Association is creating the region’s first dedicated luxury travel show.

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President Josef Forstmayr revealed the trade?show, which will take place in late September, will demonstrate the Caribbean’s ability to match any destination in the world for upmarket travellers.

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He added: “It is the most aspirational area in the world and we want to brand it as such and showcase the high quality of product here.

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“What we have here is way ahead of the Middle East, the Seychelles, Mauritius and even the Far East.

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“We already have a vast array of luxury with the likes of Sandy Lane in Barbados and Jade Mountain in St Lucia leading the way but much more in the pipeline.”

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Forstmayr wants to create better links between the hotels and other organizations operating at the high end of the market and believes a luxury ‘retreat’ as he called it will facilitate this.

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The name of the show is not yet decided.

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The CHTA is also in the process of creating a fund to rebrand the Caribbean as a single entity and promote it across the world.

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Key to the success of the Caribbean, Forstmayr added, is the removal of the layers of bureaucracy which govern people moving around the islands.

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He wants it to be far easier and cheaper for people to travel between islands - something which may be possible if Air Jamaica is successful in building the Caribbean network it?wants to create.