India Tourism Review: India Tourism Review
7 December 2012 - India Tourism Review
The evening of December 12, 2012 will mark the first time when the Grand Final Gala Ceremony of World Travel Awards 2012, will be hosted in Asia, at The Oberoi, Gurgaon, New Delhi. The votes have been counted and the trophies polished, as India steps up to host the "most important night" of the year in travel.
The ceremony has been officially supported by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. WTA 2012 will witness participation from some of the most important decision-makers in global travel and tourism, as they compete for the most revered accolade in the industry.
The WTA organizers have chosen Delhi as host due to the Indian capital’s continuing evolution as a world-class business and leisure destination. This was reflected at WTA’s Grand Final 2011 in Qatar, when The Oberoi, Gurgaon emerged victorious in the hotly-contested World’s Leading Luxury Hotel category. Meanwhile India won the award for World’s Leading Destination.
Speaking exclusively to India Tourism Review, on why India is a fitting destination, Graham E Cooke, President and Founder, WTA said, "This will be our third WTA event in India but our first Grand Final. Our first two events, at Bangalore in 2007 and at New Delhi in 2010 were regional finals. They were both great successes, and opened the possibility of hosting a Grand Final here."
Commenting on what are his expectations from The Oberoi Hotels, Graham said, "For the ceremony itself, I couldn’t think of an organisation more capable of welcoming the captains of our industry than The Oberoi Hotels & Resorts. The group has been in business since 1934 and you don’t stay on top of the game for that long unless you have a deep understanding of how to provide exemplary service."
The likes of The Ritz-Carlton, Lufthansa, Starwood Hotels, Jumeirah, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Avis, Kuoni and Four Seasons are among the brands in the running for top honours. Airlines like Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways, Emirates and Malaysia Airlines have been nominated under the category of World’s Leading Airline.
Commenting on what special preparations are going on, to make the evening successful, Graham said, "A considerable amount of preparation goes into staging an event, from securing the entertainment and arranging the catering to organising travel for the guests and shipping the trophies. 2013 is our twentieth anniversary year and we now host five or more events a year so as you might imagine we have honed our event management into a well-rehearsed operation."
"India's tourism industry has made enormous strides over the past decade, and there's a real excitement and energy currently sweeping the nation. Our Grand Final will serve as showcase for India’s tourism sector through the caliber of guests attending, as well as the accompanying press and marketing coverage,” Graham added.
The evening marks the culmination of a year-long search for the very best travel and tourism brands in the world, and will feature the regional winners WTA’s Grand Tour 2012 competing head to head.
Dr. K. Chiranjeevi, Minister of Tourism, India said, "The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India is honoured to host the World Travel Awards Grand Final in India and sincerely hopes that this prestigious event will help in promoting our nation as an incredible destination. Tourists from the world over can find their destination or product of desire in India. We can proudly say that India is an incredible destination with range of products like nowhere else."
Kapil Chopra, Executive Vice President, The Oberoi Group, said, "We are indeed privileged to be chosen as the venue for the WTA’s Grand Final Gala, the first time these are being held in India. These awards recognise excellence in travel and hospitality and we are delighted to have the finalists from all over the world visit The Oberoi, Gurgaon. This evening is a tribute to our excellent hotels and gracious hospitality."
"We have senior decision-makers coming to our Grand Final from every corner of the globe; so whilst their primary reason is to hopefully win an award, they also want to experience India as a destination and explore business opportunities. During the event itself, New Delhi will be buzzing with activity and will include a large amount of media, drawn internationally, nationally and locally," concluded Graham.
Regional heats have taken place in Dubai, The Algarve (Portugal), Turks & Caicos and Singapore competing head to head.
The ceremony has been officially supported by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. WTA 2012 will witness participation from some of the most important decision-makers in global travel and tourism, as they compete for the most revered accolade in the industry.
The WTA organizers have chosen Delhi as host due to the Indian capital’s continuing evolution as a world-class business and leisure destination. This was reflected at WTA’s Grand Final 2011 in Qatar, when The Oberoi, Gurgaon emerged victorious in the hotly-contested World’s Leading Luxury Hotel category. Meanwhile India won the award for World’s Leading Destination.
Speaking exclusively to India Tourism Review, on why India is a fitting destination, Graham E Cooke, President and Founder, WTA said, "This will be our third WTA event in India but our first Grand Final. Our first two events, at Bangalore in 2007 and at New Delhi in 2010 were regional finals. They were both great successes, and opened the possibility of hosting a Grand Final here."
Commenting on what are his expectations from The Oberoi Hotels, Graham said, "For the ceremony itself, I couldn’t think of an organisation more capable of welcoming the captains of our industry than The Oberoi Hotels & Resorts. The group has been in business since 1934 and you don’t stay on top of the game for that long unless you have a deep understanding of how to provide exemplary service."
The likes of The Ritz-Carlton, Lufthansa, Starwood Hotels, Jumeirah, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Avis, Kuoni and Four Seasons are among the brands in the running for top honours. Airlines like Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways, Emirates and Malaysia Airlines have been nominated under the category of World’s Leading Airline.
Commenting on what special preparations are going on, to make the evening successful, Graham said, "A considerable amount of preparation goes into staging an event, from securing the entertainment and arranging the catering to organising travel for the guests and shipping the trophies. 2013 is our twentieth anniversary year and we now host five or more events a year so as you might imagine we have honed our event management into a well-rehearsed operation."
"India's tourism industry has made enormous strides over the past decade, and there's a real excitement and energy currently sweeping the nation. Our Grand Final will serve as showcase for India’s tourism sector through the caliber of guests attending, as well as the accompanying press and marketing coverage,” Graham added.
The evening marks the culmination of a year-long search for the very best travel and tourism brands in the world, and will feature the regional winners WTA’s Grand Tour 2012 competing head to head.
Dr. K. Chiranjeevi, Minister of Tourism, India said, "The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India is honoured to host the World Travel Awards Grand Final in India and sincerely hopes that this prestigious event will help in promoting our nation as an incredible destination. Tourists from the world over can find their destination or product of desire in India. We can proudly say that India is an incredible destination with range of products like nowhere else."
Kapil Chopra, Executive Vice President, The Oberoi Group, said, "We are indeed privileged to be chosen as the venue for the WTA’s Grand Final Gala, the first time these are being held in India. These awards recognise excellence in travel and hospitality and we are delighted to have the finalists from all over the world visit The Oberoi, Gurgaon. This evening is a tribute to our excellent hotels and gracious hospitality."
"We have senior decision-makers coming to our Grand Final from every corner of the globe; so whilst their primary reason is to hopefully win an award, they also want to experience India as a destination and explore business opportunities. During the event itself, New Delhi will be buzzing with activity and will include a large amount of media, drawn internationally, nationally and locally," concluded Graham.
Regional heats have taken place in Dubai, The Algarve (Portugal), Turks & Caicos and Singapore competing head to head.
Source: India Tourism Review
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