- The first ever CATO Awards have been run and won at the Australian travel industry's night-of-nights—the National Travel Industry Awards
- Four award categories. Three winning travel consultants. Who made history twice?
Image: Jenny Tucker, Michelle Barker and Leanne Flanagan-Smith with Brett Jardine and their sparkling CATO Awards.
The Council of Australian Tour Operators (CATO) is thrilled to announce the winners of the inaugural CATO Awards stream named at the National Travel Industry Awards held in the Grand Ballroom of the International Convention Centre, Sydney, on 20 July, 2019.
The world class venue played host to some 1,300 travel industry guests from every sector of the industry - airlines, hotels & car hire providers, tour operators, wholesalers, river and cruise operators and of course leisure, corporate and online travel agencies.
"We're so proud of the CATO Awards and acknowledge the opportunity provided by AFTA in sharing the NTIA stage. The “CATO’s” are an articulation of the level of connectivity and engagement between travel agents and suppliers of quality touring and experiential travel product—two vibrant parts of the retail travel ecosystem", said Brett Jardine, Managing Director of CATO.
Image: Brett Jardine presenting the CATO Awards on stage with representatives from the awards' sponsors—The Travel Corporation, Globus, Intrepid and G-Adventures.
"To see the CATO Awards take place at the travel industry's biggest annual event was the culmination of effort from many areas and, importantly, the calibre of finalists was terrific. And to see one consultant walk away with TWO CATOs was remarkable", said Brett Jardine, Managing Director of CATO.
The CATO Awards stream recognises and rewards consumer-facing travel consultants in four core categories:
- Adventure Travel
- Group Touring
- Ski
- F.I.T.
"Each of the four category was hotly contested and we congratulate every finalist. All CATO members recognise the significant effort that goes into the journey from the moment of nomination to attending the awards gala with high-hopes", continued Jardine.
Image: Michelle Barker accepting one of her two CATO Awards.
AFTA and CATO congratulates the inaugural winners of the CATO Awards:
- ADVENTURE TRAVEL: Leanne Flanagan Smith from Back Track Adventures
- SKI: Jenny Tucker from Travel Partners
- GROUP TOURING: Michelle Barker from Jayes Travel
- F.I.T: Michelle Barker from Jayes Travel
The CATO Awards were sponsored by Globus, G-Adventures, Intrepid and The Travel Corporation—four high profile brands demonstrating the renewed collaborative focus of Australia's land-supply sector.
To learn even more about the CATO Awards, CLICK HERE!
