The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) said on Monday that Jamaica has once again been awarded the World’s Leading Cruise Destination.
The Board said the latest award was conferred at the 23rd Annual World Travel Awards at The Sun Siyam Iru Fushi in the Maldives on Dec. 2.
The Caribbean island was also voted World’s Leading Wedding Destination for the second time since the category began in 2014, the group announced.
It said the highlight of the event was the recognition of Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, as the World’s Leading Personality for Outstanding Services to Travel.
“This award is a result of his outstanding 35-year career as a legislator in central government, working both in the Senate and in the House of Representatives,” JTB said.
“Under his leadership, tourism in Jamaica has been positioned for economic growth, with an understanding of its transformative power,” it added.
As the Caribbean’s “most decorated destination for 2016,” Jamaica and her tourism partners received the following list of awards: World’s Leading Wedding Destination (Jamaica); World’s Leading Cruise Destination (Jamaica); and World’s Leading Personality for Outstanding Services to Tourism (Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism).
Other awards were: World’s Leading Caribbean Attraction Company (Island Routes Caribbean Adventures); World’s Leading All-Inclusive Company (Sandals Resorts International); World’s Leading All-Inclusive Family Resort Brand (Beaches Resorts); World’s Leading Luxury Hotel Villa (Ian Fleming Villa at GoldenEye Hotel & Resort); World’s Leading New Island Resort (Melia Braco Village); and World’s Leading Villa Resort (Round Hill Hotel & Villas).
The World Travel Awards was established in 1993 “to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.”
Each year, it said the World Travel Awards covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies, “staged to recognize and celebrate individual and collective successes within each key geographical region.”
