The region’s
top and most prestigious travel and hospitality awarding body, the South Asian
Travel Awards (SATA) has ended the 2020 Jury Evaluations in November, and is
proud to announce its very first Virtual Award Ceremony.
This year,
the South Asian Travel Awards will be held Virtually on December 15, 2020.
According to the SATA team, the
decision to go virtual was taken after weighing all circumstances surrounding
the global health crisis, particularly the challenges faced due to various
international travel restrictions.
The SATA 2020 Virtual
Awards Ceremony received over 1,000 nominations in 52 categories for Travel,
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Brands, Properties and Businesses to compete
from Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, in addition to Visitors Choice
Awards and Special Recognition Awards.
Similar to
the previous years, the SATA team selected a panel of multinational jury
members for the evaluation of the nominated properties in 2020. Initially, it
was planned for the members of the panel to travel to multiple cities in the
region in order to evaluate properties and services. However, in light of the
unprecedent challenges faced due to COVID-19, the SATA team and judges jointly
decided to conduct evaluations virtually.
The partners
of SATA were unveiled earlier this year at an official signing ceremony held at
Maagiri Hotel. Key partners include; Gulf Craft Maldives as Platinum Partner,
The Hawks Pvt Ltd as Gold Partner, Ooredoo Maldives as Digital Partner, Crowe
Maldives as Auditing Partner and Maagiri Hotel as the Hospitality Partner.
SATA opens up for
nominations at the start of each year, and interested Travel, Tourism and
Hospitality Industry Stakeholders, Properties and Businesses can compete in a
wide array of categories in this esteemed regional award ceremony. Each nominee
can apply for a maximum of 3 categories. 60% of the award is judged by a
multi-national body of highly-acclaimed professionals and industry veterans,
while 40% of the award is weighed in via Online Voting and through the
performance of the property or business.
The South
Asian Travel Awards has been recognising the best of South Asian travel and
hospitality since 2016. The prestigious annual event honours stellar
organisations and individuals with the aim to revive and raise service
standards within the region’s tourism industry. The South Asian Travel Awards
is endorsed by 16 regional and international bodies for its accredited work,
including:
1.
Association of Professionals in Tourism (APT),
2.
Association of Tourism Trade Organizations, India
(ATTOI),
3.
Association of Travel Agents (ATA),
4.
Colombo Chamber of Commerce (CCC),
5.
Confederation of Accredited Tour Operators (CATO),
6.
Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry of Sri
Lanka (FCCISL),
7.
Hotel and Restaurant Association of Bhutan (HRAB),
8.
Kerala Hotel General Manager Club (KHGMC),
9.
National Boating Association of Maldives (NBAM),
10.
Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators
(MATATO),
11.
Maldives Marketing & PR Corporation (MMPRC),
12.
Nepal Tourism Board (NTB),
13.
Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO),
14.
The Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL),
15.
Bangladesh International Hotel Association (BIHA),
16.
The Indian Association of Tour
Operators (IATO)
The SATA Team believes that “A nation must go on. The travel industry,
especially, must prevail by working together during one of the most difficult
times the world is facing. The market would be tough, however, lifting
ourselves up and standing strong will only speed up recover. The impact is
global and how we act locally would benefit the tourism industry of South Asia
and around the globe.
This year SATA celebrates its 5th year in recognizing the regions Travel, Tourism and Hospitality Industry. Previous editions were held at Amari Galle, Sri Lanka (2019), Taj Mahal Palace, India (2018), Equator Village, Maldives (2017) and Mount Lavinia Hotel, Sri Lanka (2016).