Princess Cruises awards Coreas for excellent service

Corea and Company has once again been awarded for its excellent service in Tour Guiding.

Corea and Company was awarded the 2008-2009 Princes Cruises Low Volume Tour of the Season – the St. Vincent Garden Tour (Montreal Gardens) and the 2009 -2010 award for Tour of the season – Dark View Rainfall Coastal climb and snorkeling with Lunch.{{more}}

It is the fifth time the company has been awarded by the Princess Cruises.

Several Tour Guides were also awarded for their excellent performance in the Tour Guiding service.

Speaking at an award ceremony on Tuesday, at the Coreas Hazells conference room, Managing Director of Coreas and Company Joel Providence stated that he thinks that the company has created good tours that have been well received by many cruise ships that come to the island. He added that the company, when designing tours, tries to determine what would be an appropriate combination of the quality and the tour itself, as the tour includes the journey from the port to the tour sites and back.

Commending the tour guides, Providence added that the company has invested a great deal in training tour guides in communication, hospitality and other areas pertaining to customer service. Some of these tour guides, he noted, have gone on to work in other jobs as well as on cruise ships.

“It’s the tour guides who ultimately make the difference between a moderate or average tour and an excellent tour,” Providence stated. He added that tour guides are the ambassadors of the country and will create lasting memories for the visitor.

Providence added that four to five million dollars is contributed to the economy by cruise tourism, and Vincentians, including taxi operators, tour guides and persons selling craft are beneficiaries.

Timothy Vaughan, owner of the Montreal Gardens, also speaking at the ceremony, credited the beauty of his garden to the hard work of his team of gardeners.

He said that the tourists who visit the gardens always have positive feedback on their experience.

“They all say it’s the most wonderful piece of landscaping and the most wonderful site they have seen in the Caribbean,” Vaughan said, adding that it gives him great satisfaction when the garden is appreciated by others.

“One of the great things of doing gardens is being able to share it with people,” he stated.

Manager of Shipping and Tours Garth Williams, giving remarks, stated that when Princess Tours decided to pull out of St. Vincent and the Grenadines last July, they were at a loss as to the reasons.

He however stated that they realized that it was not because of the quality of the tours. He added that Coreas had the best tours based on exit surveys and online surveys, further mentioning that Coreas offers a professional and personalized service.

Williams also thanked the tour guides for offering exemplary Services.

Seven tour guides were awarded for their service during the ceremony. They are Lywn Daniels, Kiesha Kirby, Romona Gibson, Glenroy Gaymes, Gloria Williams, Cheri Sergeant and Jason Villaroel.