyfield, Manager, Kantours
Denzil Crooke, Executive Director of Delisle Walwyn Ltd
Troy Hendrickson, Owner of Travel Masters Tours
Cherise Lewis, Member of the St. Kitts Nevis Taxi and Tours Association
“St. Kitts’ participation in this annual event helps us to foster our growth and continued success as a viable, desirable port of call for some of the world’s largest cruise lines,” said Al O’Garro, Chairman of the the St. Kitts Tourism Authority’s Board of Directors. “I would like to personally thank all the delegates who helped us showcase St. Kitts as we aim to drive additional cruise business to the island as well as those stakeholders who contributed to the overall success through their partnership with the Tourism Authority.”
Throughout the event, St. Kitts was promoted as a premier cruise destination with numerous attractions that is capable of accommodating even the largest of cruise ships. Key to this effort, St. Kitts debuted a brand new Cruise Destination Magazine created to provide information about the island as a port of call that will be distributed throughout North America and Europe.
Top executives from various cruise lines and organizations, including Carnival Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Silversea Cruises, the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), among others, were in attendance. Numerous show attendees visited the St. Kitts booth where representatives provided a first-hand experience of genuine Kittitian hospitality, offering useful information and answering questions about the island and what it can offer cruise passengers.
Representatives also attended various seminars, workshops and roundtable discussions covering the state of the cruise industry and other topics, including how destinations can best work with the cruise industry to create new vacation experiences.
ABOUT THE SHOW: Organized by CMP Information, Cruise Shipping Miami, or “Seatrade,” is the world’s largest annual cruise industry exhibition and conference, drawing more than 900 exhibiting companies and over 11,000 attendees. Bringing together top industry suppliers cruise line buyers and decision makers from around the world for a three-day exhibition and four-day conference, it serves all sectors of the global cruise industry from shipbuilding through services, technology, operations and destinations. The event’s Miami location is a vital element in its success, as the city is the primary home port and hub of the cruise industry. In 2010, the show attracted over 10,000 attendees and nearly 1,000 exhibiting companies from 118 countries.
For more information, visit http://www.cruiseshippingmiami.com.
In recent months, St. Kitts was named a top destination for 2011 by both AOL Travel and British Airways. Located in the northern Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, St. Kitts offers a diverse tourism product developed from the destination’s natural beauty, cultural heritage and rich history.
The island’s stunning variety of tourism attractions include hiking through the tropical rainforest, riding the scenic railway that connects the island’s former sugar plantations, visiting the Caribelle Batik factory, touring Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park, the only man-made UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Eastern Caribbean, and the more traditional vacation pastimes such as watersports, golf, shopping, tennis, gourmet dining, gaming at one of St. Kitts’ two casinos or simply relaxing on one of the island’s sandy beaches.
Accommodations range from intimate plantation inns to larger hotels or resorts.
