From Tribune242

Atlantis president and managing director George Markantonis highlighted the importance of the Atlantis Resort to the economy of the Bahamas as he accepted the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s ‘Hotelier of the Year’ award.

The announcement was made during opening festivities for the Caribbean Travel Marketplace held in Montego Bay, Jamaica. The Hotelier of the Year Award is the CHTA’s highest honour.

The prestigious award recognises excellence in Caribbean hotel operations by demonstrating superior achievement in a variety of categories, including resort operations, innovative management, and community affairs.

This is the 33rd year the award, presented at the Caribbean Travel Marketplace, has been handed out and Mr Markantonis’ first award from the association.

In his speech, Mr Markantonis underscored the very important role Atlantis, Paradise Island, as the Bahamas’ largest private employer, plays in its tourism product and its economy overall.

“We know that for every job we create in the Bahamas, the trickle effect is another 1.4 jobs in the local economy, so we take our responsibility very seriously… We know that when we catch a cold, everyone else gets pneumonia – and it’s very important for us to make sure that we stay on track,” he said.

Caribbean Travel Marketplace, which is put on by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, is among the region’s leading tourism-focused conferences.

The two-day gathering officially got underway Sunday, January 12, and brought together hundreds of tourism professionals from across the region.

At last count, the conference had attracted 78 international buyer companies from 15 countries and 206 supplier companies from 27 countries.

Last year’s Travel Marketplace, which was held at Atlantis, saw more than 12,700 meetings with delegates from some 22 countries.

Atlantis has hosted the Caribbean Travel Marketplace three times.

Mr Markantonis is the third hotelier from the Bahamas to win the coveted award, following George Myers in 1980 and Stephen Sawyer, current SVP and GM with responsibility for the Royal Towers at Atlantis, in 1997.

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