Wilmington, Mass. (August 27, 2018) – Dedicated to its “Guests First” approach, Villas of Distinction_®, the world’s premier luxury villa rental company as part of World Travel Holdings, has announced a new leadership position. Willie Fernandez has been promoted to General Manager/Vice President of Luxury Travel Holdings, the Luxury Villas division of World Travel Holdings, overseeing all of its villa brands — signature villa brand Villas of Distinction, VillaRental.com, Jamaica Villas by Linda Smith and Bravo Holidays.

Fernandez now has full operational responsibility for Luxury Travel Holdings including the brand strategy and marketing initiatives for all of the luxury villa brands. He also oversees Sales, Technology and Operations. Since joining the Luxury Travel Holdings team, Fernandez has instituted key initiatives that have improved results including his trademark “Guests First” Service Program which has transformed the experience this division provides to its luxury villa guests.

“Travel is in my blood and my passion for providing premier customer service to our high-end luxury villa guests is what sets us apart from our competition,” said Willie Fernandez, general manager and vice president for Villas of Distinction. “For myself and my team, it is more than booking a villa, it is providing concierge-style service that creates once-in-a-lifetime, truly unique and immersive destination vacation experiences.”

Fernandez joined Luxury Travel Holdings in 2017 and brought with him more than 25 years of travel industry experience including 10 years previously working as Vice President of Marketing for World Travel Holdings’ House Brands division from 2006 to 2016. 

“It has been wonderful to see Willie’s leadership in action, and his deep passion for serving our clients, travel partners and his team has already yielded phenomenal results,” said Jeff Smith, senior vice president of the luxury division for World Travel Holdings. “I am very excited about the positive enhancements and accomplishments we are seeing in 2019 and even more excited about what the future holds under Willie’s vision.”

Villas of Distinction partners with the travel agent community to sell this brand’s villas and has preferred status with Virtuoso, Signature, Ensemble and the Travel Leaders Select Villa program. VillaRental.com, Jamaica Villas by Linda Smith and Bravo Holidays sell direct-to-consumer.

To learn more about the luxury villas offered through Villas of Distinction, visit VillasofDistinction.com or to book villa vacations for you clients, call 1-800-289-0900.

About Villas of Distinction_®

Villas of Distinction_®, as part of World Travel Holdings, is an award-winning, full-service premier luxury villa provider with an extensive portfolio of thousands of privately-owned villas in more than 50 luxurious destinations including the Caribbean, Mexico, Hawaii, Europe, Central America, the Continental United States and many private islands. Most villas feature private pools, butlers, maids and chefs. The luxury provider has gained its clients’ trust by ensuring every villa meets strict standards so that each home exceeds the guest’s expectations. For more than 25 years, Villas of Distinction’s team of experts have made vacation planning effortless by helping travelers find their perfect vacation home, and creating one-of-a-kind getaways and lasting memories at the world’s top villas. www.VillasofDistinction.com.

About World Travel Holdings
World Travel Holdings is the nation’s largest cruise agency and award-winning leisure travel company with a portfolio of more than 35 diverse brands. In addition to owning some of the largest brands distributing cruises, villas, resort vacations, car rentals, resort day passes and luxury travel services, World Travel Holdings has a vast portfolio of licensed private-label partnerships comprised of top leisure travel providers, including almost every U.S. airline, leading hotel brands and prominent corporations. The company also operates a top-rated travel agency franchise and the country's original host agency, and is consistently recognized as an industry leader in work-at-home employment. Its global presence includes operating multiple cruise and vacation brands in the United Kingdom. World Travel Holdings has offices in Wilmington, Mass.; Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Virginia Beach, Va.; New York, NY; and Chorley, England. For more information, visit WorldTravelHoldings.com.

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