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Indaba fair caps busy week for travel delegates

Delegates from Seychelles’ tourism sector returned recently from South Africa’s INDABA travel fair, capping a busy week that saw Seychelles represented in both Dubai and Durban in little more than a week.

At Indaba 2006 in Durban from May 6-9, bringing out the affordable side of Seychelles was tagged as the main emphasis, with a view toward shedding “the perception that exists on the South African market that Seychelles is an expensive destination,” said David Germain, manager for the Seychelles Tourism Office (STO) for South Africa.

“The potential for Seychelles from the South African market remains very strong, and this was evident during Indaba where our stand was one of the most visited by operators from all regions,” he added. “Operators from South America were also present, and in view of their improved economy countries like Brazil and Argentina will prove to be a very promising market for Seychelles in the future.”

Indaba, South Africa’s premier travel event, this year hosted an estimated pool of 11,500 exhibitors, travel trade professionals, media members and visitors. Indaba 2006 was the biggest edition yet, with increases in registered participants and first-time exhibitors.

The South Africa trade fair was a quick turnaround for Seychelles tourism delegates, who were in Dubai just a day before at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which took place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from May 2-5.

There Seychelles scooped the award for the “Most Informative Stand” as voted by more than 450 travel agents at the Emirates Holidays Brochure launch, just prior to ATM.

“We are delighted to receive this award – it means our efforts in the Middle East to increase awareness and knowledge was successful and that our message was positively received by the right audience,” said Nathalie Savy, STB’s destination marketing manager for the Middle East.

The Seychelles stand featured innovative games, aimed to educate the travel trade on the diversity of Seychelles and the access to different islands and points of interest.

“In addition, to increase consumer awareness and interest we designed a treasure hunt using specially designed “Coco De Mer” floor mats and treasure hunt maps with 16 clues. More than 2,000 consumers participated and the feedback was extremely positive, with the potential to generate many bookings over the summer period,” advised Julie Muirhead, the regional manager for STB’s Middle East office.

STB and Creole Travel Services, which is the official partner of Emirates Holidays, also sponsored a laser show focusing on the uniqueness of Seychelles and displaying niche activities such as fishing, sailing, diving and spas along with stunning shots of the different islands.

(STB Press Release)