Outrigger Resorts wins Best Hotel/Resort Group at 2016 AFTA National Tourism Awards
RELEASE NUMBER 77/16
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA –In a competitive field of finalists at the Australian Federation of Travel Agents’ National Tourism Industry Awards for Excellence that included Accor Hotels, Club Med, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Leading Hotels of the World, Outrigger Resorts has been named the winner in Best Hotel/Resort Group category.
More than 500 industry representatives attended the Australian hospitality industry’s biggest night at Darling Harbour Sydney to recognize and celebrate excellence across a range of categories.
The Hawaii-based Outrigger Enterprises Group is a privately held, leisure lodging, retail and hospitality company operating in the Asia Pacific, Oceania and Indian Ocean regions. Guided by more than 69 years of family leadership, Outrigger runs a multi-branded portfolio of hotels, beachfront resorts, condominiums and vacation resort properties located in Hawaii (Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Hawaii Island); Guam; Fiji (Coral Coast Viti Levu, Castaway Island); Thailand (Phuket, Koh Samui); Mauritius; and the Maldives. The portfolio currently has 38 properties with approximately 8,000 rooms.
Representatives from Outrigger’s Sydney Regional Sales Office, Andrew Gee (regional director of sales and marketing Australia and New Zealand), Maria Alaveras (sales manager – retail travel, wholesale and industry partners) and Juliet Hudson (sales manager destination weddings, groups and M.I.C.E), were on hand to accept the award.
“I can’t begin to say how proud I am of our Australia-based team, particularly Maria Alaveras who has an excellent relationship with the travel industry community,” said Mr. Gee.
“This really is an outstanding acknowledgement of our hard work and commitment in this market and we sincerely thank the industry for getting behind us to make this award possible.
“We are a very close team with enormous passion for a wonderful values-led brand,” he added.
Mark Simmons, vice president sales and marketing, Asia Pacific, said that the award recognition was of huge importance.
“The Australian outbound market to Outrigger globally is hugely significant to all our destinations and we are fortunate to have a very strong team to generate this business,” he said.
Outrigger Resorts has opened five properties in the last three years: in Mauritius, Maldives, Phuket, Koh Samui and Fiji. The company continues to carefully assess further expansion opportunities in warm water beachfront resort destinations around the world.
END
