Bahamas Ministry of Tourism Holds Mega Fam for Florida Travel Agents
Some forty of the top producing Florida travel agents including Bahamas travel specialists from throughout Florida were recently hosted to a mega familiarization trip to Nassau, Bahamas by the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation (BMOTA) Florida sales office.
The trip in partnership with the Bahamas’ major stakeholders and key industry partners, afforded the agents the opportunity to experience firsthand, the newest tourism developments and destination assets in The Bahamas.
The Florida travel agents who came from as far North as Tampa and Jacksonville spent three days and two nights at the exclusive Baha Mar Resort on Cable Beach, the newest and largest luxury resort in the Caribbean, which recently opened its doors on April 21, 2017.
Before conducting site inspections of its Grand Hyatt and SLS properties, the Management of Baha Mar hosted the agents to a first class welcome dinner and reception, which featured live food stations and cultural rake and scrape entertainment. A theme lit fountain show, capped the festive evening.
Welcoming the agents to The Bahamas was Mr. Travis Robinson, Parliamentary Secretary in the BMOTA, who recognized the pivotal role that the travel agents play in the overall success of tourism in The Bahamas.
“Success in any enterprise is aligning yourself with the right partners, travel partners. While everyone is super excited about the current digital age we live in and in technology, and while we love that it is faster, more efficient and more productive than any human being, we must concede that its shortcomings and trust cannot replace the human being. Those human beings – being the travel agents ranging from 22% among general consumers to 35% among millennials, who guide them into making the right choices for their travel experiences”.
Mr. Robinson also congratulated and recognized the more than 5,000 travel agents who have enrolled in the Bahamas Specialist program, 1200 of whom had successfully completed and graduated from the program, several of whom were in attendance, for spending countless personal hours, training and educating themselves on The Bahamas’ tourism product, to become certified Bahamas experts.
Florida Travel Agents also conducted site visits to Melia Nassau Beach Hotel, Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort and Graycliff, in Nassau and Sunrise Beach Club, Warwick Hotel, Comfort Suites and Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island.
The group also enjoyed a city tour and visited Nassau’s historical and tourism landmarks including Fort Fincastle, Fort Charlotte, Parliament Square and explored the slave trade history and movement during an educational tour at Heritage Museum.
In appreciation of their business, Atlantis Resort laid out the red carpet for the travel agents and hosted them to an authentic, cultural and most memorable farewell dinner at their famous Ocean’s Edge facility, which features the world’s largest indoor aquarium.
Source: South Florida Caribbean News
