Gonzalo Ceballos of the Spanish Tourist Board and Director of the Spanish Tourist Office in Dublin from 2011 to 2016, was declared the winner of the 2016 ITTN Industry Achievement Award at the 25th Irish Travel Trade Awards.
The award honours the innovation and contribution to the Irish travel industry made by an individual. Sponsors of this year’s Irish Travel Trade Awards were invited to make nominations, as did Irish Travel Trade News, and all the votes were sent directly to Stephen Murray of international accountants and consultants Grant Thornton.
Michael Flood, Editor, Irish Travel Trade News, said: “Gonzalo Ceballos is a most worthy winner of the 2016 ITTN Industry Achievement Award. Prior to his appointment in 2011 as Director of the Spanish Tourist Office in Dublin, Gonzalo had a leading role in formulating the Spanish Tourist Board’s highly successful slogan and logo, ‘I Need Spain’.
“During his time in Ireland he became a true friend of the Irish travel trade and conveyed his deep love of Spain, its many attractions, landscapes, culture, fauna and flora, food and wine, and so on with great charm.
“When Gonzalo received a request from any member of the travel trade, no matter how trivial, it was dealt with in a gracious and helpful manner – but that was the manner of the man, who oversaw significant growth in the numbers of Irish visitors to Spain to the extent that 28% of the population went to Spain last year. He has been, and continues to be, a tremendous asset to his country’s tourism industry.
“The Irish Travel Trade News team wish him well in his new appointment in Madrid.”
