Dear Members,

I’ve been in the role of Director of Membership for almost a month now and I’ve had the opportunity to speak with many of you about CHTA and the value of your membership.  There seems to be a resounding thread in conversations that the CHTA benefit is Marketplace—and yes, the event is rich with opportunities for both hotel and allied members to network, market and close business.  We love it too!  But, as I sit at my desk and look at all that CHTA has to offer for members, I realize that the onus is on me to educate members on the year-round benefits that are available to all members.

• Knowledge Center:  Members have access to the Knowledge Center on the CHTA website which provides data on the travel industry worldwide and within the region, compiled by companies like STR, WTTC and MasterCard, among other sources.

• Online Directories:  The CHTA website holds a directory where members can search for other member companies of interest in the region by category and can obtain contact information.
• Webinars:  Webinars are held year-round and cover various topics of interest to both hoteliers and allied members alike.  CAST (Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism) hosts a series of webinars dedicated to key environmental issues facing the region.  Events also host webinars for members to get up to date on recent topics of interest in the industry.  Allied members have the opportunity to host webinars when they opt to sponsor an event or become strategic partners.
• Exclusive Offers:  Allied members often give discounts on their products and services and are featured on our website and monthly newsletter.
  Hotel Discounts:  Hotels benefit from added exposure when they provide discounts for members and allied members benefit from exclusive rates while traveling.  Offers are featured on the Members Only section of the website.
• Event Participation:  CHIEF is one of our signature events held throughout the year as well as CHTA Travel Marketplace and Taste of the Caribbean.   We are also Industry Partners at a few tourism investment conferences and travel/trade conferences held year-round where members can receive preferred pricing on registration.
• Sponsorship & Strategic Partner Opportunities:  Members can become Sponsors of any of our events or Strategic Partners of the Association and leverage marketing opportunities to a targeted audience—including added exposure with speaking opportunities and webinar hosting spots among others.
• Career Center: The CHTA career center is powered by CaribbeanJobs.com and can be found directly on the CHTA website.  Members are offered a discounted rate for listings.
  Allied Members that are looking for added exposure time with hotels need only ask!  There are opportunities at every corner to engage more with the hotel membership—outside of Marketplace.

• Consider attending the webinars for added insights to what hoteliers are prioritizing or even host a webinar on a timely topic!
• CHIEF, held in late October at El Conquistador in Puerto Rico, is quickly becoming the meeting point for upper management to learn and network with industry experts.  Are you going this year?  Think about sponsoring a session or roundtable discussion.
• Get social!  Give us something to talk about that is related to Caribbean tourism and your company and we’ll share the news with the entire membership via our social connections.

Opportunities for engagement abound and as I sink into this position and work with you to improve on the current benefits, I ask something of you: please reach out, ask, participate and activate your memberships so that together we build a stronger association!

Kind regards,
Martha Valdivia, CHTA Director of Membership Development

PS: Haven’t paid your 2016 dues or don’t know how to?  Reach out!  I’ll be happy to help!