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it is unexpected.
Long-term business relationships are also key
to the successful operation of the resort. Travel
partners in the U.K. are very important from the
revenue side. These include Faraway Places,
Thomson Holidays, Virgin Vacations, British Air-
ways (BA Vacations), Saga Holidays, and Tropical
Skies. Online, The Club uses bookings.com and
Expedia. And, it depends on a great relationship
with Trip Advisor to monitor customer scores
from an online rating perspective. BTMI (Barba-
dos Tourism Marketing Inc.) is a national orga-
nization promoting Barbados. The Club Barba-
dos partners with them to bring Travel Industry
fam-trip to the island.
Zephirin sums up the Club Barbados Resort
& Spa experience as one of reconnection with
people you know and who know you. “People
come here to relax and find themselves again;
to have a carefree, tranquil experience.We are
right on the ocean; we don’t have a beach in
front of the hotel, but we have a beach terrace
that overlooks the ocean. My guests tell me
when they think about the experience here, it
encourages them to forget their normal activ-
ities and concerns back home, and just escape
from reality.We specialize in individualized
service, which might seem non-unique, but our
employees have been here for quite some time
– several for 12 or 13 years. They know a lot of
The Club Barbados Resort & Spa
guests as personal friends; friends who book di-
rectly with them and call them, personally, when
returning. After all they are coming back home to
family - their Club Family!”
The General Manager concludes by indicat-
ing that “the number Two thing people should
know about our property is the Cozy nature of
the facility, as one guest puts it: ‘I take one step
from my room and I am in the pool, another step
and I am on the Beach Terrace, another step and
I am either at a bar or in the Spa.’ However, the
number One thing you should remember about
The Club is that it does not have 168 permanent
employees but 168 hosts anxious to warmly
welcome you back home! Like Heather Hinds
, Grill Cook, who won the Caribbean Hotel &
Tourism Association (CHTA) Outstanding Employ-
ee of the Year 2016, who runs her own Reserva-
tions Department, grill-side, for the convenience
of guests who prefer to book with “family” than
through the traditional channels.”
Preferred vendor
n Ocean Fisheries