Belize is Promoted as a Premier Destination in London

Belize had a well-defined presence in London, England on November 10^th through November 14^th, 2008 at World Travel Market (WTM). The Minister of Tourism, Hon. Manuel Heredia Jr., led the Belize delegation which comprised of the Belize High Commissioner in London, H.E. Kamela Palma, Belize’s Ambassador in Brussels, Ambassador Joy Grant, The Director of Tourism, Tracy Panton, and the Director of Marketing, Shakira Oxley-Tsai, in partnership with a delegation of Tourism private sectors.

Open exclusively to the trade, World Travel Market is the international travel industry’s premier business-to-business exhibition. Over 5,000 leading suppliers and 44,000 industry professionals from over 194 countries attended and had the opportunity to meet with the global trade industry, networking, negotiating, and exchanging vital contacts, and source new products and services.

The Belize Tourism Board had the opportunity to meet with over 30 wholesalers and tour operators such as Canadian Traveller, Dive Worldwide Ltd., Food & Travel, Cox & Kings Travel Ltd., Conde Nast Traveler, Selling Long Haul to name a few and several members of the press.

The Minister of Tourism was present at the opening of the Central American Stand at WTM and continues to work closely with SICA to ensure Belize's presence with the Central American Tourism Organization. The delegation also attended the Annual European Marketing Forum, an event for all CTO members and visiting delegations which focused on the global economic situation and the impact of the global economy on the industry.

Also in London, the Minister attended a Commonwealth Tourism Ministers Meeting. The main speaker for the meeting was Commonwealth Secretary, General Kamalesh Sharma who spoke about the challenges faced by the ‘upper end’ comprised of tourists themselves and the Ministers of Tourism, and the ‘lower end’ comprised of the citizens who stand to benefit from the tourists that their towns and regions attract.

Participating private sectors included The Belize Tourism Board, The Belize Hotel Association, Belize Tourism Industry Association, Discovery Expeditions, Hugh Parkey Adventures, Best Western Biltmore Plaza, Almond Beach/Jaguar Reef Resort, Bella Maya Resort, Radisson Fort George, and Outpost International (Machaca Hill Lodge).