USVIHTA Update | September 2021
U.S. Virgin Islands Takes its Brand to the Big Stage
The U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) invited thousands to “Reconnect with Paradise” over the Labor Day weekend at JAY-Z’s “Made in America” music festival, which attracted about 100,000 patrons to Philadelphia’s historic Benjamin Franklin Parkway, widely regarded as the city’s cultural and artistic mecca. The USVI Department of Tourism, including its Division of Festivals, kept the territory “top of mind” among prospective mainland travelers by showcasing its musical and cultural attributes through a lively activation held in close proximity to the main stage, which featured top stars ranging from Megan Thee Stallion to Justin Bieber. Read more.

More local news:
Caribbean Tourism Performance Scores High Marks Despite the Pandemic
Despite daunting challenges presented over the past 18 months by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Caribbean tourism and hospitality industry recorded many significant successes, and data points to an encouraging outlook ahead. Speaking during the opening plenary session at the Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) held last week, Acting CEO & Director General of the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) Vanessa Ledesma presented insights on the performance and outlook of the Caribbean tourism industry. Read more.

More regional news:
Tropical Treasure Hunt Creates Custom On-Site Team Building for Antilles Staff while Following Covid-19 Safety Protocols!
The Antilles VI staff of 60+ teachers and administrators recently enjoyed a secret agent themed team building event that has been over a year in the making. Antilles had a Tropical Treasure Hunt planned for their staff in 2020, but due to Covid-19, they needed to wait. Fast forward to August 2021 and the event was able to move forward. The staff was broken into teams of six. Teams participated in four friendly competitions that allowed staff to get out of their comfort zone while having fun. These secret agent themed competitions included archery tag (with foam tip arrows and safety masks), a blind folded maze with actual laser beams and smoke machines, Tropical Treasure Hunt's exclusively licensed augmented reality secret agent game, as well as a spy themed improv acting contest with trained and amateur actors as the judges. To succeed in these competitions, staff members had to demonstrate strong critical thinking skills, time management, communication, teamwork and creativity.


Is your team interested in an onsite team building experience? Leave it to Tropical Treasure Hunt, St. Thomas's premier team building company. They partner with your leaders to ensure the competitions match the professional development competencies that your organization values. Tropical Treasure Hunt's leadership has over eight years of experience in the Talent Management industry with helping organizations improve their employee engagement. They use best practices to ensure a high quality and memorable experience.

Read more, and reach out to Tropical Treasure Hunt to start planning your next event by emailing info@tropicaltreasurehunt.com or calling 786-296-8800.
The Prior Family Foundation Donates $250K to My Brother's Workshop Main Campus Project
The Prior Family Foundation has donated $250,000 to the MBW Main Campus Project. As long time supporters of MBW, the Prior Family Foundation sees the value in investing in this project and in the Virgin Islands youth. The foundation was established by a grant from Cornelius B. Prior, Jr. in 2007. Trustee Trudie Prior said, “As longtime residents of this community, my husband and I recognized a need to provide young people the opportunity to learn a skill or trade that would be a pathway to success in life. My Brothers Workshop is filling that need.” Read more.
Are You Taking Full Advantage of Your HTA Membership? Advertise with Visit St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix Today!
Visit St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix is a high-quality, full-color upscale magazine that will be placed on an EXCLUSIVE basis in the guest rooms of over 100 hotels comprising more than 5,500 rooms in St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix covering the vast majority of overnight visitors to the islands.

In order to generate more visitors to the U.S. Virgin Islands, North South Net, Inc. (NSN) provides the USVIHTA with a substantial print and radio advertising budget for use in USVI’s key airlift markets across the United States. NSN has also developed and funded a number of other programs with USVIHTA that will increase the number of tourists to the island.

By supporting our partnership with your advertising, you are supporting the USVIHTA, helping to increase the number of tourists to the U.S. Virgin Islands and providing these tourists with the means to make the best choices during their stay. Click here to learn all the reasons why you should make Visit St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix your primary advertising choice for 2021/2022.

Inquire today by contacting Rachael Gunn Skywalker at 907-306-7969 or Rachael.visitusvi@gmail.com, Bobbie Bryan at 340-998-7025 or bobbie.visitusvi@gmail.com, or Garry Duell at 786-501-3434 or Gduell@northsouthnet.com.
Association Health Plans Available Now through Elan
The Hotel & Tourism Association continues to work to identify great opportunities for our members. We've recently signed an agreement with Elan Insurance Group to offer Association Health Plans. Click the photo to view the PDF version in your browser. The PDF lets members know about:
  1. This great NEW benefit
  2. Who is qualified to receive it
  3. How to get started

For more information, contact Omar Andres Haedo directly at omar.a.haedo@elan.insure.
Save the Date
Click here to view upcoming events. And don't forget to share your special events with members today by emailing kaufmann.laurel@gmail.com.
Lisa Hamilton 
USVIHTA President 
340-774-6835