The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2010 PATA Gold Awards, sponsored by the Macau Government Tourist Office. This year the awards recognise the achievements of 24-separate organisations and individuals. Therefore the 2010, you will see 24 PATA Grand and Gold Awards presented, with multiple awards going to Hong Kong Tourism Board, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, and Tourism Authority of Thailand. The awards ceremony takes place on September 17th during PATA Travel Mart 2010 at the Venetian Macao~Resort~Hotel, Macau SAR.

PATA Grand Awards are presented to outstanding entries in the four principal categories: Marketing, Education and Training, Environment, and Heritage. This year, the Grand Awards go to Tourism New Zealand in the marketing category; Banyan Tree Spa Academy for education and training; AlamKulKul Boutique Resort, Bali for environment, and Ministry of Tourism, Government of India in the heritage category.

The Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) has generously sponsored the PATA Gold Awards for the past 15 years. Jo?o Manuel Costa Antunes, director, MGTO said, “Our congratulations to all the winners for their outstanding achievements, which are also excellent examples to encourage the industry to pursue excellence, innovation and advancement. We look forward to welcoming the winners as well as travel trade stakeholders, to the PATA Travel Mart 2010 in Macau this September.”

PATA Grand Awards 2010

Education and Training
Banyan Tree Spa Academy
Banyan Tree Spa

When the Banyan Tree Spa Academy in Phuket was opened in 2001, it was a world-first for a resort. It developed a fully trained, talented therapist base that helped to enter new markets and grow the chain from one Banyan Tree Spa in 1994 to more than 61 Banyan Tree and Angsana Spas today. The Therapist Training Programme at Banyan Tree Spa Academy was developed and implemented to train new recruits, and encompasses all areas of spa therapy.

This includes knowledge of the human anatomy and important pressure points, modern and traditional massage techniques, variation of body weight for different techniques, knowledge of skin epidermis and facial applications, properties of different herbs and spices, preparation of spa ingredients, setting up of treatment rooms and spa pavilions, and standard greeting procedures.

To date, the Spa Academy has trained over 1,000 therapists for all the Banyan Tree Spas and Angsana Spas globally. The special emphasis on Banyan Tree Spa’s service concept to empower trainees to deliver the Banyan Tree Spa experience with consistency, finesse and sensitivity has enabled it to garner over 100-awards and accolades globally, making the Banyan Tree Spa one of the most renowned spa brands around the world.

Environment
Jantung Hijau, Green Heart
AlamKulKul Boutique Resort Bali, Indonesia

Jantung Hijau or Green Heart is an environmental awareness programme first introduced to AlamKulKul Boutique Resort employees in early 2000. Every staff member was asked to bring a tree along to the Family Day. Prizes were awarded for the most exotic species of native greenery. Every tree was later planted in the hotel grounds with each staff members’ name attached to it. The resort has repeatedly been involved in ‘green’ projects including beach clean-ups and working with the Balinese community to adopt local sites of
cultural interest.

The entire property no longer uses precious ground water reserves. The greatest achievement is continued effort to re-green the island of Bali through mass plantings. The Resort has planted more than 25,000-trees around Bali over the past 10-years. This endeavour in fact preceded Indonesia’s commitment during the Copenhagen Environmental Summit, to plant a billion trees in an effort to counteract the effects of global warming.

Heritage
Rural Tourism Project – Case Study of Hodka Village
Ministry of Tourism, Government of India

The Rural Tourism Project was conceptualised in 2003 by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) at 36-rural sites in 20 states. This has now been extended to another 133 villages. This winning entry for the PATA Gold Award 2010 is specifically for the Shaam-e-Sarhad resort of the rural tourism project at Hodka village in the Kachchh district of Gujarat.
Sustainable visitor strategies based on art, craft, cultural, natural heritage and environment care, can hence target larger tourism yields, which could contribute significantly to conservation, and the rural sector in
particular.

The Project facilitates interactive experiences of rural life for the paying visitor, who is the direct income route for the local communities. The project’s key action routes include the formation of rural
self help groups, tourism marketing and governance structures, backed by convergent support to sustainable village infrastructure, waste management and environment car. The focus is thereby on sustainable capacity building with local stakeholder participation, wherein women and the rural poor are target beneficiaries.

Marketing
Your Big Break
Tourism New Zealand, New Zealand

An innovative short film competition gave amateur film-makers the opportunity to create a film that would become part of the internationally acclaimed ‘100% Pure New Zealand’ marketing campaign. With support from
Academy Award winning producer Barrie Osborne and legendary New Zealand director Peter Jackson, tapped into American consumers’ love of movies and celebrity culture. The campaign used social media, online marketing and PR, to raise awareness of New Zealand as a holiday destination in the USA.

PATA Gold Awards 2010

1. Marketing – Primary Government Destination
Eco Tourism Marketing Campaign
Ministry of Tourism, Government of India

2. Marketing – Secondary Government Destination
Hong Kong Food and Wine Year Destination Campaign
Hong Kong Tourism Board

3. Marketing – Hospitality
Outrigger Laguna Phuket Resort and Villas Opening Campaign
Outrigger Hotels and Resorts, Asia

PATA is a not-for-profit organisation. For more information, please visit
www.PATA.org