Last week, Karisma Hotels & Resorts hosted the 14th Annual Gourmet Inclusive Vacation Consultant (GIVC) Awards honoring the brand’s top performing travel advisors. This year’s event was held at the newly opened Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Riviera Maya.
More than 200 travel advisors from the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Latin America were celebrated at the 3-day event Sept. 27-30. In addition, key executives from Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Grupo Lomas were in attendance, as well as the governor of Quintana Roo, Carlos Joaquin Gonzalez.
The GIVC Awards’ Sales & Marketing Forum was held at the Main Stage, the resort’s main entertainment venue, which was the first event held there since Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Riviera Maya officially opened its doors on Aug. 1, 2021. The event featured a welcome reception at Aqua Nick, one of Mexico’s largest themed water parks, complete with a fireworks display, resort tours and several on-property experiences throughout each day. Guests were also treated to a pool party at the nearby Margaritaville Island Reserve Riviera Cancun, complete with live music, poolside massages and signature floating taco bars.
“The theme of this year’s awards ceremony was resilience,” said Marilyn Cairo, v.p. of global sales, in a press release statement. “It was wonderful to recognize and celebrate our prized advisor partners who had to reinvent themselves over the last 18 months due to the pandemic. It’s been an incredibly challenging time, and we are most appreciative of these top-earning producers and suppliers.”
The main event, the Gala Cocktail Reception and Awards Ceremony, took place at El Dorado Royale. This year, the ceremony acknowledged partners in 21 categories spanning top overall producers, top wedding producers, top producers by brand, top producers by region, Diamond & Elite levels, and the all-new Palm Award. Symbolizing strength and silence, the Palm Award recognizes agents with strong roots and unwavering commitment to the Karisma Hotels & Resorts collection who are able to overcome challenges and obstacles that may come their way. The Palm Award winners included James Berglie, Be All Inclusive; Mark Faldmo, Columbus Travel; Michelle Fee & Vickie Garcia, Cruise Planners; Monica Karnes, LaMacchia Travel; Sarah Bonsall, Sunset Travel; and Laure Poffenberger, Travel & Luxury Vacations.
The highest recognition, the Hall of Fame award, is given to an individual who has made a significant difference to the El Dorado Spa Resorts, Azul Beach Resorts, Generations Resorts, Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts and Margaritaville Island Reserve brands through an overall increase in business. The 2021 award went to Michael Schellhase from Travel Haus of St. Louis, MO.
For more information on Karisma’s new hotels, visit karismatravelagents.com.
