Intelligent Leisure Solutions and Discover.Travel Group win 2009 World Travel Awards

Nov. 11, 2009 - PRLog -- The World Travel Awards, described by the Wall Street Journal as the 'Oscars' of the global travel and tourism industry, finalized the 2009 Grand Tour with two glamorous Winner’s Ceremonies on November 7th and 8th in Grosvenor House, London, where they revealed who are the 'best of the best' in their respective regions South America, Caribbean, Asia and Indian Ocean, as well as in the worldwide categories. In the South America categories, Brazil swept the board: Copacabana Palace won South America's Leading Hotel; Discover Brazil picked up South America's Leading Travel Agency (www.DiscoverBrazil.com); TAM Airlines was named South America's Leading Airline, and ILS3 and the Discover Travel Group received the 2009 World Travel Award as South America’s Leading Travel Management Company (www.Discover.Travel). South America’s Leading Destination is Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where travelers also enjoy South America’s Leading Beach, Ipanema Beach, and South America’s Leading Cruise Port. Several Hotels and Resorts in Brazil have received the World Travel Awards 2009 in their respective categories. Out of 27 South America Categories, 14 have been won by Brazilian travel destinations or companies (www.worldtravelawards.com/winners2009-12). The Travel Industry regards these as good indicators for the upcoming mega events Brazil is going to host: the FIFA Football World Cup 2014, and the Olympic Games in 2016.

The World Travel Awards were launched in 1993 to acknowledge and recognize excellence in the world's travel and tourism industry. Now celebrating their 16th Anniversary, the awards are amongst the most widely recognized awards in the travel and tourism industry and regarded as the very highest achievement that a travel product could ever hope to receive. Thousands of votes are cast each year by travelers, travel professionals from 183,000 travel agencies, tour and transport companies and tourism organizations in over 160 countries across the globe in order to elect the World Travel Awards Winners.  Increasingly, the awards are known as raising the bar for ultimate customer service and overall business performance. Growing numbers of travel companies, airlines, operators and resorts compete to walk away with one of the coveted titles. Organizers say research has shown that winners increase international brand recognition, building consumer loyalty.

In 2009, Intelligent Leisure Solutions and the Discover.Travel Groups have been nominated for the World Travel Awards in their South America Categories for the third consecutive year. In both 2008 and2009, Intelligent Leisure Solutions have won the prestigious prize. Discover Brazil, part of the Discover.Travel Group, has been elected South America’s Leading Travel Agency for the first time.

Graham Cooke, President, World Travel Awards commented: "The past 12 months have brought several challenges, namely the economic downturn and the outbreak of swine flu, which has impacted travel and tourism worldwide; today’s winners have remained focused on their long term objectives, and continued to deliver above and beyond the call of duty, setting an industry example. The winners named in the World Travel Awards South America Ceremony are companies that take a balanced view, concentrating on customer engagement and on-going product innovation, while continuing to scrutinize costs and yield. High performance South American companies differentiate themselves by being highly focused on their individual customers."
These inspirational organizations will continue to reap profile and commercial benefits over the next year.
Cooke explained: "This year's winners can display the official World Travel Awards symbol with pride on their sales and marketing literature, offering travelers a cast-iron assurance that what they are buying is a guarantee of travel excellence."

Intelligent Leisure Solutions and Discover.Travel Group’s Managing Director and ASTA Chapter President for Brazil, Robert Phillips, confirmed and agreed with Mr. Cooke’s explanations: “In today’s information society and with recent developments in the travel industry, it becomes ever more important for the traveler to have a reference in order to distinguish and recognize quality and excellence of the travel product he is going to purchase. Personalized service by a reliable Travel Consultant is the best guarantee for the traveler that the travel experience will meet and exceed his expectations. The World Travel Awards are an important reference for thousands of travelers worldwide. We are glad and honored that the World Travel Awards recognize the quality and importance of the service we guarantee to our clients by creating unique personalized Luxury Travel Packages to South and Central America.”

For further information on travel destinations, services, hotels and contact with a specialized travel consultant please visit the Discover.Travel Group’s websites http://www.Discover.Travel, http://www.DiscoverBrazil.com, http://www.DiscoverSouthAmerica.Travel and www.DiscoverCentralAmerica.Travel.

Recent accomplishments by Intelligent Leisure Solutions and the Discover.Travel Group:
•         2008 Ulysses Award for Innovation in Tourism Enterprises from the UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization),
•         World Travel Award 2009 for South America’s Leading Travel Management Company,
•         World Travel Award 2009 for South America’s Leading Travel Agency,
•         Managing Partner Robert Phillips was elected ASTA Chapter President for Brazil.
•         Selected by the Brazilian Ministry of Tourism as an Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization.  
•         Authenticated by the Tralliance Corporation and the .Travel Registry.

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For information on travel destinations and contact with a specialized travel consultant visit the Discover.Travel Group’s websites www.Discover.Travel, www.DiscoverBrazil.com, www.DiscoverSouthAmerica.Travel and www.DiscoverCentralAmerica.Travel.