Patricia Alfonso-Dass is Caribbean Hotelier of the Year
PATRICIA ALFONSO DASS was emotional as she went onstage to accept her trophy after she was announced, with great fanfare on-screen, as the 2024 Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association ( CHTA) Caribbean Hotelier of the Year on Monday, May 20.
Alfonso-Dass was handed the prestigious award by the 2022 winner Kevin Hendrickson and Nicola Madden-Greig, president of the CHTA, during a luncheon on the opening day of the 42nd CHTA Caribbean Travel Marketplace, held at the Montego Bay Conference Centre in St James.
The coveted award has been presented since 1978 to honour the region’s tourism leaders for their outstanding contributions to Caribbean hospitality and tourism. It is one of the industry’s highest recognitions and is an honour bestowed by their peers, including previous Hotelier of the Year award recipients, who are legends of Caribbean hospitality.
Alfonso-Dass, based on her accomplishments, too many to mention in this medium, is certainly a Caribbean tourism giant. She was born in Roseau, Dominica, left there at the age of two, and lived in Trinidad and Antigua before moving to Guyana, where she grew up. She has been living in Barbados since August 1998.
Her connection with tourism has spanned a three-decade career, which includes being founding member and past president of the Tourism Association of Guyana; and since moving to Barbados, she has managed Bougainvillea Beach Resort, Ocean Park and Beach View Hotel. Since September 2009, she has been the group general manager of Ocean Hotels, comprising a total of 215 rooms, having three properties under her watch.
“As president of the BHTA, Alfonso-Dass represented the Barbados Hotel and Tourist Association on the board of the Barbados Tourism Authority and the Barbados Private Sector Association, and has remained a tireless and outspoken advocate for the industry on a number of critical issues,” the CHTA notes on its website.
“A key achievement of Alfonso-Dass’-role as president of BHTA was her involvement in the amendment of the Tourism Development Act to truly recognise tourism as an export industry, granting licensed hotel and tourism operators an exemption from the duties and taxes payable for the local purchase or importation of supplies, including food, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, consumables and supplies required for the operation or development of a tourism product or tourism project.”
On Monday, the CHTA went further by saying, “Our 2024 Caribbean Hotelier of the Year calls the Caribbean home and has a deep affinity for nature. Our recipient, a past president of the CHTA, was instrumental in maintaining organisational stability and relevance during a period of uncertainty.
“She played a crucial role in the recovery, including the development of regional reopening protocols and advocacy matters. This year’s winner’s journey is a testament to her unwavering commitment to excellence, her passion for the industry, and her dedication to people development,” the CHTA said.
BEST COLLABORATIVE PRACTICES
Three other awards, The President Award for Excellence in Caribbean Tourism, The Destination Resilience Award Category A, and The Destination Resilience Award Category B, were also handed out. The Caribbean Public Health Agency is the recipient of The President Award, given to a public-sector entity that has engaged in work that has been exemplified as being able to transform Caribbean tourism.
“They have been a partner for over eight years, they have taken us through the pandemic, they have two exceptional female leaders who have been instrumental in showcasing how two very distinct and separate industries can work together in partnership to achieve one common goal … . They have presented a suite of tools for preparedness and response to vector-borne diseases, foodborne illnesses, various viruses and diseases, including general guidelines and checklists for the tourism sectors post-COVID 19,” the CHTA said on Monday through its president, Nicola Madden-Greig.
“They have worked with us for information and socialisation session … and action plans, including consensus and domestic international public relations. We have worked with them on training and capacity-building for public and private sector tourism stakeholders, standards for health and safety for tourism-related services and health safety staff and the early alert programme.”
The other two awards were presented by the CHTA in collaboration with the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism, and they are to recognise destinations with a deliberate focus on resiliency, as indicated by their commitments to address some or all of the United Nation World Tourism Organisation’s 17 sustainable development goals. Special emphasis is placed on recognising destinations which subscribe to a collaborative and partnership approach, engaging public- and private-sector stakeholders in innovative, needs-driven strategies.
“The award recognises those efforts which seek to mitigate the effects of climate change and the broader challenges impacting our sustainable development. It seeks to identify best collaborative practices, particularly those which engage both the destination’s national hotel and tourism association and the tourism board and/or tourism ministry, or similar entity,” The CHTA said.
In Category A, for destinations with total stopover visitor arrivals of over 500,000, the finalists were Aruba, Puerto Rico and The Bahamas, the eventual winner. Anguilla, Bonaire, St Lucia, and St Maarten competed in Category B for destinations with total stopover arrivals under 500,000. St Lucia triumphed over the others.
In her brief response after accepting her trophy, Affonso-Dass thanked her team and said, among other things, “CHTA is instrumental in every aspect of my career. It’s important for the region, it’s important for regional organisations, and it’s important for the people; and I encourage all of you in this room to give it your fullest support, your engagement, and continue to make this ... major region the most desirable, the most beautiful, and the most prosperous.”