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Bartlett Lobbies for Power Star Michael Rainey Jr. to be a Local Youth Ambassador

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Jamaica Tourism Minister Hon. Edmund Bartlett says that actor Michael Rainey, Jr., best known for his role as Tariq St. Patrick on Starz network’s hit drama series Power, is an ideal candidate to become an official Jamaica Youth Ambassador for the country.

The Minister made this announcement during a recent courtesy call at the Minister’s New Kingston offices, where  the young actor who was accompanied by his mother Shauna Small; publicist, JLexy Brooks, and Management Assistant, Jared Pessoa.

“This is a good moment, I am really inspired [by you] myself. The response you probably expected is that he is great for tourism, and you are, but you are much more than that. Michael is great to be a role model for Jamaica’s youth who need to have a sense of what they can accomplish,” said Minister Bartlett.

“I would love to have him have another conversation with us, which is beyond tourism where we can look at him in a more extensive way to give inspiration not just to a market that is going to need his image but to a country that is going to need his kind of efforts, especially coming out of Covid-19,” he added.

Rainey, who recently received his Jamaican citizenship, is a lead actor on Power Book II: Ghost, which is currently the Starz network’s most-watched series.

Despite his early rise to fame, the 20-year-old Rainey says his primary goal is to use his platform to inspire youth to acknowledge their endless potential and to work hard to achieve their dream careers.

“The big thing in my career is being able to inspire kids my age or even younger than me to know that they can do whatever they want in life. Whether it is to be an activist, or play basketball or play football or be a doctor or anything.

I just want to make sure kids know that it is possible and there is always faith in anything you do. That is definitely what I enjoy the most about being in that position,” said Rainey.

In the drama, Michael leads a star studded cast, which is a direct spin off from the hit series Power. Michael starred as Tariq St. Patrick in the hit series Power, in a leading role alongside Omari Hardwick, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, and Naturi Naughton. 

More news about Jamaica

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications Division, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4924, Fax: 906-1729

Seychelles Tourism Board Italy Participates in First Virtual Fair, Travel Open Day Virtual

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From December 14-16, 2020, the Seychelles Tourism Board Italy participated to the first edition of the travel virtual fair Travel Open Day, an online event dedicated to the outbound tourism sector.

Three intense days dedicated to tourism with over 120 travel agencies registered and 35 exhibitors from the sector. Many destinations joined the event as for example Greece, Malta, Thailand or Malaysia, amongst others.

In such a difficult time for tourism this event was aimed at reinventing the networking opportunities, in a virtual world, in order to meet and update the partners and the travel agents selling the destination to the consumers.

The Seychelles islands were featured with a dedicated virtual stand and a busy one-to-one meeting agenda via chat or videocalls; the guests had the opportunity to get to know the latest developments, especially with reference to the COVID situation and travel advisories, and to download brochures and promotional materials.

“Italy is still facing the second wave of the covid19 and still living with many restrictions in order to contain the spread of the virus; the tourism sector is suffering, especially the outbound, as the regulations still ban citizens to travel outside EU and Schengen for tourism. As 2021 approaches we are confident that the situation will improve and we will be able to get back on track soon,” said Monette Rose, Director of STB Italy.

“I would also like to underline the participation of our Marketing Executive, Yasmine Pocetti,  who smartly took part in the Fair by giving information to the Travel Agents both on the destination and on the COVID situation in the islands. The Fair exceeded our normal working hours and we happily stayed behind to continue  the show as we are confident that the destination and our partners deserved  it,” Rose added.

The Seychelles Tourism Board office in Rome has participated and organized several webinars and online training for the tourism trade partners in Italy in order to stay visible during these past months of stop for other activities such as workshops, roadshows or fairs.

More news about Seychelles

#rebuildingtravel

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, [email protected] 

Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival Concludes and Successfully Draws Global Audience of Nearly 850,000 for Online Masterclasses

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The 2020 Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival officially concluded yesterday. It was the first time the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) had adopted an “online + offline” format for the event, ensuring that the public could take part without having to worry about the Covid-19 outbreak. During the five consecutive weeks it was held, the Festival had a full table of gastronomic experiences for local and international audiences.

Online Masterclasses Viewed Nearly 850,000 Times

The Online Masterclasses – a new “ingredient” of this year’s Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival – became a go-to program at home for many people during the Covid-19 outbreak. A total of 34 classes were held over three weekends, generating almost 850,000 views. About 30% of the viewers came from the short- and long-haul markets, such as India, Taiwan, the UK, France, the U.S. and Canada.

The most popular Online Masterclasses included the “Ah Yat Fried Rice” cooking demonstration by Forum Restaurant’s Executive Chef Adam Wong; the craft beer and artisan cheese pairing class by Young Master Brewery and Monsieur CHATTÉ; and “Art of Blending: When Johnnie Walker Meets Coffee” by world-class mixologist Antonio Lai and professional coffee barista Timmy Lam.  

Though all of the live Online Masterclasses have ended, full videos are still available to view on the event website https://winedinefestival.discoverhongkong.com.

Takeaway/Delivery Menus and Dining Offers Met with Positive Response

This year’s Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival continued to bring opportunities for wine merchants and the dining sector to promote their products and businesses. For example, the HKTB collaborated with top hotels and popular restaurants to present 30 menus for delivery or takeaway, many of which were exclusive to the Festival, including a special afternoon tea set designed by Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. The hotel’s Director of Marketing Communications, Ms. Eva Kwok said, “The limited-time-only afternoon tea set was selling better than we expected. Though Hong Kong people are eating out less these days, they are still drawn by exquisite food.”

The HKTB partnered with dining platforms and associations to roll out offers at over 500 dining outlets to stimulate the local economy, resulting in more than 10,000 reservation bookings at a time when Covid-19 was under control. “Through the HKTB’s promotional platform, many of our participating restaurants achieved more reservations than expected and reached new customer segments,” said Mr. Ryan So, Director of Business Development Greater Bay Area and Hong Kong of Dining City, one of the Festival’s partner platforms.

Continued Promotion of Hong Kong in Visitor Markets

The HKTB conducted promotions in the visitor source markets with a focus on enhancing Hong Kong’s image as a culinary capital. It arranged a series of online wine-and-dine activities for nearly 100 journalists from the long- and short-haul markets, such as previews of the Online Masterclasses, a virtual dining culture guided tour, and interviews and interaction with well-known Hong Kong chefs and wine critics. Even though the international media could not be in Hong Kong physically, they were still able to learn about the city’s food culture and get the latest news about its dining scene.

Hong Kong celebrity chef Christian Yang led an online foodie tour to promote Hong Kong’s local dining culture to overseas media.

Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority Wins Platinum Award for “Your Space in the Sun” Campaign

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The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority has received a second international marketing award for its “Your Space in the Sun” digital marketing campaign, created as part of the destination marketing body’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.  


Presented by the organizers of the international MARCOM Awards, in the category of “Digital Media | Social Media | Social Branding Campaign,” the Tourism Authority received the Platinum award, the highest-level award granted. 

The “Your Space in the Sun” campaign was designed to specifically speak to the new desires and needs of travelers. The campaign shows Antigua and Barbuda has the perfect antidote of space and invites people to broaden their horizons and enjoy all the space they need: space to move, space to think, space to be you.

The MARCOM Awards honors excellence in marketing and communications while recognizing the creativity, hard work and generosity of industry professionals. Since its inception in 2004, MarCom has evolved into one of the largest, most-respected creative competitions in the world.

The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority also recently received the Gold Travel Weekly Magellan Award for the same campaign. 

As the “Your Space in the Sun” campaign continues to roll-out, the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority is now inviting persons to enter the “Your Space in the Sun” sweepstakes on www.visitantiguabarbuda.com, to win the escape they deserve in 2021 to Antigua and Barbuda, staying at the luxurious, all-inclusive Royalton Antigua Resort and Spa. 

ABOUT THE ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY

The Antigua & Barbuda Tourism Authority is a statutory body dedicated to realizing the tourism potential of Antigua & Barbuda by promoting the twin island state as a unique, quality tourist destination with the overall objective of increasing visitor arrivals thereby providing sustainable economic growth. The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority is headquartered in St. John’s Antigua, where regional marketing is directed.  The Authority has three offices overseas in the United Kingdom, United States and Canada.

ABOUT ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

Antigua (pronounced An-tee’ga) and Barbuda (Bar-byew’da) is located in the heart of the Caribbean Sea. Voted the World Travel Awards 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 Caribbean’s Most Romantic Destination, the twin-island paradise offers visitors two uniquely distinct experiences, ideal temperatures year-round, a rich history, vibrant culture, exhilarating excursions, award-winning resorts, mouth-watering cuisine and 365 stunning pink and white-sand beaches – one for every day of the year. The largest of the Leeward Islands, Antigua comprises 108-square miles with rich history and spectacular topography that provides a variety of popular sightseeing opportunities. Nelson’s Dockyard, the only remaining example of a Georgian fort a listed UNESCO World Heritage site, is perhaps the most renowned landmark. Antigua’s tourism events calendar includes the prestigious Antigua Sailing Week, Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta, and the annual Antigua Carnival; known as the Caribbean’s Greatest Summer Festival. Barbuda, Antigua’s smaller sister island, is the ultimate celebrity hideaway. The island lies 27 miles north-east of Antigua and is just a 15-minute plane ride away. Barbuda is known for its untouched 17 mile stretch of pink sand beach and as the home of the largest Frigate Bird Sanctuary in the Western Hemisphere. Find information on Antigua & Barbuda at: www.visitantiguabarbuda.com or follow us on Twitter. http://twitter.com/antiguabarbuda  Facebook www.facebook.com/antiguabarbuda ; Instagram: www.instagram.com/AntiguaandBarbuda

MEDIA CONTACT:

Maria Blackman

Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority

T: 1 (268) 562 7600/464-7601

E: [email protected]

The St. Regis San Francisco Among First Hotels and Resorts in the World to Achieve Health Security Verification

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The St. Regis San Francisco, the city’s premier address for luxury accommodations, gracious service and timeless elegance is proud to announce that it is among the first hotels in the world to become Sharecare Health Security VERIFIED® with Forbes Travel Guide. The comprehensive facility verification helps ensure that guests and travel planners can book with confidence at properties that have appropriate health safety procedures in place. 

This verification comes with an easily identifiable “seal of approval” – the Sharecare VERIFIED® with Forbes Travel Guide badge – based on a hotel’s compliance with expert-validated best practices that minimize the risk and impact of COVID-19 and potential future public health events. 

“The safety and comfort of our clients has always been a great priority for the hotel,” said Jacqueline Volkart, general manager of The St. Regis San Francisco. “Investing in health safety procedures to try to curb the spread of Covid-19 means we can continue to provide the world-class service that our guests deserve and seek when staying with us. We look forward to safely welcoming guests now with a credible certification that boosts their confidence when choosing the next destination.”

Developed by Forbes Travel Guide, the global authority on genuine Five-Star service, and digital health industry leader Sharecare, the comprehensive verification covers more than 360 standards across health and hygiene protocols, cleaning products and procedures, ventilation, physical distancing, the guest experience, and health safety communication with guests and employees. Hotels are required to verify their health protocols on an ongoing basis to ensure continued compliance with the most up-to-date global health standards.

“The pandemic has made it clear that hotels and resorts must, first and foremost, assure guests of their safety,” said Filip Boyen, CEO of Forbes Travel Guide. “By becoming VERIFIED®, The St. Regis San Francisco has demonstrated its commitment to creating a culture of accountability and following global best practices to heighten health security, certified by a third party.”

For more information about The St. Regis San Francisco and its many offerings, please visit https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/sfoxr-the-st-regis-san-francisco/.  For a complete list of hotels and resorts that currently are Sharecare Health Security VERIFIED® with Forbes Travel Guide, please visit www.forbestravelguide.com/verified.

About The St. Regis San Francisco

The St. Regis San Francisco opened in November 2005, introducing a new dimension of luxury, uncompromising service, and timeless elegance to the city of San Francisco. The 40-story landmark building, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, includes 100 private residences rising 19 levels above the 260-room St. Regis Hotel. From legendary butler service, “anticipatory” guest care and impeccable staff training to the signature Remède Spa, luxurious amenities and interior design by Yabu Pushelberg of Toronto, The St. Regis San Francisco delivers an unmatched guest experience. The St. Regis San Francisco is located at 125 Third Street. Telephone: 415.284.4000.

Media contacts:  Hwee Peng Yeo, Laura Gigounas, Danyelle Simpkins and Grecia Corleto at Glodow Nead Communications, 415.394.6500 or [email protected] .