“Fortifying The Brand: Successful Strategies For Times Like These,” is the title of the first General Session of the 25th Annual Caribbean Tourism Conference (CTC-25).  This engaging topic is by itself an important reason for travel agents and tourism industry professionals to attend the conference, an event that gives participants the opportunity to be part of the redesign and recreation of the region’s tourism industry.  The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) and the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism are preparing to welcome delegates to CTC-25, which takes place Oct. 28-31, 2002 at Our Lucaya Beach and Golf Resort, Grand Bahama Island, The Bahamas.  The theme of the Conference is Reinventing Caribbean Tourism.
“Fortifying the Brand” is an hour-and-a-half long session in which a panel of industry experts will be moderated by Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, Director General of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism. The panel will discuss the success of various strategies used by national tourism bodies, large and small hotels, travel agents, airlines and cruise lines to remain profitable during the current crisis that finds the industry struggling in a fragile economic environment. Panelists will confront the different ways a brand can stay viable in unprofitable times and debate whether industry leaders should keep their products out of the limelight until the economy improves, or focus on increasing their advertising and marketing efforts to strengthen the awareness of their brands.

Packed with dynamic speakers, seminars and workshops, CTC-25 will bring together travel industry professionals from around the world to address the improvement of the region’s competitiveness and prepare for the anticipated increase of visitor arrival numbers.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization would like to thank the following sponsors for their support in hosting various event sessions and activities during CTC-25, and for their continuous contribution to Caribbean tourism:

Government of The Bahamas // Air Canada // Air Jamaica // American Airlines/American Eagle // American Express Company // Architectural Digest Magazine // Arthur Frommer Budget Travel Magazine // Bahamas Ministry of Tourism // Bahamasair // Barbados Tourism Authority // Baxter Publishing/Canadian Travel Press // Bridal Guide Magazine // BWIA West Indies Airways // Caribbean Travel & Life magazine // Conde Nast Bridal Group // Conde Nast Traveler Magazine // Continental Airlines // Coral Hotels & Resorts // CTO Allied Members // Discovery Cruises // Dominican Republic

Elegant Bride Magazine // Essence Magazine // Golf for Women Magazine // Grand Bahama Island Tourism Board // Grand Bahama Vacations // Jamaica Tourist Board // Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority // National Geographic Traveler Magazine // The New Yorker
Oasis Resort // Our Lucaya Beach & Golf Resort // Pelican Bay Resort // Puerto Rico Tourism Company // Skin Diver Magazine // Travel Agent Magazine // Travel Holiday Magazine // Travel + Leisure Magazine // The Travel & Leisure Show // Travel Weekly // US Airways
// USA Today // Visa International // Yahoo.com

The Caribbean Tourism Organization: The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), with headquarters in Barbados and marketing operations in New York, London and Toronto, is the Caribbean`s tourism development agency and comprises membership of 32 governments and a myriad of private sector companies.

The CTO`s mission is to provide to and through its members, the services and information needed for the development of sustainable tourism for the economic and social benefit of the Caribbean people.  The organization provides specialized support and technical assistance to member countries in the areas of marketing, human resource development, research and statistics and sustainable development.

The CTO disseminates information on behalf of its member governments to consumers and the travel trade.
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