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The Best Affordable Island Hotels
Travel and Leisure in partnership with CNN has pinpointed affordable island hotels and has made a point that although the pricing is low, there is so much more going for those charming hotels.
At no surprise to the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association, our member Auberge Seraphine is on this treasured list.
“A big hit with honeymooners, the lush Caribbean island of St. Lucia can also take a big hit on your wallet, thanks to its slew of high-end resorts. Not so at this sweet family-run hotel near Castries, named Auberge Seraphine, on the northwest coast. There’s no beach here, but the auberge has a lovely pool and is on sailboat-packed Vielle Bay, close to a large lily pad–filled pond popular with hundreds of white egrets. Snag a table at the on-site restaurant for seafood risotto and lobster.”
We at the SLHTA are proud that our member hotel has been selected for this list.
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On Tuesday, October 29, 2013, the Saint Lucia Tourist Board (SLTB), the island’s lead tourism promotions and marketing agency convened another one of its periodic News Conferences as a means of keeping the media and by extension Saint Lucian society abreast with the many plans, programmes and outreach interventions of the agency.
Minister for Tourism Heritage and Creative Industries, Hon. Lorne Theophilus led the News Conference and was also joined by senior Tourism Officials among them Director of Tourism Louis Lewis and Deputy Director of Tourism Tracey Warner-Arnold.
Among the issues down for discussion were:
1) An Update on visitor performance for the year
2) An update on Regional French Market performance
3) Summary on the just concluded Wedding Symposium
4) The Upcoming Health and Wellness Retreat (November 1-3, 2013)
5) Latest destination Awards – among them is SLU’s win as Sexiest Romance/Honeymoon Destination – Caribbeanby Recommend Magazineand twonominations in two categories (World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination & World’s Leading Island Destination)for the 20th Annual World Travel Awards.
6) Update on the FCCA Conference
7) TV Campaign in NY and Miami
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Chef’s Table
On Friday, November 01, 2013 the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association hosted their Chef’s Table luncheon at Sandals Grande St. Lucian Spa and Beach Resort.
The SLHTA as part of its annual calendar of activities, hosts a monthly luncheon of owners and representatives of Large and Luxury Hotels on the island dubbed the Chef’s Table. The gathering at this roundtable and luncheon discusses issues of significant impact on this specific sub-sector seeking to gain meaningful insights from presenters and invited guests.
The Saint Lucia Tourist Board was the guest presenter and the Director of Tourism discussed the Marketing and Industries Update and also the Board’s initiatives pertinent to the needs of the Tourism Industry.
The Agenda was as follows;
1. Welcome Remarks – Mr. Noorani Azeez
2. Brief Remarks – Mr. Carl Beviere
3. Table Introduction
4. Opening Remarks – Representative from the Ministry of Tourism, Heritage and the Creative Industries
5. Presentation – Saint Lucia Tourist Board
a. Questions and Open Discussion
6. Presentation – Visitor Channel
a. Questions and Open Discussion
7. Any Other Business
a. Tourism Enhancement Fund
b. Questions and Open Discussion
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Cut back on the office waste stream by establishing an eco-friendly kitchen facility with reusable coffee mugs, drinking glasses, dishes and silverware; have recycling bins handy for beverage containers. Bring a homemade lunch to work, which reduces packaging and allows you to eat organic. To reduce bottled water waste, make sure your company provides a good source of drinking water; give employees a reusable bottle with the company logo. Opt for organic and fair trade coffees and teas, and buy organic and local food for office gatherings and events.
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100% Local Wellness Village
Saint Lucia Tourist Board’s Health & Wellness event product sets out to attract a new visitor segment, while increasing arrivals in a low occupancy period. Where Jazz & Arts required major work in building on what was already in place indigenously Saint Lucian however, Health & Wellness only needed to link Saint Lucia’s name internationally with an idea that already has traction across the globe – wellness, nature’s way. Saint Lucia’s ample natural features and resources are authentic, and with due care, inexhaustible. Then there is the island’s award-winning tourism plant, which commands top ranking in some very influential areas – weddings, honeymoons, cuisine and Festivals.
A partnership between the Saint Lucia Tourist Board’s and the OPSR-TEPA for the 2013 Saint Lucia Health & Wellness retreat is specifically about leveraging the Health & Wellness Retreat platform for the exposure and marketing reach of locally based producers and service providers. The Saint Lucia Tourist Board’s core mandate is destination marketing, while that of the OPSR-TEPA is Trade and Export promotion. The key outcome of this collaboration is a wellness village, maximizing visibility for local businesses, in the hopes of developing export-ready products and services that can find their niche within the fast growing global wellness industry.
A number of established, experienced and in some instances – awarding producers are on the list. Critically, most are export certified, with levels of quality management and capacity to supply which will satisfy prospective buyer requirements. These local establishments are hoping to increase their visibility and consequently exports after the retreat. Companies seeking to take advantage of the opportunities from the Health and Wellness Retreat include,Eden Herbs, The Great Physician, Rainforest Ltd, Dlo Koko,St. Lucia HoneyProducers,Natmed, Plas Kassav, Viga MossProducts,Felly Belly, Back to Roots, Ministry of Agriculture, St. Lucia BayRum Ltd,Chem Solutions, St. Lucia SpaAssociation.
A partnership has also been forged with Yoplait, brand sponsors of the annual walk for a cure, which coincides with the timing of the annual retreat this year. Other partners are Caribbean Super Station and The Wave.
The Wellness Village will be hosted on November 01-03, at the Pigeon Island National Landmark from 9am-5pm. Enterance fee into the park is EC$7.00. Participation in the Yoplait Walk for Cancer on November 03, 2013 is $15.00 for registration. The walk is from Mega J to Pigeon Island National Landmark from6:00am.
The SLHTA would like to invite all members and their employees to embark in a weekend of Health and Wellness.
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Spafinder Recognizes The BodyHoliday
Founded more than 25 years ago, Spafinder Wellness, Inc., is the world’s largest media, marketing and gifting company for the wellness industry. With a finger on the pulse of what’s time-trending and what’s time-tested, the company guides the industry, partners, consumers and employers with the most comprehensive resource for wellness-related products, services and insight. Millions of people find inspiration to keep well every day via the Spafinder Wellness 365 brand.
With their commitment to assist person finding their own path from the inside out, Spafinder Wellness 365 prides themselves in knowing that good health requires a holistic approach, from how someone moves to how they feel, from the mental to the physical, thy confess it is a 365-day affair.
Recently Spafinder has categorized their Readers’ Choice Award for 2013, and our prestigious and well-known ideological wellness center, The BodyHoliday LeSPORT has been placed in three categorize. BodyHoliday is recognized for Favorite Spa for Fitness Programme, Best Beach Spa and the coveted winner for the entire Caribbean Islands.
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Jade Mountain welcomes their new GM Peter Brauer
A German national born in Colombia, Peter began at a young age his career in the hospitality industry in Germany, working at the exclusive French restaurant, Rotisserie Nantaise in Saarbruecken, under the leadership of multiple award winning Master Chef-Owner Reiner Hamdorf. After graduating from the Swiss Hotel Management School in Lucerne, he spent the following seven years in Switzerland working and honing his skills in the kitchen, restaurant service and the front desk at world famous luxury hotels such as the Suvretta House in St. Moritz, the Montreux Palace in Montreux and the Grand Hotel Eden au Lac in Lugano.
After close to two years at the London Hilton on Park Lane, Peter started a long international career with Hilton International having been hired as part of the opening team of the newly built Cartagena Hilton in the Caribbean coast of Colombia. It was also in Cartagena where he met and got married to his wife Kathy. Company transfers within Hilton International took him later to Sao Paulo, Brazil where his two daughters were born, and then to the United States where he started as the Director of Food & Beverage at The Drake Hotel in Chicago.
After twelve years in the US and Canada he then made a career change, leaving the large convention hotels, to manage resorts such as the Aventura Palace Resort in the Riviera Maya, followed by Sandals Resorts in the Bahamas, Jamaica and St. Lucia. During the last five years Peter has turned his professional expertise to manage small luxury boutique hotels, not only in the Caribbean but also in California.
Whenever he finds an opportunity, Peter likes to go deep sea fishing, but also enjoys other water sports such as windsurfing and diving.
We at the SLHTA welcome Peter to our island and wish him the best in his endeavors at Jade Mountain.
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St. Lucia gets Two Nominations at
World Travel Awards
It has been announced that St. Lucia has received two nominations in the 20th annual World Travel Awards for the “World” category. The nominations are for World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination and World’s Leading Island Destination.
Speaking at a Press Conference on Tuesday, October 29, 2013, the Director of Tourism, Mr. Louis Lewis stated that they are privilege to be nominated again and anxiously awaits the results, as it would be the 11th win for Saint Lucia for World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination.
The World Travel Awards was founded in 1993 to recognize, acknowledge and reward excellence in the travel, tourism and hospitality industry worldwide. Now celebrating their 20th anniversary, World Travel Awards is recognized globally as the hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.
The official online voting for World will open on 17th October at www.worldtravelawards.com/ vote and will conclude on 10th November 2013. Votes are cast by travel, tourism and hospitality professionals and the consumer traveller whether leisure or business. A vote cast by a registered travel professional carries a weighting of two votes. |
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Federal Reserve Board Issues
Redesigned $100 Note
The Federal Reserve on Tuesday began supplying financial institutions with a redesigned $100 note that incorporates new security features to deter counterfeiters and help businesses and consumers tell whether a note is genuine. Distance, demand, and the policies of individual financial institutions will influence how quickly the redesigned notes reach businesses and consumers around the world.
“The new design incorporates security features that make it easier to authenticate, but harder to replicate,” said Federal Reserve Board Governor Jerome H. Powell. “As the new note transitions into daily transactions, the user-friendly security features will allow the public to more easily verify its authenticity.”
The Federal Reserve, U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and the U.S. Secret Service partner to redesign Federal Reserve notes to stay ahead of counterfeiting threats. The redesigned $100 note includes two new security features: a blue 3-D security ribbon with images of bells and 100s, and a color-changing bell in an inkwell. The new features, and additional features retained from the previous design, such as a watermark, offer the public a simple way to visually authenticate the redesigned $100 note.
Consumers worldwide are advised that it is not necessary to trade in older-design $100 notes for new ones. It is U.S. government policy that all designs of U.S. currency remain legal tender, regardless of when they were issued.
For more information about the new design $100 note, as well as training and educational materials, visit www.newmoney.gov. |
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Monroe College Targets Real Estate Agents
Monroe College, Saint Lucia Campus, in association with the Realtors’ Association (Saint Lucia) Ltd. is presently offering a certificate course in Real Estate Practice and Education. An orientation ceremony was held earlier this month for the 20 students registered in the programme. They reflect a range of professional experiences – from the seasoned agents to those who can be considered relatively new entrants to the field.
In welcoming students to Monroe College and to the course, Ms. Heather Floissac, President of the Association, and Dr. Alex Ephrem, Senior Vice President at the Monroe College Saint Lucia Campus, remarked that such a programme could not come at a better time as there has been an increase in persons going into real estate as a career. This new Real Estate Practice and Education course explores real estate terminology and law as well as a review of the theories and practices of real estate.
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