ANTIGUA & BARBUDA HOTELS & TOURISM ASSOCIATION

The twin island paradise was recently promoted during two tradeshows in the United States and Canada.
 
During the Canadian leg, several local tourism stakeholders joined force at the Salon International de Tourism Voyages in Montreal between the 19th and 21st of October.
 
The three-day consumer show attracted about forty thousand Quebec residents who were informed about the twin-island state through the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority and Antigua Hotels and Tourist Association.

 
Other partners representing the country were Patrick Ryan from Tropical Adventures, Stanley Francis of the National Tours and Rex Resorts. Tourism Director for Canada, Erica Henry-Jackman was also on hand to promote the destination to the Canadians.
 
According to General Manager of AHTA, Neil Forrester, “With the introduction of West Jet into the travel industry here, we (tourism officials) need to find at least an additional six thousand visitors from Canada for the upcoming season”.
 
He says, “We will be working with our principle travel partners, Air Canada Vacations, Transat Vacations and West Jet Vacations, to help boost this market”.
 
At present, two weekly direct flights from Montreal are available to visitors along with Air Canada and Air Transat.
 
Meanwhile, a team also represented Antigua and Barbuda at the OSSN Home-Based Agents Forum in Atlantic City on the 23rd and 24th.
 
Forrester notes that, “There is a large movement in the US towards home-based travel agents”, adding that this year, the educational forum saw the staging of an exhibition giving us the opportunity to promote the destination.
 
This is the third year AHTA has attended the event and partnered with Elite Island Resorts, Jolly Beach Resort, Rex Resorts, Tranquility Bay, Tropical Adventures and National Tours, to ensure that the US agents promote the destination to their customers.
 
About one thousand travel agents participated in the show from various markets, to include New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia.