ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY

The Ministry of Tourism and The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority has announced a consolidation of its European offices as part of a restructuring and efficiency drive for 2011.

Against the backdrop of a rise in arrivals out of the UK for the last quarter of 2010 and the additional seats to the destination from the UK market, The Tourism Authority's new Chelmsford UK office will be the Head Quarters for European activities as the destination seeks to grow market share from Europe and drive greater efficiencies in its operations.

This move will ensure the majority of resources are solely dedicated to the marketing effort.

Director Werner Giersch who has headed up the German office will be retiring after 22 years of outstanding service to Antigua and Barbuda. The other team members in the German office, Sabrina Luetcke and Nina Brauckmann are due to start new ventures in the New Year.

The office in Italy, which was headed by Miss Yvonne Fisher, will also be closed with responsibilities re-aligned to the UK office as part of the restructure. These changes take effect from 1 January 2011.

I would like to extend warm and sincere thanks for the sterling contribution made over the years by Dr Giersch and his team and Miss Yvonne Fisher to Antigua and Barbuda's tourism development. I wish them the very best in their future endeavours.

The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority remains committed to its key European markets and will continue to provide seamless representation to all our travel partners and clients.

Effective from 1 January 2011, all enquires and responsibilities for Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Northern and Eastern Europe and Italy will be handled out of the UK office. For any queries regarding the UK and Europe, please contact Mr P Hilary Modeste, Director of UK & Europe on hilary.modeste@aandbtourism.com