For Immediate Release | Official News Wire for the Travel Industry

Where press releases are breaking news

The Seychelles Tourism Board Announces Restructuring in its Operations

by

The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) announces various changes to its overseas operation given the ongoing pandemic and its economic impact on the country. 

On the Chinese market, the STB offices in Hong Kong and Beijing will no longer be in operations in these two cities and its activities will be conducted from the STB office in Shanghai.

In Europe, as of March 2020, the STB office in France will move from its current location to the premises housing Seychelles’ Embassy. Furthermore, the STB office in Italy will close following the retirement of the Director for Italy, Turkey, Israel and the Mediterranean, Mrs Monette Rose as of 1 January 2021. Henceforth, STB will be represented by a Rome-based PR and Destination Representation Company, ITA Strategy srl- headed by Ms Danielle Di Gianvito.

 With more than 25 years of experience, Ms Danielle Di Gianvito has a strong background in the travel industry; she has worked with airlines and several international Tourism Board on the Italian and Spanish markets. To ensure continuity and maintain an authentic link with the Seychelles islands, Mrs Yasmine Pocetti – former STB Marketing Executive will also join the team at ITA Strategy srl and she will be working on the Seychelles account. 

In addition, the STB office in the UK will cease physical operation by the end of February 2021. The Marketing Executive for the UK based office Mrs Eloise Vidot will be working from home while the Director for that market Ms Karen Confait will be based back at the STB headquarters. 

The STB Director for Russia, CIS & Eastern Europe, Mrs Lena Hoareau will also be based at the STB headquarters. 

Additionally, as of the end of February 2021, the STB office in South Africa will also be closed, its Director, Ms Christine Vel will be operating from the STB headquarters, while the STB Regional Director for South Africa, Other Africa and Americas, Mr David Germain will remain in South Africa maintaining an STB presence on the market. 

Speaking about the changes in the STB operations, Mrs Sherin Francis, STB Chief Executive stated that the decisions are purely based on cost reduction but at the same time retention of the team.

“These are difficult times for the industry and the changes are unavoidable. We have to find creative ways to maintain our operation and operate at minimal cost.

We are also mindful that now more than ever, we have to make sure that we remain even more strategic and targeted and stay focus on our mandate,” said Mrs Francis. 

In late November, Mrs Francis addressed a long communication to all STB Staff and collaborators explaining the very difficult predicaments the organisation is facing

An extract taken from her communiqué reads as follows:

“The measures to be applied are to ensure that firstly STB can get through the year, but at the same time maintaining as much of its meagre resources; both human and financial for the eventual recovery of the country. The uncertainties that lie ahead of us requires as much planning and foresight while we acknowledge we are in a time where we have little information or data that can guide us through. To coin a gentler metaphor, normally, the purpose of a fiscal rigour is to prepare us for a rainy day. I think we can all agree that that proverbial rain is already falling today and falling hard. Failing to buy an umbrella, when it is raining and when you can still afford one, is not prudent. It is foolish,” said the STB Chief Executive. 

In the same communique, Mrs Francis also expressed her gratitude to her team locally and overseas for their immense support and continued commitment in these difficult times. She encouraged everyone to not be discouraged and to look forward to sunnier days ahead. 

More news about Seychelles

#rebuildingtravel

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

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

by

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] .

Bartlett Joins Discussions on Developing a Global Tourism Recovery Plan

by

Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, recently participated in a global ministerial panel discussion on rethinking the global travel and tourism industry with a comprehensive recovery plan, which encourages innovation and investment to rebuild destinations.

The discussions took place earlier this week during the annual International Tourism and Investment Conference in London, held in partnership with the World Travel Market (WTM), which took place on a virtual platform, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, consequent social distancing and global travel restrictions.

“The aspirational objectives of destinations for recovery in the   post-COVID era are increasingly being reflected in the rolling out of comprehensive recovery plans for the tourism sector which seek to leverage the collective power and resources of key stakeholders including: governments, international tourism bodies, hotels, airlines, cruise lines, booking agencies etc.,” said Bartlett.

“Recovery has become almost synonymous with resilience-building. The sector needs to become more adaptable, resilient and agile.  This pandemic has presented us with a unique opportunity to transition towards a more balanced tourism as it is anticipated that more international tourists will opt for “sustainable” destinations in the post-COVID era,” he added.

Other Ministers joining the panel included Hon. Nigel Huddleston, Minister of Tourism, UK; Hon. Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Kenya; Hon. Marcelo Álvaro Antônio, Minister of Tourism, Brazil; and Hon. Elena Kountoura, Member of the European Parliament.

Minister Bartlett also reiterated the call for the establishment of a Global Tourism Resilience Fund to equip vulnerable countries to be able to respond, manage, and to then recover and grow after disruptions. The Fund would especially target destinations that are recognized as facing high vulnerability but have insufficient financial capacity to prepare for and recover quickly from disruptions.

“It is also important for policymakers, industry leaders, investors and financial institutions to collaborate more closely to support investments and provide incentives to support  product differentiation into areas such as health, wellness and the green economy which are linked to the promotion of more sustainable behaviors and practices by all involved in the tourism value chain,” said Bartlett.

The global tourism investment summit was organized with the goal of helping to accelerate the recovery of travel and tourism businesses and restore travelers’ confidence after the COVID-19 pandemic. It brought together global leading voices and luminaries across different segments to discuss the future of the travel and tourism industry, its challenges, opportunities, financial strategies and mechanisms required to aid its successful recovery.

The three-day summit began on November 9 under the theme: “Invest, Finance and Rebuild the Travel and Tourism Industry.” Bartlett also participated in the resilience panel discussion, on Tuesday November 10, 2020.

More news about Jamaica

#rebuildingtravel

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

Sandals Foundation Helps Schools Prepare for New Academic Year

by

To help Sandals Resorts International continue to make a difference in the Caribbean, the Sandals Foundation was launched in March 2009 as a non-profit organization. The Foundation believe that the action of inspiring hope is a force that can move mountains.

In today’s pandemic world, the seemingly simplest of acts can provide huge benefits. To that end, as part of ongoing efforts to invest in the island’s education infrastructure and support the academic growth of students, the Sandals Foundation is constructing handwashing stations at twelve infant and primary schools across St. Ann, St. Mary, Westmoreland, and St. James.

The construction of the handwashing stations, which is valued at approximately US$22,000, is made possible due to support from Tito’s Handmade Vodka, a spirits company based in Austin, Texas, USA. In April, the company’s philanthropic arm, Love, Tito’s, donated a total of US$25,000 to the Sandals Foundation to give back to the island’s hospitality workers and communities affected by the pandemic.

Keeping in mind the COVID-19 safety requirements for schools, the Sandals Foundation is working to help the island’s learning institutions meet health, safety, and sanitation measures.

Heidi Clarke, Executive Director at the Sandals Foundation, said upon reviewing the Ministry of Education’s manual for the reopening of schools published in May, the team reached out to a number of institutions within tourism-dependent communities to assess their needs.

“We support the government’s efforts to minimize the risks and spread of the coronavirus especially within our schools, so it was important for us to see how we could help make the process as smooth as possible.”

Through these handwashing stations and sanitation resources, Clarke continued, “we hope we will help promote best practices amongst students, parents, guardians, and teachers alike; create safer spaces for our young ones as they re-enter schools; and help ease the anxiety of everyone involved.”

In addition to the handwashing stations, plumbing and drainage infrastructure which will be erected at the entrance of schools and institutions will be provided with automatic hand soap dispensers, start-up hand soap, paper towels, signage to encourage proper handwashing, hand-held thermometers, and reusable masks for teachers and staff.

Benefiting schools in Westmoreland are West End Early Childhood Institution, Torrington Early Childhood Institution, West End Infant School, Culloden Infant School, Kings Infant and Primary School, and Whitehouse Early Childhood Institution. 

Exchange All Age, Seville Golden Preschool, and Ocho Rios Primary School will benefit from the upgrades in St. Ann, while in St. Mary, Boscobel Primary and Infant School will see the new handwashing stations erected. Finally, the targeted schools in St. James are Leonora Morris Infant and Primary School and Whitehouse Basic School.

All costs associated with administration and management is supported by Sandals International so that 100% of every dollar donated goes directly towards funding impactful and meaningful initiatives within the key areas of Education, Community and Environment.

More news about Sandals

MEDIA CONTACT: 1-888-SANDALS, [email protected]

Newly-appointed Seychelles Tourism Minister Meets Taskforce Representatives

by


The newly-appointed Seychelles Tourism Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Mr. Sylvestre Radegonde, joined his first task Tourism Task Force meeting remotely from the Beau Vallon Bay Hotel quarantine center this Friday, November 6, 2020.

The Tourism taskforce committee composed of relevant public and private sector representatives is mandated to oversee all issues relating to the re-opening of the destination during this period dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Addressing the meeting, Mr. Radegonde thanked all the participants for their immense contribution to the restart of the tourism industry and his full support to the work of the committee emphasizing the continuous need to balance public health safety considerations with that of getting our tourism industry back on track.

“I have been impressed by the work done by this committee so far. The assignment is not an easy one. It is balancing between economy and health. I very much look forward to bringing my contribution to ensure that Seychelles tourism emerges more sustainably from this pandemic. We need to bring confidence back. Let us embrace innovation and act decisively,” said the appointed minister.
During the meeting, committee members provided an update on the ongoing matters related to the decisions taken by the task force to date.

The appointed minister was briefed on the functioning of the classification of countries, PCR testing protocols, the progress on the setting up of the support assistance for the Seychelles Health Travel Authorization software locally amongst other working points. 

The Tourism Task Force was previously chaired by the former minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine, Mr. Didier Dogley

More news about Seychelles

#rebuildingtravel

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