ALHI Representatives Impressed By Bermuda
Sales officers for a global organisation that connects leading meeting and event professionals to luxury hotels, destinations and brands toured Bermuda this week, hosted by the Bermuda Tourism Authority [BTA].
Eight representatives of Associated Luxury Hotels International [ALHI] took part in a four-day site visit to the island, staying at the Hamilton Princess Hotel & Beach Club, meeting local destination management companies, and touring sites such as the Commissioner’s House at the National Museum of Bermuda in Dockyard, Verdmont House in Smith’s, and other locations and hotels that offer group meeting space.
As a member of ALHI’s Global Luxury Alliance, BTA leverages ALHI’s global sales officers through its New York-based sales team to help attract more lucrative group sales and meeting, incentives conference and exhibitions [MICE] tourism business to the island.
Photo: BTA CEO Kevin Dallas; Tim Morison, General Manager of the Hamilton Princess Hotel; BTA Sales Manager Donna Douglas; BTA Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Victoria Isley; Christine Squitieri, ALHI Regional VP; Bill Light, ALHI VP, Sales; Myra Howay, ALHI Director of Global Sales; Kyle Lourie, ALHI Director of Global Sales; Elaine Morena, ALHI Regional VP; Mike Dominguez, ALHI President & CEO; Amber Voelker, ALHI Regional VP; Lauren Hammond, ALHI Director of Sales; BTA Destination Services Manager Keisha Webb
“We’re thrilled to welcome ALHI back to Bermuda this week, and we’re proud to be an ALHI partner,” said Victoria Isley, BTA Chief Sales & Marketing Officer.
“Bermuda has always been a first-class destination for meetings and incentives travel, a lucrative and influential market sector that’s vitally important to the island’s year-round tourism industry and economy. Expanding group business is a key goal of the National Tourism Plan.”
One of the National Tourism Plan core pillars is teams and group travel, including conferences and corporate incentives programmes that also extend Bermuda’s year-round seasonality. Groups have accounted for 19 percent of all hotel room nights in Bermuda on average over the past three years.
With its curated portfolio of luxury hotels, cruise lines and resorts throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, Boston-based ALHI has 27 offices worldwide, extending Bermuda’s marketing and sales efforts by providing access to leading meeting professionals, incentive specialists, association executives, convention planners and business executives managing meetings and programmes.
“Seeing is believing and this week’s visit provided an eye-opening experience for us,” said California-based ALHI Regional VP Amber Voelker, who noted only one member of the group had visited Bermuda previously.
“Our customers ask us for options, and experiencing everything first-hand—the beautiful scenery, the friendliness, the phenomenal sites and culinary experiences, the high-end amenities and overall sophistication—will make us even better sales people for Bermuda.”
Why is it that a certain person runs around in docksiders with no socks, no jacket etc? Not the classy Bermuda image we should convey and looks so unprofessional!
Geez – those are my *good* docksiders :’o(
With your cavalier attitude it’s why we fail! Making jokes of serious situation. No one takes you seriously on an international scale when you go around looking like a boat hand. At least promote Bermuda shorts, socks and jacket!
I hate to break it to you, but knee high socks generally don’t add to one’s credibility internationally.
I take a slightly different view; I think we will succeed by being authentically ourselves, and getting over some of the sacred cows that have held us back for the last 40 years by preventing change.
At the very least, maybe I’ll get cast in Season 8 of ‘Below Deck’!
If you want to see someone dressed up to the nines but achieving nothing approach a politician. Kevin has done, and is doing, great things for Bermuda tourism.
This is your chance to list some of the ‘great things’ Kevin has/is doing for Bermuda tourism; some of us missed these things.
Why are Bermudians so miserable?
BTA has been a ALHI partner since 2014 and hosting them makes more tourism business sense than most of the ‘bloggers/influencers’ that BTA hosts. Here are eight members of the ALHI team and only one member has been to Bermuda before; BTA should interview the other’s to find out why they haven’t been to Bermuda before.