NTA names its top young professionals and Distinguished Dozen
March 22, 2017
LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 9, 2017) — The National Tour Association recognized two groups of outstanding members in St. Louis last week during Travel Exchange, the organization’s annual convention. Honored at a luncheon on March 2 was the inaugural class of NTA’s Top 5 Young Professionals. And at a luncheon earlier in the week, NTA President Pam Inman introduced the gold winners of Courier’s Distinguished Dozen.
“These members hold different roles in a variety of regions, but they all represent the best of NTA,” Inman said. “I’m pleased we can honor them. Each member has unique talents and contributions, and we are so fortunate to have these industry leaders involved in NTA.”
Top 5 Young Professionals
The association honored its first group of top young professionals: NTA members, 40 or under, who have shown extraordinary leadership and performance and have participated in NTA events. They are:
- LouAnna Henton, tourism sales manager for the Nashville CVB
- Lisa Itel, global sales manager for Travel Oregon
- Fraser Neave, director of product development for Wells Gray Tours
- Dave Nitkiewicz, specialty market sales manager for Experience Grand Rapids
- Michelle Tupman, vice president of Great Canadian Holiday
Courier’s Distinguished Dozen
In the sixth year of the magazine’s award program, NTA tour operators voted on destinations and tour suppliers in 12 categories. Criteria include quality of tour product, level of customer service and dedication to relationship-building. The gold, silver and bronze winners in each category are as follows:
North American DMO Partner (City/Region)
Gold: Travel Portland
Silver: NYC & Company
Bronze: Visit Savannah
North American DMO Partner (State/Province)
Gold: Travel Oregon
Silver: New York State Division of Tourism
Bronze: Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism
Overseas DMO Partner
Gold: Jordan Tourism Board
Silver: China National Tourist Office
Bronze: VisitScotland
Group-friendly Restaurant
Gold: Hard Rock International
Silver: Cracker Barrel Old Country Store
Bronze: Golden Corral
Casino/Gaming Property
Gold: Mohegan Sun (Uncasville, Connecticut)
Silver: Beau Rivage by MGM Resorts (Biloxi, Mississippi)
Bronze: Tulalip Resort Casino (Tulalip, Washington)
Corporate Hotel Chain
Gold: Hilton Worldwide
Silver: Drury Hotels
Bronze: Best Western Hotels & Resorts
Independent/Boutique Hotel Property
Gold: Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Resort (Nashville, Tennessee)
Silver: The Biltmore Company (Asheville, North Carolina)
Bronze: Hilton Québec (Québec City)
Shopping Attraction
Gold: Macy’s
Silver: Tanger Properties
Bronze: Tommy Hilfiger
Theater/Show Venue
Gold: Broadway Inbound/The Shubert Organization
Silver: Blue Man Group
Bronze: Grand Ole Opry Entertainment Group
Museum for Groups
Gold: Newseum (Washington, D.C.)
Silver: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Bronze: Graceland (Memphis, Tennessee)
Big-ship or River Cruising Company
Gold: Norwegian Cruise Line
Silver: American Queen Steamboat Company
Bronze: Holland America Line
Sightseeing Tours
Gold: Entertainment Cruises
Silver: Boston Duck Tours
Bronze: Old Savannah Tours
At Travel Exchange, 1,000 travel and tourism professionals—tour operators and representatives of destinations and tour suppliers—gathered to conduct business appointments and partner on packaged tour itineraries.
About the National Tour Association: Founded in 1951, NTA is a global association of packaged-travel professionals who serve customers traveling to, from and within North America. For more information, visit NTAonline.com.