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Message From Headquarters Dear reader, Food-wise, Latin America is hotter than a habanero pepper. And we're not talking about literal spicy food, rather, we mean that our selected restaurants are trendy and sought after, thus pushing up "must-try food" pins right across our destinations map. We’ve come up with a selection that is nothing but mind-bogglingly big. In the Latin food world, there's a sense of bursting regional pride that contributes to finger lickin’ food and cooking. The delicious offer we are featuring no doubt represents a taste of our vast cultures. The saying belly full happy heart will become a reality for you and your guests by means of choosing the right restaurant and the right meal. Our team of experts in good eats will surely help you in selecting the type of eatery that will contribute to a fun and memorable stay. Here are our picks for this special issue, a list boasting a mix of the modern with the traditional, the native with homegrown ingredients. As you’re reclined at the table, don’t forget to tell your fellow diners buen provecho! (Bon appétit). Sincerely, Jose-Manuel (Manolo) GARCIA, CIS President
About Us Our Vision: Associates: Preserve our company as the best place to work, so that our multicultural staff can thrive professionally and thus always perform their best. Customers: To offer an innovative high-quality service that exceeds all expectations. Partners: To continually consolidate our network of honest and successful partners. Revenue: To maximize the investment of our shareholders & help them gain good dividends. Planet: By means of our hard work instill in others the responsible management of resources.
Our Mission: To serve our customers supported on international certifications ISO 9001 and ADMC, thus ensuring 100% satisfaction to groups, conventions, incentives and special events customers. We create memorable experiences that leave a lasting impression on attendees visiting each and every one of the destinations in which we operate.
Our Objective: Always aim for 100 % overall customer satisfaction.
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Year 9 Vol. 1, Issue 127
Visionary, Founder, Jose-Manuel GARCIA, CDS & Master Coach jmgarcia@ividmc.travel
Contents:
Page
Cover Subject
Second Generation, Jose-Manuel (Manolo) Innovator & President GARCIA, CIS manolo@ividmc.travel
Restaurants Across Latin America That Are Finger-Lickin' Good
Executive Vice-President Karla JIMENEZ kjimenez@ividmc.travel General Comptroller Trinidad SANCHEZ tsanchez@ividmc.travel Corporate Marketing & Francisco BAEZA, DMCP Product Development Director fbaeza@ividmc.travel Quality Director Julia ORTIZ jortiz@ividmc.travel
Cancun & Riviera Maya Los Cabos Costa Rica Panama
DQuest
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Quick Hits:
Electronic Publishing Alejandro PECH apech@ividmc.travel
Content and Editing Omar GALLEGOS ivicorp@ividmc.travel Managing Director Jorge OROZCO, DMCP —MyDay Travel jorozco@myday.travel
Corporate Headquarters Av. Acanceh 1-01, SM 15 Cancun, Q. Roo, 77500 Mex. Ph. +52 (998) 287-1700 www.ividmc.travel
4,5 6-11 12-15 16-19
Puerto Vallarta Airport Air Canada Rouge
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Advertise with CommuniQuest
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The Customer’s Always Right
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Let’s Cook: How to Prepare Guacamole
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Travel Tip: Wear Loose Fitting Clothing (or None?)
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Destination Offices: Mexico IVI DMC² Cancun & Riviera Maya Raquel MIJARES, CIS
Caribbean
Central America
Marketing Director
Regional Managing Director
rmijares@ividmc.travel
rrijo@ividmc.travel
IVI DMC² Costa Rica Sonia VARGAS Destination Manager svargas@ividmc.travel
IVI DMC² Mexico City, Central Mexico, Puerto Vallarta, & Riviera Nayarit
IVI DMC² Cuba Alejandro DEBASA Regional Managing Director adebasa@ividmc.travel
IVI DMC² Panama Ligia VARGAS Regional Managing Director lvargas@ividmc.travel
Jaime NELO, DMCP Destination Manager jnelo@ividmc.travel
IVI DMC² Dominican Republic
Ramon RIJO
South America IVI DMC² Brazil Andrea MAJELA Regional Managing Director amajela@ividmc.travel IVI DMC² Argentina Jorge OROZCO, DMCP Regional Managing Director jorozco@ividmc.travel
IVI DMC² Los Cabos Yazmin ELOSEGUI Destination Manager yelosegui@ividmc.travel
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© Copyright 2016. All Rights Reserved.
Harry's Harry’s Prime Steakhouse & Raw Bar is the best place to enjoy that special occasion. The beautiful setting, sophisticated atmosphere, and artful cuisine, combined with the extensive wine list and impeccable service, will make your event memorable. Harry's Prime Steakhouse & Raw Bar has extraordinary staff who are professionally trained, talented, and enthusiastic. Open from 1pm to 1am Calle Corazón Lote 8B Nivel 1 on 5ta Avenida, between Calle 12 Nte y 14 Nte Playa del Carmen
Cancun & Riviera Maya
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Fred's House Seafood Market & Grill Fred’s offers fresh, delicious seafood in an elegant waterfront setting. Outdoor dining is available, with tables overlooking the lagoon. Private, outdoor cabanas are available for small groups. Open 1pm-1am Kukulkan Blvd., Km. 14.5 Cancun
Porfirio's Restaurant Porfirio’s reimagines the best of Mexican Cuisine’s traditional flavors, textures, and colors with new ground breaking techniques and intrepid flavors by using only high quality ingredients. Porfirio's experience is completed with a sophisticated and elegant atmosphere, with large mirrors and the perfect combination of natural and artificial lighting give the place a striking visual effect. Open from 1pm to 1am Boulevard Kukulcan, Km. 14.2 No. 1 Cancun
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Cancun & Riviera Maya
Romeo & Julieta Romeo & Julieta has stood the ravages of time and is now better than ever, thanks to Italian-born Executive Chef Matias Forte, who is passionate about having everything fresh and prepared to order. Forte's kitchen is his castle, where he spends a great deal of time making sure that "everything is under control". In fact, the entire operation is a well-oiled machine.
A pizza chef prepares made-to-order pizzas in the stone oven that is open to the romantic patio. Seasoned focaccia
bread is drizzled with oil and served hot to the table upon arrival. The kitchen chefs are
well
trained.
The
white-coated
wait staff scurries around the tables serving water, pouring wine, offering suggestions, and readying the makings for the famous Caesar salad, made tableside of course.
Los Cabos
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Sunset da Mona Lisa With a unique location at the tip of the bay of Cabo San Lucas, it offers breath taking views of the ocean and the arch. The world famous venue is considered a must when visiting Los Cabos for its magical atmosphere. Out of all the best restaurants in Los Cabos, they employ a Michelin-starred
trained
Italian
chef,
Paolo Della Corte; they serve the finest quality gourmet Italian food. Every entrĂŠe is created from fresh ingredients that are brought in daily to ensure you get the richest
flavors
and most
tantalizing
aromas while you're dining. Sunset Da Mona Lisa is a memorable experience for all
visitors. Whether dining on the cliffs
terraces,
toasting
at
sunset hour, or holding your special event, be reassured that your evening will be a unique and memorable one.
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Los Cabos
Home to one of Los Cabos area's most original fusion concepts, Templo Restaurant in Cabo San Lucas mixes Asian, Mexican and South American flavors and cooking techniques with surprising and delicious results. The disparate influences aren't random, but rather, reflect the cosmopolitan heritage of Chef Mariano Takinami, in what he describes as a “grill, wok, and bar.” The grill is multi-level, so Takinami and his onsite chef can cook and cure beef in the South American fashion. The wok, a traditional Chinese cooking vessel, is used to prepare more Asian focused dishes. And the restaurant serves a rather extensive list of international wines, top-shelf liquors and cocktails created by the bar manager. The atmosphere and décor, too, are relatively straightforward. Yes, Templo has rather chic appointments, from a marble fire pit in the shape of a T, to ceiling-hung lamps in a variety of shapes and sizes. But the restaurant avoids excessive ornamentation. There are no table linens, no candles, no flowers; all dishes are served on plain white plates. Takinami doesn't want the décor to distract from the food, the unique fusion cuisine that has been Templo's calling card from the very beginning.
Los Cabos
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Los Cabos
Caborey Experience the natural wonder of Cabo San Lucas aboard our luxurious 144' triple deck catamaran... the only floating and best restaurant in Cabo San Lucas. From the moment you board the Caborey, prepare yourself for an exhilarating experience and the best dinner in Cabo. The majesty of the Land's End rock formations including Cabo San Lucas Arch will spread out before you. Live music and limitless cocktails accompany the breathtaking view from the upper deck of the Caborey
as it follows its route along the tip of the Baja. As the sun sinks into the horizon, join us in our closed air conditioned dining room and tempt your palate with our dinner with one of our 6 delectable entrĂŠes. Enjoy a performance
of
the
most
representative Mexican & Argentinean traditions. This breathtaking show is bigger and more spectacular than any
other stage show in the area!
Los Cabos
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Flora Farms Flora Farm is a 10-acre organic farm located in the foothills of the Sierra de la Laguna, just outside San JosÊ del Cabo. Best known for its superb onsite restaurant, Flora’s Field Kitchen, the property also offers 10 residential culinary cottages, as well as a grocery, shops, hosts tours and gives popular cooking classes. Flora’s Field Kitchen was at the forefront of the local farm-to-table dining movement a decade ago, and the restaurant oversees the field that provides its produce. All meat is sourced from a nearby 150 -acre ranch, where animals are raised humanely without the use of hormones or antibiotics. Breads are freshly baked in the restaurant kitchen, and
the adjacent Farm Bar serves up fresh and delicious
juices,
plus
drinks
like
the
signature Farm Julep with watermelon water, basil, mint and light Bacardi rum. Sunday brunch is a popular local attraction, but the restaurant and bar draw good crowds throughout the week for seasonal specialty dishes and hand-crafted cocktails.
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Los Cabos
Sharing a meal is deeply embedded in the human culture as a way to socialize and connect. When you are planning an incentives meeting this is even more important: meals are far from only a life sustaining requisite; as when you are sharing a table with your peers you not only share the food, but also you become more open to talk about your ideas and give feedback at the same time. This is why we select only the best restaurants for your dine around events; at IVI DMC2 , we understand that a great meal is only one part of the experience and when you have that everything else flows; and so it is easy to achieve the human part of the meeting objectives as well. Let us tell you about some of our favorites by area.
T
o
O
fa
a
q
Costa Rica
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Pangas Located in the busy Tamarindo
Villa Caletas
This amazing Greek style amphitheater
offers sunset views of the Pacific
area, this is one of the local’s favorites for their sustainable menu and their cozy beach front
ambiance.
Ocean and the Rain Forest. A local
avorite featuring international cuisine
and known for service, consistency and
quality.
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Costa Rica
Father Rooster A wonderful beachfront location and perfectly made food with local taste are an ideal mix. The best way to finish a day of sailing at the Catamaran. Ask for their Surf and Turf buffet!
Costa Rica
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Avenida Escazu Gastronomic Center As this is the capital of Costa Rica, the options for dine around events are endless! You can have a traditional experience at Mirador Tiquicia, an exquisite international meal at Le Monastere, Grano de Oro or La Luz, or better yet, give the choice of the kind of meal your guests want to have at the different gastronomic centers in the area, such as Avenida Escazu, Plaza Itscazú, and Paseo Gastronomico la Luz - which is the hippest place in town, known for their artisanal beers and fusion menus.
El Hicaco Fresh seafood and lobster anyone? Just 15 minutes away from Los Sueños Marriott this
is one place you don’t want to miss. Everything perfectly paired with their curated wine list as well! Other restaurants we love to recommend are: El Pelicano, El Galeón, Bambú and Lanterna, Gallo Fino, Abbocato, Happy Snapper, and Nibbana, among many others. Ask your IVI DMC2 event manager about the many gastronomic experiences available at your area and our knowledgeable experts will recommend the best according to your group size and requirements. ¡Buen provecho!
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Costa Rica
Known worldwide for its skyscrapers, its people and gastronomy, Panama offers all those lovers of good food a variety of restaurants of all classes and specialties. There are exceptional restaurants that cater to the most discerning palates with its gourmet dishes, live music, and locations that enamor everyone who visit them, such as Panaviera restaurant in the Trump Hotel. Some others take us back to the Panamanian colonial era
as is the case of the restaurant Las Bรณvedas in the heart of Casco Viejo.
Panam a
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Restaurant Las Bรณvedas The word bรณveda means vault or dungeon in Spanish, and when Casco Viejo was established, the location of Las Bรณvedas was just that: a holding cell for prisoners and slaves. However, the restaurant bears no resemblance to a jail cell now; rather, it features a lovely indoor and outdoor seating on picturesque Plaza Francia. It is popular amongst tourists and local Panamanians for lunch, coffee, or dinner.
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P anama
Azahar Restaurant In 2014, the team of Azahar decided to make an incursion and create opportunities in Panama, a sophisticated country in the world of gastronomy. After a marketing study, they decided to implement their extensive technical skills and knowledge to create this restaurant that offers diners a unique and refined experience. The Azahar restaurant portrays a refined culinary flavor blend influenced by cities such as New York, Lima, Sicily, Florence, Athens, and Hong Kong, among others.
Panam a
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Panaviera Restaurant Located on the 66th floor of Trump Ocean Club, this new concept restaurant has an enviable location and offers a breathtaking view of the city and the Bay of Panama from their covered terraces. It also has three private lounges, infinity pool, outdoor bar, and access by private elevator from the lobby of the residences.
Tรกntalo Restaurant In the heart of Old Town in the city of Panama, it is one of the most exclusive restaurants and roof bars in the area. It has become a meeting point for locals and visitors alike. It attracts for its decoration and ambiance. A hotel, restaurant and roof bar; all in one place!
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P anama
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Puerto Vallarta Airport Will Be Remodelled Earmark US $8MM to remodel International Airport Gustavo Diaz Ordaz in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco. The purpose of this is to make for an easier and more comfortable travel experience for visitors, said the CEO of the Tourism Board of Puerto Vallarta, Agustin Alvarez. He also said that more and more visitors are coming to this destination, as shown by a 20% increase of domestic travellers and 10% of international travellers. The first works were made at the counters, ceilings, light system, security screening, sanitary modules, etc. which are already in operation. During the low season they will start other jobs such as installing a new air conditioning system, face lifting security, customs and other important areas to thus provide a greater passenger experience. The hotel occupancy in the first quarter of 2016 recorded 82.6% of the booking rooms, is another indicator of the good times Puerto Vallarta tourism is living, said the manager. Puerto Vallarta’s estimated occupancy for this summer is above 80%, with some weekends up to 100%.
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Air Canada Rouge gears up for winter 2016-2017 with new non-stop flights: Montreal to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and San Jose, Costa Rica. The non-stop flights will give Canadian travellers more competitively-priced options when
flying to sun destinations. Flights are timed to optimize connectivity for travellers from all across Quebec and Eastern Canada looking to escape the Canadian winter. Route Details: Montreal-Puerto Vallarta, Mexico: Service begins November 18, 2016 with flight AC1842 and will operate three times weekly (Monday, Wednesday and Friday). Service ends for the season on April 21, 2017. Montreal-San JosĂŠ, Costa Rica: Service begins December 22, 2016, subject to government approval, with flight AC1844 and will operate twice weekly (Thursday and
Sunday). Service ends for the season on April 16, 2017. Flights will be operated by Air Canada Rouge, Air Canada's leisure carrier using a 282-seat Boeing 767-300ER aircraft offering a choice of premium and economy cabins. Flights are timed to offer convenient connections to/from Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick as well as Quebec-City, Ottawa, and Toronto.
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Advertise with CommuniQuest Incentive Travel Digest Advertising and promotional opportunities are now available in CommuniQuest Incentive Travel Digest. Sponsorship placement opportunities are limited and are reserved on a “first come, first served” basis. We invite you to advertise in our vastly distributed Incentive Travel Digest which is already available to over 10,000 avid readers. These readers are dedicated members, stakeholders, and fine suppliers. The Incentive Travel Digest is an inviting 'cover to cover' read, ensuring eye-catching and successful advertising. Click here to receive more information
IVI DMC² World Headquarters: Ave. Acanceh #1-01, SM 15 Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mx Phone: +52 (998) 287-1700 Email: ivicorp@ividmc.travel Serving the meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions industry since 1986. Find us in over 40 destinations throughout:
The Customer is Always Right Raquel was very timely and proactive with her proposal. It was a smooth process. Fernando is AMAZING! He far exceeded our expectations, was so proactive, helpful. The other staff was great as well and very accommodating. Ms. Candace Spiegel Senior Event Manager
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Mexico Cuba Dominican Republic Costa Rica Panama Brazil Argentina
For further information on the fine hotels, deals, activities, and group packages mentioned in this magazine, please contact Francisco BAEZA: fbaeza@ividmc.travel
How to Prepare Guacamole Preparation: Cut the avocados in half. Remove the seed and the skin. In a bowl, mash the avocado with a fork. Add the chopped onion, pepper, tomato, cilantro, salt, and lime juice. Stir to combine all ingredients. Serve immediately with corn chips.
Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados
1 minced serrano or jalapeño pepper
1/4 cup minced onion
1 tomato chopped (first remove seeds)
2 tbsp. of lime juice
1 tbsp. of finely chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp. of salt
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Travel Tip: Wear Loose Fitting Clothing (or None?) Planes are often too warm or too cold. If you dress in layers, you can adjust to the cabin temperature by adding or removing clothing. If you are tempted to take off your shoes, don’t. On long flights, your feet swell and you may be unable to get your shoes on again. If you insist on removing them, make sure you put the back on at least half an hour before landing. Of course, if it gets really hot in flight, you may want to take off all your clothes. A story in USA Today noted “flying naked isn’t illegal.” With or without clothes, women should avoid high-heeled shoes. Wear comfortable shoes on the plane. You can always change at your destination. “The key to relaxation while flying is to take control of the environment on an airplane. I bring my own music, my own food, and my own reading material. Before the flight takes off, I tell the flight attendants, politely, to please fill my cup with herbal tea periodically, and that, otherwise, I don’t want to be disturbed.” - Alan Dershowitz
(Taken from page 147)
James Feldman, (a.k.a. Doctor Travel) is a Certified Facilitator and internationally recognized professional motivator, author, television host, and radio personality. His company Incentive Travelers Cheque Int’l provides individual and group incentive travel awards for many Fortune 500 companies. His book “Doctor’s Travel Cure For The Common Trip” is an entertaining and invaluable travel guide whose purpose is not to tell you where to go, but rather to help you get ready for the adventure. CommuniQuest is pleased to share some of Mr. Feldman’s travel wisdom with our readers, who from time to time must deal with lines, cancellations, lost luggage, and a person in the adjacent seat making extensive use of the air sickness bag. Reprinted by permission from the Author: jfeldman@itcheque.com
THANK YOU FOR READING Like life in general, the M&E Industry seems to move at the speed of light. As a committed B2B partner, we aim to help you keep up with the latest industry news and opportunities. CommuniQuest Incentive Travel Digest is a valuable tool that brings you the timely information and analysis that you need, with a lair for what's hot, relevant, & interesting. I wish you the best of success in your quest, whatever it may be. Jose-Manuel GARCIA, CDS Visionary, Founder, & Master Coach
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