Skal Orlando Hosting 2006 Tourism Leadership Summit - September 13-15

Designed for Travel and Tourism Executives Emphasizing Personal Development

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. October 14, 2008

ORLANDO, FL, July 26, 2006. Some of the brightest leaders in travel and tourism are scheduled to be featured speakers and panelists at the 2006 Tourism Leadership Summit, 13-15 September 2006, at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate.

The program, with the theme "Personal Growth through Connectivity", is unique among hospitality industry conferences, in that it is designed specifically for executives and senior management in travel and tourism, with all sessions emphasizing the individual's personal development. Attendance is also limited to 200 to ensure participants can network with their peers and many of the guest speakers throughout the day-and-a-half conference.

This is the second annual in a series of "Tourism Leadership Summit" programs presented by Skal International Orlando, whose membership is comprised of industry leaders in a destination which attracts some 50 million visitors annually. Registration is open to any executive in travel and tourism worldwide and membership in Skal is not a requirement to attend.

Host and moderator for all sessions is Gary Sain, Chief Marketing Officer for Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell, who is also Chairman of the Association of Travel Marketing Executives and current President of Skal International Orlando.

Delivering keynote addresses during meal functions will be:

--Roger Dow, President & CEO of the Travel Industry Association; and

--Jan Sunde, current worldwide President of Skal International, from Bergen, Norway.

Among those scheduled to speak are:

--Ronald Andruff, CEO of Tralliance, the company overseeing the implementation of the "dot travel" domain worldwide;

--Denise Godreau, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Walt Disney World;

--Vincent Chirico, Head of Travel Sales for the online giant Google;

--Michael Hannan, President of Abercrombie & Kent;

--Joanne Smith, Senior VP of Consumer Marketing, Delta Air Lines;

--Chris Austin, VP, Global Customer Partnerships, Leisure and Luxury Sales, Starwood Hotels & Resorts;

--Hugh Riley, Director of Marketing, Caribbean Tourism Organization;

--Maurice Zarmati, Senior VP Sales, Carnival Cruise Lines;

--Tony Clegg-Butt, publisher of the African travel magazine "TN";

--Mark Brown, Executive VP, American Automobile Association;

--Peter Yesawich, CEO, Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell; and

--Dr. Abraham Pizam, Dean of the Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida.

Registration for members of Skal is $299 per person, and US$399 for non-members. Accommodations are available at the Omni Orlando Resort for US$119 per night, single/double, plus US$10 nightly resort fee and taxes. Complete program information and secure online registration for the program, as well as hotel registration, can be found at http://www.2006tourismsummit.com.

Sponsors of the 2006 Tourism Leadership Summit are Wyndham Worldwide; eTurboNews; YPB&R; Kenya Airways; Kissimmee Convention & Visitors Bureau; Travel Agent Magazine; Dollar Rent A Car; Omni Orlando Resort; Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau; TURKEL Advertising; Simon Properties/The Florida Mall; Kenney Communications: Reunion Resort & Club; Crowne Plaza Universal: HuddleOnDemand.com; HotelReservations.com; ATME (Association of Travel Marketing Executives); PSAV Presentation Services.

The 2006 Tourism Leadership Summit is endorsed by the North American Association of Skal Committees (NAASC).

What is Skal?

Skal is the only international organization which brings together all branches of the travel and tourism industry. Representing the industry's managers and executives, Skalleagues meet at local, national and international levels in an environment of friendship to discuss subjects of common interest.

The first Club was founded in Paris in 1932 by travel trade managers who had been on an educational tour of Scandinavia and the idea of international friendship gained such popularity that in 1934, Skal achieved international status with the formation of the Association Internationale des Skal Clubs (A.I.S.C.), on the initiative of the first President of the Paris Skal Club and the man considered the "Father of Skal", Florimond Volckaert.

From that modest beginning, Skal now has more than 25,000 members in over 500 Clubs, spread throughout 80 countries. As in other associations of professionals (such as Rotary, Oddfellows and Lions), most Skal activities take place within the Clubs, but the movement also features National and Area Committees coming under the umbrella of the A.I.S.C. (Skal International), which has its own Secretariat in Torremolinos, Spain.

Skal is managed by an Executive Committee of nine members, elected by Club delegates to the General Assembly, which is held in conjunction with the World Congress. This five-day Congress is hosted by a different country each year, thus offering members and their companions the opportunity of observing, first and, the travel and tourism industry potential of other countries.