This honour is in memory of Enrique Talg Wyss, a visionary and pioneer within the Canary Island tourist sector, founder of the Hotel Tigaiga, Puerto de la Cruz, whose concern and action for environmental protection brought about many changes, benefiting our natural surroundings aswell as making huge improvements for visitors to the island.

The winner of this newly created award is Hotel Valle Gran Rey on the island of La Gomera. It was determined by a panel of judges made up of ASHOTEL and regional tourism and environment representatives, University professor Wolfredo Wildpret, President of ASHOTEL’s environment department, Irene Talg, his daughter, and TUI’s director for environment management, Dr. Wolf Michael Iwand.

Wladimiro Rodriguez is the Environment and Landscape councillor at the Cabildo. He had this to say recently: We have sought to plan and build something with which we can identify, and render tribute to, Enrique Talg Wyss. He was always a champion in the protection of our environment. Our leisure park dedicated to him will provide a place for relaxation for strollers and senderistas, in the great hills above Los Realejos. It will be fully guaranteed for safety, and we can guarantee it will blend architecturally with the hills and valleys where it will stand as a long-lasting memorial to señor Talg.

It is not by coincidence that the zone chosen for the leisure park is actually called “Tigaiga”, though it is within the huge municipality of Los Realejos, which, like that of neighbouring La Orotava, stretches from the coast line up and up towards the forests and peaks that surround the peak of Teide. A small refuge will also be built in the park.

The Hotel Tigaiga is considered by many, if not all islanders, as the finest hotel in Tenerife. It has only four stars because of the Spanish laws which allow stars for the quantity of amenities offered by a hotel. One supposes that the swimming pool is not Olympic-sized, or there are not quite enough lifts. It is Quality that Enrique, following the example set by his own father, insisted on; quality of food and service, quality of napery, crystal and crockery, quality of furniture and cleanliness in the bedrooms and suites. The Tigaiga has always been a favourite with islanders and foreign residents as a place to have a quietly luxurious luncheon in the best setting possible, all the year round.

Enrique died on 27 September, 2006. He was a member of the Instituto de Estudios Hispanicos, the Agrupación Hotelera y Zonas Turísticas de España. The Plan de Excelencia Turística del Valle de La Orotava, the CIT at Puerto de la Cruz (one of the Founders) and the Patronato del Parque Nacional del Teide.

The Hotel Tigaiga has won on many occasions the Silver Award awarded by the Canary Island Government, and the Gold Medal given by the CIT at Puerto de la Cruz.        
  

by Jeremy Taylor

On February 18 Tenerife paid tribute to him at a very heartfelt and emotional ceremony which took place at Parque La Sortija (Taoro), right in front of his hotel.  Enrique Talg loved the Taoro Park and did not live to see it inaugurated after its facelift.  Had he lived just a little longer he would have been so happy to see the stunning results.
Hundreds of people turned up to remember this great man who did so much for Tenerife and its tourism industry; including representatives of the Canary Government, Ricardo Melchior (Tenerife Cabildo President), dignitaries and religious leaders. 
His son Enrique and his daughters Ursula and Irene were visibly moved by the wonderful things that were said about their father during the ceremony; Ricardo Melchior, who was a very close friend of Enrique Talg, spoke about how he would always bring things back for him from the countries and places he had visited, always trying to improve the island that he loved so much.
The Mayoress of Puerto de la Cruz, Dolores Padrón also paid tribute emphasising how important Enrique Talgs work had benefitted Puerto de la Cruz and tourism in Tenerife.  
One of the most emotive moments of the ceremony was when Enrique Talg Jr. spoke, thanking the Cabildo of Tenerife, and especially Ricardo Melchior for the moving homage and for the bust which was sculpted by Canary artist Felipe Hodgson for future generations to see.  He was so moved that it was quite hard for him to speak, but he valiantly carried on stating that he and his sisters would carry on the legacy their father left them, working daily wanting to witness this blessed islands progress.
Finally the bust was unveiled and tears flowed freely down many cheeks watching Enrique Talg Wyss children and grandchildren admire the sculpture.                  

by Anna Rodriguez, published in Tenerife News 
 

The third Tourism Congress of Tenerife (2007) took place on September 29 at the Auditorium, discussing the key points of the changing face of tourism and how to face it.

The conference opened by presenting the “Tourism of Tenerife” prizes. One was given to Enrique Talg, who passed away a year ago, which was collected by his children, Ursula, Irene and Enrique, heirs to the prestigious Tigaiga Hotel in Puerto de la Cruz.

Talg has educated his own three children, now all grown up and very much involved with hotel management, in the never easy task of achieving his customary success in the running of a first-class hotel. Experience, innovation, loyalty, cleanliness are demanded by today’s hotel clients, and the Tigaiga, situated in the beauties of the Taoro Park, has these in spades.

But Enrique is also known for his strength, endurance and great human qualities – qualities which he has inculcated in his own family, that will enable this third generation to perpetuate the high standards that their father inherited from his father.      
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and gained the official title of Hotelier at the WIHOGAin Dortmund. He gathered experience in the Food and Beverage department of “Kaufhof”-Warehouse in Cologne, at the “Hyatt La Manga” in Murcia, and finally at the “Bellevue Palace” in Beme, until his retum to Tenerife and the Tigaiga in 1996. In 1999, he won the CIT prize awarded as young businesssman of the year  and since 2003 he has been Vice-President of the Puerto de la Cruz Tourism Authority. He now sits on the committee of Tenerife’s Hotel Association, ASHOTEL, and has been a member of the Management Committee of the Tenerife Association of Young Empresarios since 2005. He is married, has two girls,  and runs the Hotel Tigaiga together with his 2 sisters. His particular area is Food and Beverage as well as Security and Technology. He is also of course, responsible for the well-being of the Hotel guests.

She studied in the European Business Programme at the Technical High schools of Münster and  Madrid, graduating with a degree in business management. After practical training in Germany, Brussels, at the EU, in Prague, at the commercial department of the Spanish Embassy, a period with Andersen Consulting in Madrid added the finishing touch to her qualifications. She returned to the Hotel Tigaiga in 1993. Here, as codirector, her work lays emphasis on quality and ecological management. She is founder member of the environment commission of ASHOTEL, Tenerife’s hotel association. It is to her credit that the Tigaiga gained the sought after EU environmental certificate, one of the first enterprises to obtain it in the Canary lslands. The ISO 9001 certification for quality management was also gained thanks to her involvement. She continues to carry out her responsibility for finance and floor service, and, of course, also for the personal well-being of the guests.

A period as trainee followed at the Inselhotel, Constance, then to Switzerland in Weggis, Twann, Klosters, the Four Season in Hamburg, and finally the Westin ANA Hotel in Washington D.C. In 1993, she gained an International Hotel Association Scholarship for the in PDP at Cornell University in the US, and in the same year was nominated ” Hotelier of the Year 1993” by the IHA and ‘Hotels’ Magazine. She has been working at the Hotel Tigaiga since 1990. She is the president of the quality association Tenerife Calidad Tursitica, which was “born” in 1993 in Puerto de la Cruz. She also teaches at the Escuela Superior de Turismo Iriarte in Puerto de la Cruz. She has is married with 2 daughters and runs the Hotel Tigaiga together with her brother and sister, her principle task being customer services and the supervision of the Hotel gardens. Due to family commitments she works only half time at the hotel.