The Tribune

ARDASTRA Gardens, Zoo and Conservation Centre has been recognised by TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel website, with a certificate of excellence for the fifth consecutive year.

The tourist attraction has also been inducted into TripAdvisor’s Certificate of Excellence Hall of Fame for the feat.

The Certificate of Excellence award celebrates excellence in hospitality and is given only to establishments that consistently achieve great traveller reviews on TripAdvisor. The “Hall of Fame” was created to honour those businesses that have earned a Certificate of Excellence for five consecutive years. Winners include accommodations, eateries and attractions located all over the world that have continually delivered a superior customer experience.

“Being inducted into the ‘Hall of Fame’ is truly an honour, especially given that it is the result of receiving consistent accolades from our visitors,” said Katherine Solomon, General Manager at Ardastra Gardens, Zoo and Conservation Centre. “There is no greater seal of approval than from our guests. The entire Ardastra team is proud of this achievement and we are pleased that our passion and hard work at presenting a high standard of customer service has been recognised. At present, we rank number 11 out of 106 things to do in Nassau and we are in the top one per cent of attractions in the world.

“That is big news for a little zoo. For that and more, we’d like to thank all of our past guests who have taken the time to complete a review on Trip Advisor. We are committed to excellence and with this vote of confidence, as is the meaning of our name, “Ardastra”, we will continue to ‘strive for the stars’.”

Ardastra has been a part of the Bahamian landscape for almost 80 years. The site of Ardastra Gardens, Zoo and Conservation Centre was originally designed by Jamaican horticulturalist Hedley Edwards in 1937, who named the gardens Ardastra, from the Latin words ardua ad astra, meaning “striving towards the stars” because he felt that it depicted a ‘utopia of peace, beauty and tranquillity’.

He developed the picturesque and exotic gardens as a nature preserve, later bringing in the endangered Caribbean flamingo from Inagua in the 1950s, developing what was to become a highly successful breeding programme. Over time, the birds were trained to perform for visitors and Ardastra became their permanent home.

In 1980, the gardens were purchased by Norman Solomon, whose passion for wildlife and conservation education inspired him to incorporate more animals into the gardens and create a boutique zoo. Today, thousands of guests (local and international) visit the tranquil, restorative gardens, enjoy close encounters with the collection of nearly 200 animals and admire the long-legged flamingo beauties National Geographic has called “Ballerinas in Pink”. The opportunity to enjoy this rare gem is a highlight for visitors of all ages.

Marc Charron President, TripAdvisor for Business, said winning a fifth consecutive Certificate of Excellence was “ a remarkable feat”. “By putting a spotlight on businesses that are focused on consistently delivering great service to customers, TripAdvisor not only helps drive an improvement to hospitality standards around the world, it also gives businesses both large and small the ability to shine and stand out from the competition.”

When selecting Certificate of Excellence winners, TripAdvisor uses a proprietary algorithm to determine the honourees that takes into account the quality, quantity and most up-to-date reviews and opinions submitted by travellers over a 12-month period as well as business’s tenure and ranking on the Popularity Index on the site. To qualify, a business must maintain an overall TripAdvisor bubble rating of at least four out of five, have a minimum number of reviews and must have been listed on the website for at least 12 months.