The St. Kitts Tourism Authority has just concluded its second annual St. Kitts Symposium,
held on island May 4-6, 2006, with a great deal of positive feedback from participants.The
Symposium brought together St. Kitts’ top tour operators from the U.S.
with the
island’s tourism officials, hoteliers and local tourism industry partners for
three days of exciting events, meetings and networking functions.

Representatives from a total of eight tour operators
attended the
Symposium, which was held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort & Royal Beach
Casino.  The Symposium kicked off with a
welcome cocktail reception and dinner at Turtle Beach
and continued the following day with Opening Ceremonies, a Welcome Address
from
the Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Culture Richard
“Ricky” O. Skerritt, destination and marketing communications updates and
various
other presentations. 

The
Symposium also included a Marketplace, catamaran cruise, barbeque
dinner at an authentic island Great House, cocktails at the Royal Beach
Casino
and “A Taste of St. Kitts” Farewell Dinner featuring local music and dance
groups to highlight St. Kitts’ distinctive island culture. Perhaps most
importantly, an Open Dialog Round-Table Brainstorming Session served as the
forum for a lively exchange of ideas, covering topics from branding and
increasing repeat guests to reaching the adventure travel niche market.

“Although the Symposium has barely concluded, we have
already received
a great deal of positive feedback from participants who found it both
educational and enjoyable,” said Ms. Christine Walwyn, Chief Executive
Officer of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority. “This is an exciting time for St.
Kitts and we felt it was important to strengthen our relationships with key
tour operators, particularly those who serve our key niche markets such as
wedding/honeymoon, dive and adventure, since these markets are becoming
increasingly important as we begin to move our tourism product to a more
upscale level.”
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