Day two of small hotels retreat begins

By Melissa Bryant
Reporter - SKNVibes.com

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – HOTELIERS and other stakeholders in the tourism accommodation industry had the opportunity yesterday (Oct. 2) to view exhibitions by regional and international traders, who displayed products including clothing, landscaping services and all-natural body lotions and bath oils.

The trade show marked the second day of the Small Hotels Retreat being held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort and Royal Beach Casino.

Following the trade show, there was a panel discussion entitled “The State of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Industry – An Overview”.

The panellists were Sir Royston Hopkin, President of the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism; Peter Odle, former president of the CHTA; Sue Springer, president of the Caribbean Society of Hotel Association Executives; and Bill Clegg, regional vice-president of Choice Hotels International.

Airline scheduling, the cost of resources, safety and security, and the development of human resources were highlighted as major challenges facing the region and the consensus of the panel was that the latter was due the most importance.

“Hoteliers must invest in their human resources. Employees need to feel as if they are an integral part of the hotel’s operations. If a hotel’s customer service package is unappealing, then that hotel will not function at its highest level.

“Marketing an inferior product is counterproductive. We have to ensure all the components of our tourism package are of utmost quality.”

The retreat will end today (Oct. 3) when the Retreat attendees will discuss innovative marketing strategies.

~~Adz:Left~~