Stakeholders of the Tourism sector rendezvoused at the Black Orchid Resort in Burrel Boom on Friday, July 2, for the 2010 bi-annual general meeting hosted by the Belize Hotel Association. The bi-annual event provides updates and new strategies from the association to its members and other interested attendants. Love News spoke to guest speaker of the event and Director of the Belize Tourism Board Seleni Matus.
“This is a very important meeting for Belize Tourism Industry Association; they get members together twice a year and use it as an opportunity to reenergize membership and more importantly talk about the current and pressing issues of the day,” commented Seleni Matus, Director of BTB, to Love FM.
Matus explained that the Belize Tourism Board, in collaboration with the Belize Hotel Association, discussed with its members the start of a shared plan to ensure that they are taking advantage of new technologies that other destinations are using to better position themselves. The meeting highlighted a positive boost in arrivals for Belize.
“There has been an increase in the first quarter of 2010 in terms of overnight arrivals as well as arrivals from cruise ships and that’s very positive,” continued Ms. Matus. “We intend to continue our efforts to focus on marketing Belize on a global market place by (one) developing strong relationships with our travel agents and wholesalers and also looking to cultivate stronger relationships with the airlines offering for instance better discounted airfares on an ongoing basis hopefully making it more appealing for visitors to come to Belize.”
According to the Belize Hotel Association, Belize has done well in terms of brand recognition which has resonated in the global tourism sector. It was highlighted that the hotel overnight arrival figures for the first quarter 2010 indicated a 5.8% increase over the same period of the first year. BHA presented participants with information that is affecting the industry or that could contribute to the positive development of the industry. –From Love FM News
