Las Ventanas al Paraiso, A Rosewood Resort honored with the “Most Innovative Guest Experience” at ‘Virtuoso Travel Week’
LAS VEGAS, 2012-08-24 — /travelprnews.com/ — Leading luxury travel network, Virtuoso®, proudly honored a venerated group of hotels, resorts and hospitality professionals with prestigious “Best of the Best” Awards during its 24th Virtuoso Travel Week conference, taking place in Las Vegas last week. Las Ventanas al Paraiso, A Rosewood Resort, took home the award for “Most Innovative Guest Experience,” for it’s “Challenge The Chef” program before an audience of 1,450 attendees, including some of the biggest names in hospitality as well as the travel agency community, during the Hotels & Resorts Dinner on August 15. Managing Director Martein van Wagenberg accepted the award, dedicating it to the creative and innovative culture fostered by the employees of Las Ventanas.
“Virtuoso Hotels & Resorts is not only the longest running program in the industry, it’s also the most prestigious with more five-star properties and the highest valued amenities,” said Albert Herrera, Virtuoso’s Vice President of Hotels, Destinations & Tours. “With a portfolio as varied and impressive as ours, it creates a highly competitive landscape. As the recipient of the award for ‘Most Innovative Guest Experience,’ Las Ventanas proves it is a standout amongst the world’s most phenomenal hotels.”
Las Ventanas has been among the world’s most heralded properties for the past 15 years, setting the standard for luxury and service in Los Cabos with a host of special guest amenities and unique programs. For cooking enthusiasts, the resort created “Challenge the Chef,” a culinary program that gives guests the opportunity to prepare an original dish for Executive Chef Fabrice Guisset, who then judges their talent by rating it one to three “Spoons.” If the meal is a “Three Spoon” success, the winner is honored by having his or her dish added to the menu of the resort’s acclaimed signature restaurant for a week – with full credit as the star chef. Even those deemed a “work in progress” come out as winners, receiving a complimentary tequila shot.
“For our guests who love to cook, and believe they have a magic touch in the kitchen, ‘Challenge the Chef’ is a chance of a lifetime,” said Executive Chef Fabrice Guisset, who conceived the concept. “Like today’s reality TV shows that lift the aspiring to stardom, you can finally be recognized for your culinary skills!”
The Virtuoso “Best of the Best” Awards recognize hotels, resorts and hospitality professionals in ten categories ranging from most innovative guest experience to hotel and hotelier of the year. Editors of Virtuoso Life, the network’s multi-award-winning flagship magazine, carefully reviewed the roster of more than 975 properties to determine the nominees, while the network’s elite travel advisors carefully selected the winners. Virtuoso Travel Week brings together more than 1,800 travel advisors from Virtuoso’s elite travel agency members in 20 countries, as well as executives from the network’s more than 1,250 preferred travel providers – hotels/resorts/spas, private islands, villas, cruise lines & private yacht companies, tour operators, airlines and private jet companies, tourism boards and many specialty operators. Approximately 4,000 of the most prominent players in luxury travel attend.
Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts® manages one-of-a-kind luxury properties in the world’s most desired destinations. Rosewood properties embrace the company’s A Sense of Place® philosophy, reflecting the history, architecture, scale and sensibilities of the destination. The Rosewood collection includes some of the most legendary hotels and resorts in the world, including Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek® in Dallas, The Carlyle in New York, Rosewood Little Dix Bay on Virgin Gorda, as well as contemporary classics such as Rosewood Sand Hill® in California, Rosewood San Miguel de Allende® in Mexico, and Rosewood Tucker’s Point in Bermuda. Rosewood also offers Sense® spa – featuring treatments reflective of the location’s culture and natural environment – available exclusively at select properties.
Virtuoso® is the industry’s leading luxury travel network. This by-invitation-only organization comprises over 340 agencies with more than 7,200 elite travel specialists in 20 countries in North and South America, the Caribbean, Australia and New Zealand, as well as over 1,250 of the world’s best travel providers and premier destinations. The network’s member agencies generate over $9.6 billion annually in travel sales, making the group the most powerful in the luxury travel segment. Their relationships with the finest travel companies provide the network’s affluent clientele with exclusive amenities, rare experiences and privileged access. For more information, visit www.virtuoso.com.
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