Euro Weekly News
30th October 2008
Portuguese come out on top at World Travel Awards
THE European winners of the 2008 World Travel Awards, dubbed ‘the Oscars of the travel industry’ by the Wall Street Journal, were announced last week at a glittering ceremony in Slovakia, attended by 300 guests from 19 countries across Europe.
The Portuguese Tourism Board - ‘Turismo de Portugal’ - received the award for Europe’s leading tourist board and Algarve’s ‘Quinta do Lago’ received the award for Portugal's leading golf resort while, against some stiff competition, the ‘Praia D’El Rey Marriott Resort’ was named Portugal’s leading resort for the second year running.
This caps a highly successful year for the resort, situated 50 minutes north of Lisbon, on Portugal’s Silver Coast, and already well- known as a popular year-round sporting destination for the world’s elite sportsmen. Recent visitors include the football super-hero, Cristiano Ronaldo, and the resort’s Marriott hotel is currently the home-from-home for the Portuguese national football team during their World Cup 2010 training sessions.
“We are thrilled to win this prestigious award,” said the resort’s Director, Jorge Almeida. “It’s a recognition of how we have grown over the last 10 years to become one of Portugal’s best known resorts, with over 250,000 visitors a year.” Apart from its five-star Marriott hotel, the 230-hectare Praia D’El Rey golf and beach resort has an 18-hole golf course with full coaching facilities, water sports, a tennis centre and FIFA-standard football centre, shops and restaurants, and over 800 luxury villas, townhouses and apartments.
Launched in 1993, the ‘World Travel Awards’ acknowledges excellence in travel and tourism. Now, after fifteen years, both travel professionals and travellers alike regard the awards as an endorsement of quality. Votes are cast by travel professionals from 167,000 travel agencies, tour and transport companies and tourism organizations in over 160 countries worldwide.
Article taken from Euro Weekly News.
