Visa named ‘World’s Leading Credit Card’ for Eighth Consecutive Year at World Travel Awards

For the eighth consecutive year the World Travel Awards, the prestigious awards ceremony that acknowledges significant achievements in all areas of the travel and tourism industry, has named Visa the “World’s Leading Credit Card.”

The prize was awarded based on a worldwide online poll of travel agencies and frontline travel agents. Criteria used in evaluating companies and organizations include scope of distribution, convenience, and overall best services.

“Visa is honored to receive this award on behalf of its 21,000 member banks,” said Tom Shepard, executive vice president, Global Marketing Partnerships and Sponsorships, Visa International. “With unsurpassed acceptance worldwide and with travel and entertainment programs linked to Visa cards around the world, our cardholders enjoy the convenience and confidence that Visa provides. It is a true honor to receive this accolade from one of the industry’s most important awards programs.”

According to James Murray, Visa International Asia Pacific’s executive vice president, South and Southeast Asia, “We are pleased that this award recognizes the importance of payment cards, which play a vital role in facilitating tourism and tourist spending. They ease the difficulties travelers face when making purchases overseas and have become a convenience the tourism industry cannot live without. In 2004, international Visa cardholders traveling in Asia spent US$20.2 billion.”

Murray added, “International Visa cardholder spending in Asia is up 10% year-on-year through October despite 2005 having been a challenging year following the 26 December Tsunami along with higher airfare prices and health and terrorism threats. As Asia's payment leader we recognize the impact of tourism on the regional economy and have been sharing valuable data that tracks tourist spending in key markets like Thailand and India, so that the tourism industry can better understand international tourism trends and maintain steady growth.”

Visa has long-standing links with tourism authorities and private sector operators throughout the region and has been working with organizations such as the World Tourism Organization and the Pacific Asia Travel Association to help keep tourism in Asia vibrant. Visa works with its member institutions, merchant partners and with national tourism organizations to create and promote compelling incentives for its cardholders to visit the key markets.

The online voting took place throughout 2005 enabling over 176,000 travel professionals, including 110,000 travel agents worldwide, the opportunity to let the world know who they think are the world’s best in the travel industry. The winner was chosen from the following payment cards - American Express, MasterCard, Diner's Club, Visa and JCB.

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