Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), Vancouver, BC – The Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) was pleased to attend Virtuoso Travel Week, with support from Destination Canada, for the first time from August 12 – 18, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Virtuoso Travel Week brought together over 4,700 top luxury travel professionals and providers from over one hundred countries for one-on-one appointments, professional development sessions, and networking events.
Virtuoso Travel Week is the ultimate annual global travel community event. This event is exclusive to the Virtuoso network, the world’s top luxury travel network. As a new preferred supplier of Virtuoso, Tamara Littlelight, ITAC’s Director of Marketing, attended Virtuoso Travel Week participating in professional development sessions, formal and ad hoc meetings with key travel trade representatives, and 118 one-on-one meetings over 4 days in partnership with Destination Canada.
By invitation only, ITAC attended the “Under One Sky” lunch hosted by Destination Canada. This event demonstrated Virtuoso’s support of sustainable tourism by uniting those who are most committed and passionate about this space. ITAC also attended the Virtuoso Cocktail Reception and Gala Celebration of Luminaries, Legends, and Leaders hosted by Destination Canada, Discover Puerto Rico, and The Red Sea Destination. ITAC Member, Bobby Drygeese of B. Dene Adventures in Northwest Territories, narrated a story about the aurora borealis from an Indigenous perspective as part of Entrée Destinations’ Stories of Canada presentation at the gala.
Attending and participating in such an exclusive and prestigious event is extremely beneficial for ITAC as it works towards becoming the global leader in Indigenous tourism by 2030.