SA hotel wins international PR award

Commenting on the awards, Marshall Calder, senior vice president of marketing for The Leading Hotels of the World, said, “As the largest global luxury hotel brand, we have among our members an extraordinarily knowledgeable group of marketing professionals. Sharing their insights and expertise with their colleagues during this conference enables all of us to benefit from this impressive pool of talent.”

Winners of this year's awards were:

Public Relations Campaign

Pezula Resort Hotel & Spa, Knysna, South Africa

• For originality of approach in generating greater awareness of the resort among high net worth travelers from the UK, US and Europe, and the scope of press coverage achieved.

  Advertising Campaign

  Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Maldives and Mauritius

• For effectiveness and visual appeal in conveying the bespoke experiences, pampering, dining options and holistic spa services offered by these two resorts in a print campaign.

  Email Marketing Campaign

  Langham Hotels International

• For creativity and impact of an email campaign to inform travel agents of LHI's new GDS code launch and to reinforce the Langham brand in the travel consultant market.

First presented in 2001, and co-sponsored by Departures magazine, the Chairman's Awards were established to recognise the outstanding advertising, public relations and direct mail or email campaigns developed by members of The Leading Hotels of the World. From the many entries received, three finalists in each category are chosen by a panel of experts in the specific fields, based in New York. The ultimate recipients of the awards, who won prizes from both The Leading Hotels of the World and Departures Magazine, were then determined by votes cast by attendees at the conference.