The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s “Icon of Hospitality” title celebrates the careers and lives of extraordinary leaders whose work in Caribbean hospitality has stood the test of time and left its mark on CHTA and the region. The association’s new ultimate recognition honors legendary professionals who have not only achieved phenomenal business success but have also mentored and molded those aiming for excellence in this industry.

On behalf of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), our President Nicola Madden-Greig, and the members of the CHTA Executive Committee, we are honored to salute Sir Royston Hopkin, a true icon of our tourism sector and our region.

We bestow our top honor to Sir Royston not only for his professional achievements as an internationally recognized hotelier, but also for a vision larger than himself, his hotel and his island, which inspired – and continues to inspire – succeeding generations.

Sir Royston was a loving family man who never forgot his roots and how they helped him develop. He described growing up as a child helping his parents operate a small guesthouse as the basis for his understanding of hospitality.

With his intelligence, compassion, and devotion to the Caribbean region, Sir Royston was a major contributor to the development of modern Caribbean tourism, which today sits among the elite destinations as one of the most desired on the planet.

Sir Royston, whose five-star Spice Island Beach Resort is synonymous with elegant luxury, was proud of his humble beginnings, family, story, and in the latter years, of the wonderful and well-deserved recognition that his beloved resort achieved. He won international acclaim for his promotion of elegant luxury.

Sir Royston also shared much of his energy, intelligence and vision with others. He served as President of the Grenada Hotel and Tourism Association and past president of CHTA. He was also co-founder of the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism and a recipient of the coveted CHTA Caribbean Hotelier of the Year award. Among his numerous awards, he was recognized with a Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit Lifetime Achievement Award.

He credited his involvement with CHTA for broadening his industry knowledge, building lifelong professional relationships and friendships, and leading to the success of his award-winning resort.

Always with an eye to the future, he constantly identified opportunities for others, pointing to the value of CHTA, which he called “the university without walls” for Caribbean people and all emerging leaders.

We remember fondly how Sir Royston described his involvement in CHTA: “What you take from it, universities cannot give you. Because, if I were not involved in CHTA I would not … be the sole owner of Spice Island Beach Resort,” he told hoteliers and aspiring young hospitality professionals while delivering the keynote address at CHTA’s Caribbean Hospitality Industry Exchange Forum in Miami in 2017.

He saw service to and involvement in the association as a valuable launching pad for young hoteliers – a place to learn, develop personal networks, and recognize that they were a part of something bigger than their businesses.

Sir Royston’s love of our industry, our region and the beautiful resort over which he labored are monuments to his greatness as an incomparable icon and an inspiration for future leaders.