NEW YORK—A prestigious group of more than 60 travel industry leaders convened at The Trump SoHo in New York for the 10th annual Luxury Travel Expo Advisory Board meeting on May 2, 2011. In attendance were travel executives representing luxury travel agencies, five-star hotels, luxury cruise lines, tour operators and industry consortia, among others. The 13th annual Luxury Travel Expo show will be held from December 6-8, 2011, at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
The meeting format included discussions guided by input from past show attendees and readers. Advisory Board members reviewed survey responses while suggesting speakers for both the general and breakout sessions.
“Because of the contribution from the attending travel executives, we know this year’s programming will deliver content that will empower attendees to implement learning opportunities to increase their revenue from this profitable niche,” said the show's vice president of tradeshows and events, Alicia Evanko. “We look forward to the advisory board support to continue shaping the future of Luxury Travel Expo.”
Additionally, the group has been called upon to act as ambassadors for the show and to provide input on the educational programming to ensure Luxury Travel Expo remains the must-attend tradeshow for luxury education in North America.
Advisory Board participants included: Diana Adamson Arias, Director of Sales, Corporate and Travel Industry, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts; Priscilla Alexander, President and Founder, Protravel International; Jody Bear, Principal, Bear & Bear Travel; Cheryl Bennett, Vice President of Travel Industry Sales, Viceory Hotel Group; Greg Bernd, Co-President, Classic Vacations; Ellen Bettridge, Vice President, Retail Travel Network, American Express; Marilyn Conroy, Executive Vice President, David Morris International; Isaac Cymrot, Director of Sales & Industry Relations, Travel Insured International; Donnie Dawson, Deputy Director of Tourism, Sales/USA and Latin America, Jamaica Tourism Board; Greg DeClemente, Managing Director, Courtyard Travel; Nathan Devore, Vice President, Protravel International; Christine Duffy, President, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA); Stacy Fischer-Rosenthal, President, Fischer Travel Enterprises; Donald Foste, Director of Sales and Marketing; the Americas, Harlequin Hotels and Resorts/Buccament Bay Resort; Gina Gabbard, Vice President of Leisure Sales, Tzell Travel Group; Barbara Gallay, President, New York, FROSCH; Fay Georgousis, Director, Greek National Tourist Office; Suzanne Hall, Senior Director, Marketing and Development Land Programs, Ensemble Travel Group; Paula Hayes, Vice President of Trade Sales, Globus Family of Brands; Gerilyn Horan, Director of Global Sales, North America, Langham Hotel Group; Jeff Lanzarotta, Account Director, Global Retail Leisure & Luxury Sales, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.; Lara Leibman, Executive Vice President, FROSCH; Sean Lynch, Director of Sales, Trump SoHo New York; Jon Makhmaltchi, Vice President of Worldwide Sales, Small Luxury Hotels of the World; Jack Mannix, Founder and Principal, Jack E. Mannix & Associates; Kier Mathhews, Vice President of Travel Industry Sales, Europe Express & Brian Moore International Tours; Ignacio Maza, Executive Vice President, Signature Travel Network; John McMahon, Vice President/Group Publisher, The Travel + Hospitality Group; April Murena, Regional Director of National Accounts, Loews Hotels; Joan Novack, Owner, Majesty Travel; Laurie Palumbo, Chief Operating Officer, Island Destinations; Dennis Pinto, President, Micato Safaris; Becky Powell, CTC, CTIE, Vice President, Member Sales and Service, USA and Canada, Virtuoso, Ltd.; Martin Rapp, Senior Vice President of Leisure Sales, Altour; Pilar Rios, Area Director Sales and Marketing, Banyan Tree México; Alexis Romer, Vice President of Travel Industry, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC; Colleen Schmitz, Director of Luxury Sales, MGM Resorts International; Ryan Sieroty, Director Global Accounts, Consortia, Retail Leisure & Luxury Sales, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts/Raffles Hotels & Resorts/Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts; Kenan Simmons, Vice President of Sales, The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd.; Gary Stevens, Vice President of Leisure Sales and Marketing, Leaders in Travel; Kathy Sudeikis, CTC, Vice President of Corporate Relations, All About Travel; Ruthanne Terrero, CTC, Vice President/Editorial Director, The Travel + Hospitality Group; Roy Twiste, Managing Director Sales, Tzell Park Avenue; Ken Watson, Chief Operating Officer, Silversea Cruises, Ltd.; Valerie Wilson, President and CEO, Valerie Wilson Travel, Inc.; Jennifer Wilson-Buttigieg, Co-President, Valerie Wilson Travel, Inc.; Julie Zadeh, CTC, Managing Director of Travel Trade Marketing, Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau; and Scott Wiseman, President, Abercrombie & Kent, Inc.
Other advisory board members include: Ralph Aruzza, Vice President Sales and Marketing, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts; Chris Austin, Vice President of Global Customer Partnerships, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.; Joshua Bush, Vice President, Park Avenue Travel; Peter S. Carideo, CTC, President, CRC Travel; Tom Civitano, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Jumeirah Group; Roselyn Cosentino, Chief Marketing Officer, Luxe Worldwide Hotels; Terry Dale, President and Chief Executive Officer, United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA); Larry Dessler, Executive Director, Niche Cruise Marketing Alliance; Jeff Drew, Senior Vice Preident of Sales, Oceania Cruises; Kathy Falkensammer, CTC, President, Prestige Travel; Ed Fioravante, Sales Executive, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Richard Harper, CMP, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, MGM Resorts International; Malaka Hilton, President and CEO, Admiral Travel; Maureen Jones, President, All Horizons Travel, Inc.; Don Jones, Vice President Corporate and Travel Industry Sales, Americas, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts; Stephen McGillivray, CTC, Chief Marketing Officer, Travel Leaders Group; Rick Meadows, Executive Vice President, Holland America and President, Yachts of Seabourn; Anne Morgan Scully, President, McCabe World Travel; Terry Morrison, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, MLT Vacations; Mary Ann Ramsey, President and Owner, Betty Maclean Travel, Inc.; Andrew Rein, Sales Manager, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts; Lee Robinson, Vice President of Field Sales, Princess Cruises and Cunard Line; Bob Romano, Partner, Fugazi Travel Agency, Inc.; Leslie Rotkel, Travel Consultant, Leaders in Travel; Navin Sawhney, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tauck World Discovery; Nancy Strong, CEO, Strong Travel Services; Andy Stuart, Executive Vice President of Global Sales and Passenger Services, Norwegian Cruise Lines; and Ian Swain, President, Swain Tours.
###
About Luxury Travel Expo (www.LuxuryTravelExpo.com): Produced by Luxury Travel Advisor, and Travel Agent Magazine, Luxury Travel Expo is the industry’s largest gathering of luxury travel professionals. The show’s successful formula consists of an unrivaled educational program and ample exhibit hall hours where luxury suppliers and travel advisors can network. The twelfth annual Luxury Travel Expo will take place December 6–8, 2011 at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Follow us on Twitter. Find us on Facebook. Read our Blog. Join our group on LinkedIn. Advisor registration will open soon. Learn about the 2011 registration passes now.
About Travel + Hospitality Group: The Travel + Hospitality Group encompasses a multi-faceted portfolio of products delivering a complete package of industry-leading publications, events and robust online solutions. The Travel + Hospitality Group reaches audience members through a variety of digital, print and event services.
These include up-to-the-minute online portals TravelAgentCentral.com, LuxuryTravelAdvisor.com; print publications Luxury Travel Advisor and Travel Agent; cutting-edge educational sites TAUniv.com and luxurytravelu.com; live networking events Luxury Travel Expo, Caribbean Meeting and Incentive Travel Exchange, Incentive Travel Exchange, Europe Meeting & Incentive Travel Exchange and Hawaii Travel Exchange; the luxury adnetwork T+H Media; through the full-service agency T+H Interactive and on the online luxury booking system FiveStarAlliance.com.