Caribbean Travel Forum 2022: Visioning the Future of Regional Tourism with Leading Experts

The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) will hold its third annual Caribbean Travel Forum on May 20 in Montego Bay, Jamaica, under the theme, Visioning A New Tourism Landscape For The Region.

This year’s Caribbean Travel Marketplace will bring together leading regional and international thought leaders to discuss tourism business opportunities and strategies for success in the Caribbean, said CHTA.

The association added, those in attendance will have the opportunity to gain invaluable knowledge from distinguished speakers, including esteemed travel writer, author and advisor on destination development, Doug Lansky. He will deliver the keynote address and share insights and perspectives on navigating the evolving landscape of the Caribbean tourism. Lansky is the author of ten books and has also written for the world’s most prestigious travel publications.

Also to address the forum under the theme ‘State of the Industry’ is CHTA’s President, Nicola Madden-Greig. She will share key data and insights including data from CHTA’s recently unveiled annual Performance and Outlook Survey.

The survey spotlights the resilience and growth of the Caribbean tourism industry with overwhelmingly positive results, while further, underscoring ongoing challenges that require attention to grow the region’s crucial economic driver, said CHTA.

Madden-Greig’s presentation will also go into detail on the forecast for new development in the region with the official launch of the CHTA Construction and Pipeline Report. CHTA noted that additional data will be shared on international and regional trends shaping the tourism landscape.

Meanwhile, insights on the business of tourism will be shared by several leading public and private sector stakeholders, including: Kenneth Bryan, Cayman Islands minister for tourism & ports and chairman, Caribbean Tourism Organisation; Edmund Bartlett, minister of tourism, Jamaica; Nataliya Mylenko, lead economist, caribbean region, World Bank Group; Sheila Johnson, CEO, Salamander Hotels and Resorts; Adam Stewart, executive chairman, Sandals Resorts International; Frank Wolfe, CEO, hospitality financial & technology professionals and Olivier Ponti, director of intelligence & marketing, forwardKeys.

The forum’s agenda aims to cover a breadth of topics crucial to the success of the region’s tourism industry, including leveraging data insights, enhancing multi-destination marketing, boosting intra-Caribbean travel, harnessing technology for innovation, improving operational efficiency, expanding tourism linkages, navigating labour market constraints and adopting new market penetration strategies. CHTA added, the event will feature the CHTA Awards luncheon, which celebrates the achievements of Caribbean Hotelier of the Year, the Destination Resilience Award winner, and the President’s Award recipient for Caribbean Tourism Excellence. (PR)