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TASTE of the Caribbean
Press Trips
Mango & Pineapple Menu Competition
Caribcert
First Caribbean donates laptop to Crime Stoppers
Sustainable Tourism is good for business
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New Members
- Stanley Estates
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On the Move
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Average Hotel occupancies 2009 & 2008
2009 2008
January - 62.4% - 74.1%
February - 73.9% - 81.1%
March - 69.3% - 72.7%
April - 60.4% - 72.4%
2008
May - 63.7%
June - 57.3%
July - 58.2%
August - 57.8%
September - 42.1%
October - 50.9%
November - 63.8%
December - 58.1%
Total year 2008 - 63.1%
For more detailed information
For the latest CTO statistics on international arrivals to the Caribbean for 2009
(last update May 28th)
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Summer 2009 Closures
Admirals Inn - 2nd June - 14th November
Blue Waters - 30th August - 10th October
Carlisle Bay - 29th August - 17th October
Copper & Lumber - 15th August - 15th October
Curtain Bluff - 31st July - 31st October
Hermitage Bay - 6th September - 5th October
Galleon Beach - 1st June - TBA
Long Bay - 25th March - 15th November
The Inn - 7th June - 1st November
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Upcoming Events
TASTE of the Caribbean
San Juan, Puerto Rico
12th-14th June
26th July to 4th August
Christian Valley Mango Festival 2009 -
15th & 16th August
TOP RESA - Paris
22nd - 25th September
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 is at your service to help you fill those vacant positions. At no cost we will post any vacant positions to the website.
Just send in the details to the AHTA Office
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Welcome to the Newsletter of the Antigua Hotels & Tourist Association. |
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TASTE of the Caribbean |
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Antigua and Barbuda will once again be present this year in the prestigious TASTE of the Caribbean Culinary Competition organized by the C.H.T.A. in San Juan in two weeks.
A team of chefs from Sandals, Bluewaters and Carlisle Bay as well as a bartender from Hermitage Bay are busy preparing themselves to represent the nation. This competition is very highly regarded within the Caribbean with 13 nations competing from 12th-14th June at the Caribe Hilton in San Juan. Four members of the team are young local chefs for whom this will be an incredible learning experience. We have some very talented young chefs working in the hotels and this type of international culinary exposure is essential for their career development.
The team is busy preparing themselves for the competition and we are inviting you to come and taste a culinary menu prepared under competition conditions next Thursday 4th June at 7pm in the Palms Restaurant at BlueWaters. The team needs your support and feedback. We are asking for a contribution of EC$150.00 per person towards the cost of participation.
Places are limited to 35 covers so please contact the AHTA as earlier as possible to book your place. |
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PRESS TRIPS | |
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Another press trip is on its way, this will be taking place later this week from 3rd–6th June. The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority in the UK and Virgin Atlantic Airways will be hosting a group of journalists from widely circulated UK newspapers and magazines under the theme “Family Fun in Antigua”.
Emma Goodwin, KTA Pubilc Relations Representative, will be escorting the five journalists. The group comprises of Catrin Griffiths representing Saturday Magazine (The Daily Express), Rachel Homer for Prima Baby and babyexpert.com, Paula O’Connor for The Daily Express, Sam Redmond –Lyon blogs for take the family.com and Sally Weale for The Guardian (Family Section).
Antigua is not only promoted in the UK as a Wedding and Honeymoon destination but also as a family destination for couples with teenagers or young children. There are numerous activities planned for this group whilst on island. An excursion with Tropical Adventures to experience the “Land and Sea Tour”, is quite an adventure sailing on the Mystic Catamaran and an exciting 4x4 Safari Jeep tour exploring the south side of the island. It would not be a family theme without visits to the Kids Club at Carlisle Bay and Verandah Resort, two of our family oriented resorts. And to top it off, there will be lunches, dinners and site inspections at our member hotels.
Meanwhile, Katy Ross & Partner of Scotland on Sunday/Sectrum Magazine are presently on a packed agenda. This group of two journalists staying at the Galley Bay Resort will be leaving on June, 7.
Once again, the AHTA would like to thank our members for making the events possible. |
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Mango & Pineapple Menu 2009 Professional Chefs and Bartenders Competitions |
Mangoes and pineapples go together for the 4th Annual Mango Menu Competition. This year the Antigua Black pineapple will be added to the mix. Chefs will be requited to create a main dish, and either an appetizer or a dessert using fresh mangoes from Christian Valley. They must introduce pineapple also to at least one of their dishes. Bartenders will create one alcoholic cocktail and one non-alcoholic beverage using fresh mangoes. Pineapple must be used with mango in at least one of the drinks.
Mango&Pineapple Menu 2009 is sponsored by the Ministries of Agriculture and Tourism. The competition is open to all professional chefs and bartenders in Antigua and Barbuda, and will be held at the Antigua & Barbuda Hotel Training Institute, Dutchman’s Bay, Antigua, on Saturday August 8, 2009.
To enter, email mangomenu2009@yahoo.com to request a Call for Entries and Registration Form. Deadline for registration is Saturday, June 20, 2009. |
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CaribCert |
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CARIBCERT has been making progress in the past months as its registration numbers have been increasing but there is always room for improvement. Through this certification program for hospitality workers many Caribbean countries such as Jamaica, Barbados and the Bahamas have witnessed an improvement in customer service and work attitude of their hotel workers.
So far, 46 persons have registered and 20 persons have passed the exam. The next exam will be held on 12th June, 2009 at the Jolly Beach Resort at 9:00am and 20 persons are to sit the exam. Exams are held in the months of January, March, June September and December to accommodate the candidates due to their work season. Candidates from our member hotels of Jolly Beach Resort, Trade Winds Hotel, Hermitage Bay and The Beach Restaurant will be taking exams in Environmental Co-ordination, Food Preparation Services, Cook and Front Desk Operations.
The graduation ceremony for our certified candidates will take place on June 26, 2009 the venue is pending. As soon as the venue is confirmed, the information will be released in a subsequent issue of our newsletter. We have urged our members to encourage their staff to capitalize on this excellent educational opportunity that would benefit both employee and employer.
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First Caribbean provides Crime Stoppers with laptop computer |
Crimestoppers Antigua, the nation’s crime information hotline, received a much needed boost yesterday when FirstCaribbean Bank presented the organisation with a laptop computer.
Crimestoppers was set up to work closely with the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda (RPFAB) to tackle growing crime in the state. Part of the international Crimestoppers objective is to allow individuals to assist the Police in criminal investigations by offering tips and information anonymously by dialling 800 TIPS (8477).
At the handing-over ceremony, FirstCaribbean’s Jonathon Johannes said Crimestoppers is an organisation the bank has a lot of faith in. "We see the trends, we see the escalation in crime and we see that as a responsible corporate citizen, we should play our part in helping mitigate against these things." He went on to say that in our small societies, most of the time people know something about the crimes committed, but fear of retaliation prevents them coming forward. Crimestoppers, he said, is the vehicle for reporting those crimes. As a financial institution, FirstCaribbean has a vested interest in keeping the crime level in our communities down. Providing the laptop, Johannes said, is a first step in partnering with Crimestoppers in making a difference in society.
The laptop will be used by Crimestoppers co-ordinator Sergeant Clark for visual presentations at schools as well as for day to day tasks like transferring the details of tips left on the hotline to an electronic form. |
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Sustainable Tourism is
good for business |
In this newsletter we will be giving you each week some simple tips that could make a big difference to your operation.
5. Maintain Toilets
Water leaks from toilets significantly impact upon water consumption. Depending on the quality of the maintenance service, these leaks can account 5-50% of total indoor water consumption.
To minimise water loss.
- Train employees, especially housekeeping, to identify and report leaks and faulty toilets immediately.
- Make maintenance staff aware and train to diagnose and repair effectively
- Make sure there is no leakage or a constant water flow from cistern to toilet bowl.
- Check for any obstruction that could affect the flush mechanism.
- Keep regularly needed spare parts in stock and make repairs promptly.
- Inspect all toilets at least quarterly and undertake preventative maintenance.
- Purchase toilets from suppliers who are reputable manufacturers and/or have a proven track record locally |
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No.06/2009 - 2nd June, 2009
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