Antigua Cruise Port and Global Ports Holding (GPH) in collaboration with Destinations Together and the Antigua Tourism Authority recently hosted a well-attended webinar focused on the restart of cruise tourism and enhancing the visitor experience. The event, entitled “Inspiring the Restart of Cruise Tourism,” featured opening remarks by the Minister of Tourism and Investment, the Hon. Charles Fernandez, along with featured cruise and tourism industry experts Larry Stauffer and Tom Anderson of Destinations Together. Barry Jacobson of Barry Jacobson Consulting rounded out the expert panel, sharing specific strategies for enhancing the guest experience.
“The response was overwhelming and very positive,” said Dona Lisel Regis-Prosper, General Manager of Antigua Cruise Port. “Larry and Tom of Destinations Together and Barry Jacobson did a phenomenal job in facilitating this webinar and putting together a program filled with tangible, real-time strategies and ideas that could be acted upon immediately. We shared a lot of helpful information and we received many questions, so it’s clear that we need much more discussion to clarify the way forward for our sector.”
During the webinar, which is available through a YouTube link on the Antigua Cruise Port Facebook page, the Destinations Together team shared COVID-19 tourism insights. Barry Jacobson shared an overview of the G.U.E.S.T. service training program with attendees and provided strategies for improving guest experiences as a distinguishing factor in tourism-related business.
“We received a lot of feedback,” Mrs. Prosper continued. “As we prepare for upcoming webinars, we plan to include more participation from local experts, so we will be certain to highlight that aspect of future events. We also received more requests for cruise tourism webinars and webinars focused on various aspects of tourism management, so we will review various topic areas and offer sessions that can assist our tourism partners in ways that will support the enhancement and growth of their businesses.
She added that “The fact that we had over 165 attendees support this event affirms how many tourism partners are willing to work together to see this sector, and our nation, succeed. With this kind of support and planning, we can surely continue to push Antigua & Barbuda forward as a leading regional tourism player despite COVID-19.”
