Vernon Morning Star: Vernon resort to host World Travel Awards

Vernon is getting ready to play host to the world.

Over three years, the Thompson Okanagan is hosting the World Travel Awards, with Predator Ridge serving as the venue in October 2020.

More than 300 international delegates are anticipated to attend.

“As an emerging four-season tourism destination, being selected to host the World Travel Awards is an amazing opportunity for Vernon to be recognized as an attractive destination for international conferences and events,” said Claus Larsen, Tourism Vernon commission chairperson.

“All of us who live here realize how special this region is and know that we have iconic tourism assets and it will be great to host the WTA awards that recognize leadership in the category,” added Brad Pelletier, senior vice-president of Wesbild, which owns Predator Ridge.

The Thompson Okanagan venues for the 2021 and 2022 World Travel Awards have not been announced yet.

According to worldtravelawards.com, the event was established in 1993 to “acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.”

World Travel Awards celebrates its 26th anniversary in 2019. Its annual programme is renowned as the most prestigious and comprehensive in the global industry.

In 2019, World Travel Awards Grand Tour features regional gala ceremonies in North America and the Caribbean (Jamaica), Middle East (Abu Dhabi, UAE), Africa and the Indian Ocean (Mauritius), Europe (Madeira, Portugal), Latin America (La Paz, Bolivia), and Asia and Oceania (Phu Quoc, Vietnam).

Regional winners then compete head to head in the corresponding world categories. The winners will be announced on the night of the World Travel Awards Grand Final in Muscat, Oman, in November.