Collette garners tour recognition

(Updated, Feb. 23)

PAWTUCKET – Collette Vacations was chosen as a 2010 Editor’s Pick WAVE award winner in two categories, for “Best Tour Operator, Europe” and “Best Tour Operator, Escorted.”

The fifth annual awards were announced Monday by TravelAge West, a trade magazine for the travel industry serving 14 Western states, owned by Northstar Travel Media LLC, based in Secaucus, N.J.

The awards cited four winners in each of 12 categories for tour operators. Collette Vacations and other recipients will be feted at a gala dinner on June 10 at the Four Seasons Los Angeles Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Family-owned Collette Vacations operates 125 tours to all seven continents. Collette CFO John Galvin said recently he is hopeful that the firm will have its best year ever, with 2010 revenues exceeding its record year in 2008 by as much as 5 percent.

Melissa McKee, a spokeswoman for Collette, said: “Everyone at Collette works hard every day to fulfill vacation dreams, so it is gratifying to be recognized for those efforts.”