The USVI Hotel & Tourism Association’s Education & Training Committee is in its nineteenth year of the Summer Employment Program in collaboration with the USVI Department of Labor and participating senators of the 34th Legislature of the Virgin Islands. The objective of the six-week program is to provide a meaningful learning experience for Virgin Islands high school and college students while stimulating interest in careers in the hospitality and tourism industry. We are seeking your assistance in providing placement for students participating in this year’s program. Please indicate on the attached form your commitment to accepting students and in which department. A program timeline is also attached for your review. Please complete this form in its entirety and return to lisa@usvihta.com by June 3. Read more.

More local news:

DLCA Fuel Price Survey and Rack Rate Prices as of May 12 - Survey

Your input is being sought to assist us with gaining a better understanding of the state of the tourism economy, its outlook and the degree to which a number of factors are affecting or may affect your business – i.e. labor shortages and escalating cost of operations. Your participation will assist CHTA and the National Hotel and Tourism Associations in the region with our efforts on behalf of the industry. The aggregate results will be shared with you to help you to benchmark where your business stands relative to the broader industry. In order for the survey to have validity, it is essential that we receive a sufficient number of responses. This should only take a few minutes to complete. Please know that all individual information will be confidential. Please respond by May 25. Click here for the survey.

More regional news:

Caribbean hospitality employees are invited and encouraged to apply for admission to the Caribbean Hospitality Professional Development Program sponsored by Les Roches Global Hospitality Education, one of the world’s leading hospitality business schools, and the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association Education Foundation (CHTAEF). Launched in 2021, the jointly sponsored program is designed to accelerate participants’ career trajectories toward senior leadership roles in the hospitality industry. Through this initiative the program supports Caribbean hospitality employees in developing themselves and advancing within the industry. Read more.

Tropical Treasure Hunt and Leatherback Brewery are organizing an amazing fundraiser treasure hunt competition coming up on June 4 from 9 .m. - 2 p.m. that starts at Brewer's Bay (and an after party at Leatherback Brewery at 6 p.m.). We would love to have you and members of your teams (family and friends can participate as well, ages 15+). Please see attached flyer for all details. All the profits go towards supporting the Sea Walls art project that will be in St. Thomas in November where they will have elite artists around the world come to St. Thomas to create ocean themed murals on walls. These murals have proven to raise awareness of ocean conservation efforts. You can learn more about their cause https://seawalls.org/. The murals from the Sea Walls program directly align with Gov. Bryan's focus to continue to "beautify" the island. The grand prize for the hunt is a sunset cruise on Heavenly Days with the artists in November. This prize valued at $3,000 was generously donated by our fellow association member Bolongo Bay Resort. Read more about the hunt, click on the flyer to the right to expand or book online now.

Secret Harbour Beach Resort, a full-amenity condominium property for families and couples, announced that it has been rated in the top 10% of hotels in the world. The St. Thomas property was recognized as a 2022 Travelers’ Choice Award hotel by Tripadvisor, the world’s largest travel platform. Secret Harbour has won the Tripadvisor award of excellence for 12 consecutive years, and in March of this year was recognized by Travel Lemming as the best hotel overall in St. Thomas, and by Forbes last year as "1 in 5 top resorts in USVI." The Travelers Choice award celebrates businesses that consistently deliver extraordinary experiences to travelers around the globe, having earned great traveler reviews on Tripadvisor over the last 12 months. As challenging as the pandemic has been, Secret Harbour stood out (and continues to stand out) by delighting travelers who stay at the tranquil and well-managed beachfront Caribbean resort. Read more.

For more information, contact Omar Andres Haedo directly at omar.a.haedo@elan.insure.