Honouring the class acts of world tourism

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At the World�s Tourism Awards Silversea Cruses won for Leading Luxury Travel Product of the Year.

They came in their glittering gowns and immaculately-pressed tuxedos. The champions of the globe's tourist industry, hoping to be called up to be recognized as a 2011 Worlds Tourism Award winner; they were all there in Doha, Qatar.

Unfortunately it would not be a night of recognition for Canadians and their corporations, but many of the winners were destinations or organizations we support on an annual basis.

With destination weddings and honeymoons growing by leaps and bounds, it was Jamaica that emerged as the World's Leading Honeymoon Destination. With beaches like those at Negril, and photo opportunities galore waiting at Dunn's River Falls, perhaps it is no wonder. Jamaica was also recognized as the Leading Cruise Destination.

While Sandals may have been made in Jamaica, it was its Grande Antigua Resort that came out the winner in the World's Most Romantic Resort category. And it was Sandals' other resort brand, Beaches, that took home the silverware for Best Family All-Inclusive.

After experiencing the service for the first time last year, it was no surprise to me that Silversea Cruises won out as the World's Leading Luxury Travel Product of the Year. Or that The Yachts of Seabourn, with whom I will be hosting a South American cruise next January, was selected as the World's leading Luxury Cruise Line.

Viking River Cruises proudly accepted accolades as the Leading River Cruise Operator, while Royal Caribbean representatives walked up to accept the Leading Cruise Line award.

To the surprise of many it was Universal Orlando, Fla., that received recognition as the World's Leading Theme Resort, a snub Disney Resort will likely not take lightly.

In other segments where companies Canadians may know of that were recognized, it was Europcar that won in the Leisure Car Rental category, while Cathay Pacific won for the Best Airline Economy Class, and One World took the trophy for Leading Airline Alliance.

A complete list of winners can be seen online at www.worldtravelawards.com/winners2011-1

QUESTION: With so many of the worldwide economies sliding into recession, isn't it fair to assume that the future of the global tourism industry is going to experience a period of turmoil.

ANSWER: While on the surface that would appear to be a logical conclusion, the United Nations World Tourist Organization is in fact predicting quite the opposite. International tourist arrivals, the measurement used by the organization, increased at a rate of four per cent in 2011, and are expected to grow again this year, albeit at a somewhat slower rate. In fact the prediction is that sometime in 2012 the one-billion mark will be achieved for the first time ever.

This represents a huge body of movement on the go at any hour of any day.

Perhaps it was because of lower prices, brought on by a difficult economy, it was Europe region that saw the greatest growth last year at 6%. With South America, defined as a sub-region, it experienced the biggest increase at 10 per cent growth.

UNWTO secretary general Taleb Rifa, commenting on the released figures, said "For a sector directly responsible for five per cent of the world's GDP, six per cent of total exports and employing one out of every 12 people in advanced and emerging economies alike, these results are encouraging."

The strongest tourist destinations continue to be the United States, Spain, Hong Kong, China, and the United Kingdom. Amongst the emerging markets are Brazil, India, China and Russia.

It seems clear that the desire to discover and explore will continue to be a priority for millions even through difficult economic periods.

QUESTION: I travel quite often and wonder at times if there is any significant theft of bags from the carousels of airports around the world?

ANSWER: For the most part this does not happen, even though it seems it would be easy to do at most airports.

Firstly, at most airports passengers are already at the carousels before the first piece of baggage pops onto the turnstile. People tend to be gathered close around watching the rotations intently for their specific bag.

At the same time it is not uncommon for people to pick up other people's bags without doing proper checks to see if it is their identification on it. While not a huge problem this does occur and actually happened to me once in the past.

In an era where black and brown bags still prevail it is not surprising that this still leaves rightful owners frustrated when they realize their bags have not come to them.

There are ways to cut down on the possibilities of bags being taken by someone else by error or design.

Never leave your baggage unattended as you go fetch a second bag you may be waiting for. As a precaution don't leave expensive valuables in your checked baggage. While no one knows what's in your bag, should it disappear by theft you will have a hard time claiming those losses from your airline.

While black and brown bags are the most common, particularly black, there are so many new colour options with shades in each colour it is wise to make your next purchase anything but black or brown.

Unique tags on the bags help prevent the unintended exchange of bags, as do wrap around belts that really help delineate your pieces on the carousel easily.

But just in case, as I have written in the past, pack at least one change of clothing into your carry-on bag when you depart from home, and if you are travelling with a partner, pack each other's clothing by halves in each other's check-in luggage.

Forward your travel questions to askjourneys@journeystravel.com Ron Pradinuk is president of Journeys Travel & Leisure SuperCentre and can be heard Sundays at noon on CJOB. Previous columns and tips can be found on www.journeystravelgear.com or read Ron's travel blog at www.thattravelguy.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 4, 2012 D2