WTA awards top travel companies in Europe
Portugal – Europe’s travel elite have walked off with top honors at a World Travel Awards (WTA) ceremony hosted at the new Conrad Algarve on October 6, 2012.
Lufthansa, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, DFDS Seaways, Disneyland Paris, and Norwegian Cruise Line were among the brands to emerge victorious at WTA’s Europe Ceremony 2012.
A packed delegation of VIPs, senior tourism figures, and international media traveled from 35 nations to attend the event, which was held in partnership with Conrad Algarve and Turismo do Algarve.
Meanwhile Hôtel Le Bristol (Paris) nudged ahead of Hotel Cipriani (Venice), The Dorchester (London), Four Seasons Hotel Milano and Grand Hotel Europe (St. Petersburg) to claim the title of “Europe’s Leading Hotel.”
Turkey’s ascendancy up the tourism order was acknowledged with The Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism named “Europe’s Leading Tourist Board.” The nation’s leading-edge hotels also scooped a series individual awards, including “Europe’s Leading Luxury Hotel” (Mardan Palace), “Europe’s Leading Luxury Resort” (Cornelia Diamond Golf Resort & Spa), and “Europe’s Leading New Luxury Hotel” (Angel’s Peninsula).
Hospitality veteran and founder of Hoar Cross Hall, Stephen Joynes, MBE, was honored with a “Lifetime Achievement Award,” while the English county of Yorkshire was given a special award for “Innovation in Marketing.”
The WTA awards program, hailed as the “Oscars of the travel industry” by the global media, highlights and rewards those travel brands that have made the greatest contribution to the industry over the past year.
Graham E. Cooke, President and Founder, WTA, underlined the depth and quality of the travel and tourism sector across Europe.
WTA’s Europe Ceremony 2012 marked the third leg of WTA’s Grand Tour, a global search for the world’s leading travel brands, which also includes regional heats in Dubai, Singapore, and Turks & Caicos. The winners of these legs will then go head-to-head at WTA’s Grand Final, which takes place at The Oberoi, Gurgaon, New Delhi, India, on December 12, 2012.Source: worldtravelawards.com
