21/12/2012
The dawn of a new year is the perfect time to reflect on all that Inkaterra has achieved in 2012; a year filled with great memories, discoveries and successes.
2012 began well with Inkaterra becoming the first Peruvian hotel chain to win the ‘International Certificate in Sustainable tourism’ by the CU Green Choice Sustainable Tourism Standard. The minister of Tourism and Commerce commented, “It is an honour that a Peruvian hotel chain is the first organization worldwide awarded with such an important Certification.”
February was an exciting time for Inkaterra when two new species of orchids were found at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel. This harks back to an observation made back in 2001 by the American Orchid Society who announced that in all probability Inkaterra has the world’s biggest collection of native orchid species (372) in their natural habitat, within a private setting.
Inkaterra was in the spotlight again in March with Conde Nast Johansens, the international luxury travel guide, who nominated Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel as the “Most Excellent Eco Resort” in the 2012 Awards for Excellence. Inkaterra was the only hotel to receive an award in Peru.
The conservation efforts of Inkaterra were highlighted in April with the team picking up the award for Conservation at The Tourism of Tomorrow Awards. The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards are organised by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and the winners were announced at the WTTC’s Global Summit in Tokyo, April 16-19, 2012.
Throughout the summer we saw the continuation of the Peruvian food craze with the opening of fine dining restaurant Lima in London. With other Peruvian food diners launching across the globe, and the ever-growing empire of Gaston Acurio, Peruvian food is considered one of the most varied and rich of the world. The World Travel Awards took note of the trend naming Peru as the Best Culinary Destination in the world in 2012. Hailed as a ‘gastronomic superpower’, the South American country fought off stiff competition from notable foodie destinations such as France, China, Italy, Spain and Thailand to come out on top as the best place in the world to eat.
Festivals in Peru are a time for celebration and remembrance. This June, as they do every year, visitors from across South America and around the world travelled to Cusco for the annual Inti Raymi festival, the most important ceremony of the Inca Empire calendar. Each winter solstice, native residents honour the Sun God marking the beginning of a new year: the Festival of the Sun.
There were celebrations a plenty in October, as Inkaterra was recognised for the third consecutive year at this year’s LATA Awards in London. This year Inkaterra was awarded for its efforts towards sustainability.
November was an exciting time for Peru, Inkaterra, and birding enthusiasts across the world. Inkaterra Associación (ITA), worked alongside the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) & PROMPERU as co-organisers, to launch Peru’s first ever Birding Rally Challenge. The challenge was a great success with the winning team from Louisiana State University, nicknamed the ‘Tigrisomas’, identifying 493 species of birds! The UK team – The Forest Falcons – came a close second, narrowly missing out on being crowned the winners by just three species.
In November, the awards continued with Inkaterra being nominated in The World Travel Awards for the World’s Leading Corporate Social Responsibility Programme at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel. We were also delighted to received the Relais & Chateaux Sustainability Award at the R&C Congress in Torino.
To round off an excellent year, in December, Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel was awarded first position in Peru in the Travel + Leisure 500 Best Hotels of the World in 2013.
Another great accolade for Inkaterra was brought about by education. Mr. Diego Comín, Professor at Harvard Business School (HBS) presented Inkaterra in its very own unique case study for Harvard Business School. The case discusses Inkaterra as a leading Peruvian ecotourism organisation and the unique business model that is currently in place.
2013 looks to be an exciting year already, with a further Birding Rally Challenge already in planning, and the opening of Inkaterra’s Sacred Valley property ‘Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba’, due in the second half of the year. On that optimistic note, Inkaterra looks forward to 2013 and wishes everyone a joyous Christmas, and a happy New Year.
21.12.12
