Caribbean Meetings & Incentive Travel Exchange Wraps in Dominican Republic

August 13, 2015

The sixth annual Caribbean Meetings Incentive Travel Exchange took place August 10-13 at the Hard Rock Hotel Casino Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. The event was hosted by Questex Media, the parent company of International Meetings Review.

CMITE 2015 brought sixty-three incentive and meeting planners from the United States and Canada to Punta Cana to meet with sixty-three Caribbean suppliers. Buyers arrived early for a pre-FAM hosted by Casa De Campo and stayed for the post-FAM hosted Paladium Hotel Group. Amstar was the host DMC.
The event initiated with a kickoff party overlooking the Water Canal Fountains at the Hard Rock Hotel Casino followed by two full days of more than 1,700 one-to-one appointments in the privacy of hotel room suites.

The opening day breakfast was presented by Shasha Cruz, Director of Meetings and Incentives for the Dominican Republic Tourism Board, Kevin Edmunds, Vice President of Meeting and Incentive Sales for Hard Rock Hotels- All Inclusive Collection and was sponsored by Aruba Convention Bureau with a presentation from Hal Davis, Sales Manager, North America. Additionally, Global Meetings and Incentive Travel Exchange’s (GMITE) partner in the MICE industry, Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) conducted a presentation by international board member Pam Shepherd who spoke abouttrends and tips in the industry for incentive travel.

Tuesday’s evening reception was held at Melia Hotels and Resorts International’s Paradisus Palma Real. Claudia Davila, Tourism Director of ProColombia, hosted a breakfast presentation on Wednesday morning.

New suppliers this year included representatives from the islands of Turks and Caicos, St. Martin, and even the Florida Keys and an array of private jet and charter companies.