For Immediate Release | Official News Wire for the Travel Industry

Where press releases are breaking news

U.S. Travel applauds introduction of JOLT Act

by

Have you heard of the JOLT Act? JOLT stands for Jobs Originated through Launching Travel.

The Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy for the U.S. Travel Association, Tori Barnes  issued a statement on the introduction of the Jobs Originated through Launching Travel (JOLT) Act of 2019:

“International inbound travel is central to America’s job growth: in 2018, international travel spending directly supported 1.2 million American jobs and $33.4 billion in wages. The JOLT Act will do just as its name implies—provide a ‘jolt’ to the American economy and workforce with critical enhancements to inbound travel, including measures to increase both the security and efficiency of the U.S. visa process.

“The Visa Waiver Program—which the bill would re-designate as the Secure Travel Partnership—is one of the most important tools for increasing secure travel to the United States. Renaming the program will more precisely reflect its value as a national security instrument, and other provisions in the legislation will further strengthen the program while facilitating the arrival of qualified international visitors who bolster America’s economy.

“U.S. Travel applauds Representatives Quigley and Rice for recognizing the role that secure, robust international inbound visitation plays in America’s economic and jobs growth, and we are eager to work with Congress to advance this important bill.”

Travel News | eTurboNews

Boutique Venice Beach, Hotel Erwin, announces new GM

by

Boutique hotel in Venice Beach, California, Hotel Erwin, recently announced the appointment of new General Manager, Derek Haug, to oversee all hotel operations and management.

Mr. Haug comes to Hotel Erwin with more than 20 years of hospitality experience and a well-rounded understanding of all facets of hotel management. Most recently, Derek held leadership roles with Loews Hotels for the past twelve years and comes to Hotel Erwin from Loews Santa Monica Beach. There he oversaw all food, beverage, conference, catering and spa operations for the resort, creating and launching new restaurant and bar concepts. He has more than six years of experience in Southern California in addition to hospitality experience in Tucson, Arizona, Snowmass Village, Colorado. Derek holds a degree in hospitality management from the University of Minnesota.

With his extensive knowledge and experience with lifestyle brands and resorts, Derek is a great asset to Hotel Erwin’s dedicated team of associates as they undergo concept changes and renovations to the unique property with unparalleled rooftop and signature restaurant. Derek strives to continue to provide guests with a memorable Venice experience and uphold the standards of excellence and effortless Venice beach culture Erwin himself has infused into the hotel.

“Hotel Erwin never gives the ‘normal’ experience. I am excited to join a team who truly embodies the colorful culture of Venice Beach. A team who is pushing the boundaries of what we can do to make a guest’s experience above the ordinary,” Derek said. “It’s evident that the dedicated team at Hotel Erwin takes pride in the mission and values of the culture ownership has created.”

Travel News | eTurboNews

Travel Oregon’s “Only Slightly Exaggerated” campaign

by

Inspired by the viral success of the “Only Slightly Exaggerated” campaign last spring, Travel Oregon is launching part two of the animated campaign that gives viewers a creative glimpse of the magical feeling of being in Oregon.

The new 1:45 minute video continues the visual narrative, showcasing different locations, experiences and thrilling adventures in Oregon—from venturing deep into the Oregon Caves National Monument to paragliding over the Steens Mountain. Like the original, this new video features a cast of animated human characters, native flora and fauna and new fantastical beings, including mystical cloud-people and a sea-stack creature, to name a few.

In addition to the sweeping outdoor animated imagery highlighted in the video, the viewer also gets a taste of Oregon’s culinary bounty. In the restaurant scene, look for the bottle of Oregon Solidarity wine, a nod to the real-life collaboration between four Oregon wineries who came together to help the Rouge Valley wine region that was affected by the Southern Oregon wildfires last summer.

“The goal of this campaign is to welcome and invite everyone to experience a happier state of being while traveling in Oregon,” said Travel Oregon CEO Todd Davidson. “As people are overwhelmed with the distractions of modern life, experiencing the wonders of Oregon can be the answer for that. Whether that respite is on a beach, in a high desert or under a forest canopy, there are abundant opportunities to unplug and reconnect with yourself and nature here in Oregon.”

The campaign launches tomorrow in the target markets of Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Boise, Tri Cities, Eugene and Bend. The media buy includes cinema, TV (launching during Final the Four), digital, billboards and on MAX Light Rail trains. Moreover, the campaign will be extended throughout the year through our annual visitor guide, downloadable wallpapers, posters, postcards, GIFs, shorter animation clips, and immersive new online content highlighting locations in the campaign that travelers can visit—the Oregon Caves, Steens Mountain and Clear Lake to name a few.

Utilizing the strong creative teams from the 2018 campaign, which generated more than 10 million worldwide views, the new video was brought to life in collaboration with long-time advertising partner Wieden+Kennedy with animation by Psyop and Sun Creature Studios and the musical score composed by Jim Dooley.

“Our goal with Only Slightly Exaggerated, both last year and this year, is to visualize the emotional experience of visiting Oregon. By using animation, we are able to capture experiences that go beyond traditional travel films, while also feeling unique to our state, said Ansel Wallenfang, creative at Wieden+Kennedy.

Travel News | eTurboNews

Centara Privilege Club: Centara launches all-new exclusive lifestyle benefits program

by

Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand’s leading hotel operator and one of the region’s most innovative hospitality brands, is launching “Centara Privilege Club”, a brand new benefits program that offers exclusive privileges, discounts and experiences to Centara customers.

Members joining Centara Privilege Club receive exciting lifestyle benefits focused on food and drink, accommodation, spa and more, including attractive guaranteed savings, an available complimentary night’s stay, cash certificates and many other member-only advantages.

“Centara Privilege Club was created to strengthen the loyalty of Centara’s biggest fans and frequent visitors,” said Tom Thrussell, Centara Vice President – Brand, Marketing & Digital. “The program features an array of privileges well suited to our guests’ lifestyles and provides unbeatable dining, drinking, hotel room, spa and other benefits that keep our guests returning again and again”.

Centara Privilege Club is a paid membership program with privileges available at all Centara Hotels and Resorts properties throughout Thailand. Members are guaranteed experiences, savings and recognition, and can use their benefits to host parties of family, friends and colleagues at great value.

Centara launches Centara Privilege Club via a collaboration with Hospitality Marketing Concepts (HMC), the world’s leading provider of paid membership loyalty programs, to create an engaging loyalty program to meet the needs of its operating 33 hotels in Thailand and exceed the expectations of Centara’s prestigious clients.

“Hospitality Marketing Concepts (HMC) is committed to ensuring the new programs’ success while creating an innovative program which complements the ever-growing digital mobile world,” said Mokhtar Ramadan, CEO, Hospitality Marketing Concepts. “Together with Centara Hotels and Resorts, HMC will deliver on our mission to provide world-class loyalty programs to luxury hotel brands around the world. Together with HMC’s new mobile app, members can enjoy the benefits of membership at their fingertips.”

The Centara Privilege Club is technology-driven and features an industry-leading mobile app that lets members redeem digital e-certificates and eliminate outdated paper-based voucher booklets and plastic membership cards. The app also delivers targeted mobile push notifications about hotel promotions based on geo-location, preferences and purchasing behavior. This technology focus is in keeping with both Centara’s focus to meeting the needs of today’s smartphone generation, and its commitment to sustainability and the reduction of paper and plastic usage.

The program is distinct from and complementary to Centara’s CentaraThe1 loyalty program which is free to join and sees members earning points for stays and on-property spend, which can then be redeemed for future stays and a variety of other benefits. The CentaraThe1 program currently has over 3 million members and members can actually use their earned points to purchase a Centara Privilege Club membership.

Learn more about Centara Privilege Club membership benefits and become a member only by visiting https://centaraprivilege.com.

Travel News | eTurboNews

Middle East visitors to Egypt to increase 50% by 2022, ATM report reveals

by

Arrivals from the Middle East to Egypt are expected to increase 50% from 1.49 million in 2018 to 2.23 million in 2022 with visitors from Saudi Arabia driving this growth, according to data published ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2019, which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 28 April – 1 May 2019.

While arrivals from Europe are expected to be the largest contributor on a regional basis, increasing from 6.2 million in 2018 to 9.1 million tourists in 2022, the latest research from Colliers International revealed arrivals from the Middle East will actually witness the highest Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) at 11%.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Over the last 12 months, Egypt’s tourism industry has witnessed healthy and steady growth, with arrivals up 14.5% from 8.3 million in 2017 to 9.5 million in 2018. Growth has been fuelled by the cheaper Egyptian Pound and government incentives for charter airlines operating international flights.

“Adding to this, we are witnessing this growth first hand at ATM with the total number of attendees coming from Egypt increasing 16% YoY.”

Taking advantage of this resurgence in tourists are some of Egypt’s most prominent tourism companies including Dana Tours, Nicolas Tours and Standard Tours who will exhibit at ATM 2019 – and of course the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Board who will have a major presence too.

Egypt tourism capital investment is estimated to reach US$ 4.2billion (EGP 75bn) in 2019, up 25 per cent on 2018, as the country strives to keep pace with an ongoing leisure travel boom and GDP growth.

The data from Colliers revealed that Egypt’s total tourism revenue will increase at a CAGR of 16.5% between 2018 and 2022 – outperforming the business segment. During 2017 and 2018, the leisure spend was US$ 13.79billion (EGP 239bn) and US$ 16.67billion (EGP 289bn) respectively, while business totaled US$ 1.93billion (EGP 33.5bn) and US$ 2.36billion (EGP 41bn) over the same period.

“The overall revenue generated by the leisure segment in 2018 represented 87% of total tourism spend and we expect this growth to continue as a series of new government and private sector attractions and investments are unveiled – including the development of new airports and new luxury hotel resorts in Red Sea destinations Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada,” Curtis said.

Egypt has a diverse range of source markets – decreasing the risk of being over-reliant on one specific market. Germany, Russia, the UK and Italy are Egypt’s top four source markets, with the first and last in top gear – both growing 29% in 2018 – and showing the highest CAGR growth of 11%.

The UK, which recorded just a 4% increase in arrivals between 2017 and 2018, has traditionally been a long-standing major source market for the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh. However, an ongoing ban on direct flights between the two destinations has stifled visitor numbers.

Curtis added: “It is hoped the recent resumption of Serbian flights to Sharm El Sheikh after a six-year absence and the introduction of Turkish Airlines’ daily flight from Moscow to the Red Sea via Istanbul, will kick-start direct flights between the UK and Egypt, and of course Russia and Egypt.”

ATM, considered by industry professionals as a barometer for the Middle East and North Africa tourism sector, welcomed over 39,000 people to its 2018 event, showcasing the largest exhibition in the history of the show, with hotels comprising 20% of the floor area.

Brand new for this year’s show will be the launch of Arabian Travel Week, an umbrella brand comprising four co-located shows including ATM 2019, ILTM Arabia, CONNECT Middle East, India & Africa – a new route development forum and new consumer-led event ATM Holiday Shopper. Arabian Travel Week will take place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 27 April – 1 May 2019.

About Arabian Travel Market (ATM)

Arabian Travel Market is the leading, international travel and tourism event in the Middle East for inbound and outbound tourism professionals. ATM 2018 attracted almost 40,000 industry professionals, with representation from 141 countries over the four days. The 25th edition of ATM showcased over 2,500 exhibiting companies across 12 halls at Dubai World Trade Centre.  Arabian Travel Market 2019 will take place in Dubai from Sunday, 28th April to Wednesday, 1st May 2019. To find out more, please visit: www.arabiantravelmarket.wtm.com.

About Arabian Travel Week

Arabian Travel Week is an umbrella brand comprising four co-located shows including Arabian Travel Market and ILTM Arabia as well as CONNECT Middle East, India and Africa – a new route development forum launching this year and ATM’s first ever consumer event – ATM Holiday Shopper. Providing a renewed focus for the Middle East’s travel and tourism sector – under one roof over the course of one week – the inaugural Arabian Travel Week will take place at Dubai World Trade Centre from Saturday 27th April – Wednesday 1st May 2019. For more information visit: arabiantravelweek.com

About CONNECT

CONNECT Route Development Forum delivers a total networking experience, bringing together airports, airlines and aviation suppliers in a format that offers formal one-to-one pre-arranged meetings, engaging industry seminars together with social opportunities to cement relationships with existing clients and engage with new ones. Created and organised by The Airport Agency-France, CONNECT is now in its 16th year and set to attract over 650 participants in June 2019 at its flagship event taking place in Cagliari, Sardinia. For more information, visit: www.connect-aviation.com

The inaugural CONNECT Middle East, India & Africa event will be the first and only networking forum in the Middle East. Ideally located in Dubai to address the booming aviation market of the Middle East, it will bring together the aviation and the tourism industry which are the backbone and catalyst to economic development. For more information, visit: www.connect-aviation.com/2019-meia/

About ATM Holiday Shopper

ATM Holiday Shopper is the brand-new travel event for consumers offering the very best travel and tourism discounts and deals plus the chance to learn about a range of emerging and unexplored destinations and activities from destinations around the world.  The inaugural event will take place in Hall 1 of the Dubai World Trade Centre on Saturday, 27th April 2019 from 12:00 – 20:00. For more information, visit: www.atmholidayshopper.com

About ILTM Arabia

International Luxury Travel Market Arabia is an exclusive event for those looking to attract HNW travellers from the Middle East to their destination. Returning for its third year, ILTM will allow international luxury suppliers and key luxury buyers to connect via one-to-one pre-scheduled appointments and networking opportunities. ILTM will take place on Sunday 28th April and Monday 29th April 2019. For more information, visit: www.iltm.com/arabia/

Travel News | eTurboNews

Seychelles participates in 23rd Edition of Borsa Mediterranea del Turismo in Naples, Italy

by

The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB), together with its partner and Italian representative, Tsogo Sun, provided destination Seychelles with more visibility at the Borsa Mediterranea del Turismo (BMT), in Naples, Italy.

The 23rd edition of BMT took place from March 22, 2019 to March 24, 2019; was the perfect platform and a great opportunity for our STB team meet with the visiting travel agencies and reinforce the tourism board’s partnerships with tour operators.

Representing STB was Director for Italy, Turkey, Greece and the Mediterranean, Ms. Monette Rose and STB Marketing Executive, Ms. Yasmine Pocetti. The STB team accompanied by the Italian representative of Tsogo Sun, and Paradise Sun Hotel and Maia, Ms. Simona Bonetti.

BMT saw the participation of the most important tourism players in Italy, including tour operators such as Nicolaus, Idee per Viaggiare, Naar, I Viaggi dell’Airone or Alidays and airlines such as Turkish Airlines. Top tour operators and travel agencies official association, Uvet and Astoi, were present as well.

Further establishing itself, Seychelles was also featured on the stand of I Viaggi dell’Airone, launching a dedicated brochure, and giving visibility to the archipelago through the mega screen of the stand displaying STB promotional video.

The Naples based tour operator organized a dinner with the top partners including STB at famous Ristorante Stella on the Gulf of Naples.

STB Director for Italy, Turkey, Greece and the Mediterranean, Ms. Monette Rose mentioned that the STB presence at the BMT in Naples contributed not only in showcasing Seychelles as a destination but also reaffirmed the relationship with various partners.

“BMT featured very many important players on the Italian market and in tourism world, partnership is crucial. It was a good time for us to be present and build our networks and most importantly ensure the good position of the destination and what it has to offer to our partners and their clients,” said Ms. Rose.

Several workshops were also organized during the event including with 120 international buyers, incentive, wellness tourism and others.

The media had a strong presence with many journalists from the trade and consumer magazines and newspapers.

Naples is a key hub for Southern Italy with great potential and with many international flights and airlines departing from Capodichino airport. For Seychelles, the most important is Flydubai, connecting the city to the UAE, and Turkish Airlines with its direct flights to Istanbul.

Travel News | eTurboNews

Václav Havel Airport Prague: Here comes summer

by

Spring may have just officially sprung on March 20, but in Prague, summer is starting in just 2 days, and tourists are ready to travel.

On Sunday, March 31, 2019, the summer schedule comes into effect at Václav Havel Airport Prague. For the duration of the season, a total of 69 airlines will be operating regular scheduled direct flights from Prague, heading to 162 destinations in 54 countries. There will also be direct flights to 16 long-haul destinations, which is the largest number in the airport’s modern history.

“As part of the summer timetable, a total of four new airlines will be launching services from Václav Havel Airport Prague, two of them on long-haul routes. This proves our long-term success in motivating an ever-increasing number of airlines to open new routes from Prague, which ultimately means a wider choice of flights for our passengers,” says Vaclav Rehor, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Prague Airport. In comparison with the previous summer season, the total number of airlines running direct flights from Prague this summer will increase by two. Four new airlines, Air Arabia, SCAT Airlines, SunExpress, and United Airlines, will be operating their flights from Prague for the first time.

“The forthcoming summer timetable also confirms our long-term success in implementing a strategy to develop long-haul routes. During the summer, direct flights will be available from Václav Havel Airport Prague to a total of 16 long-haul destinations, which is the most in the airport’s modern history. In addition to new destinations such as Astana in Kazakhstan or Newark in New York, USA. Passengers flying during the summer season will also have the opportunity to fly to New York’s JFK Airport, Philadelphia, Toronto, and Montreal just like last year,” adds Vaclav Rehor.

In total, the summer timetable will see flights to 14 new destinations, alongside regular flights to Newark Airport in New York, which United Airlines will run from Prague daily, and flights to Astana, departing twice a week with SCAT Airlines. There will also be flights heading to Casablanca (twice a week with Air Arabia), Florence (offered 4 times a week by Vueling) and Billund (3 flights a week operated by Ryanair). Brand-new routes include two holiday destinations – Pescara in Italy and Zadar in Croatia. Thanks to these new summer routes operated by Ryanair, passengers can take advantage of faster and more comfortable way to destinations which until recently were mostly only accessible by road.

Some direct flights that were already available during the winter flight season will continue also during the summer season. These include, for example, flights to Amman, Marrakesh, Sharjah, Paris Beauvais and Moscow/Zhukovsky.

The most frequent flights this summer season will be those departing to Italy (17 destinations), Great Britain (16 destinations), Spain, and Greece (both with 12 destinations).

Among the most popular destinations with the highest number of flights from Václav Havel Airport Prague will be London (up to 93 flights a week), Moscow (up to 63 flights a week), Paris (up to 58 flights a week), Amsterdam (up to 54 flights a week), and Warsaw (up to 52 flights a week).

Long-haul routes: 16 direct flights offered by 19 airlines:

Astana                             SCAT Airlines

Chengdu                         Sichuan Airlines

Doha                               Qatar Airways

Dubai                              Emirates, flydubai, Smartwings

Philadelphia                    American Airlines

Montreal                         Air Transat

New York                        Delta Air Lines

New York (Newark)        United Airlines

Novosibirsk                     S7 Airlines

Beijing                             Hainan Airlines

Riyadh                             Czech Airlines

Seoul                               Czech Airlines, Korean Air

Xi’an                                China Eastern Airlines

Shanghai                         China Eastern Airlines

Sharjah                           Air Arabia

Toronto                           Air Canada Rouge

Overview of new offers:

14 new destinations with regular transit (compared to the same period in 2018):

Amman                           Ryanair

Astana                             SCAT Airlines

Billund                             Ryanair

Bournemouth                 Ryanair

Casablanca                      Air Arabia Maroc

Florence                          Vueling

Marrakesh                      Ryanair

Moscow (Zhukovsky)      Ural Airlines

New York (Newark)        United Airlines

Paris (Beauvais)              Ryanair

Pescara                           Ryanair

Stockholm (Skavsta)       Ryanair

Sharjah                            Air Arabia

Zadar                               Ryanair

4 new airlines:  Air Arabia, SCAT Airlines, SunExpress, United Airlines

Follow us on Prague Airport’s Twitter @PragueAirport.

Travel News | eTurboNews

What is the discussion at the UNWTO / ICAO Ministerial Conference on Tourism and Air Transport?

by

A Panel discussion is ongoing and a packed program are planned today for delegates in Sai Island, Cabo Verde attending the First UNWTO/ ICAO Ministerial Conference Tourism and Air Transport.

Air Transport and Tourism Policies: Regulatory convergence to maximize and balance their benefits

Air Transport and tourism depend heavily on each other and are essential engines of trade and economic growth for both developed and developing countries.

Despite the synergies, there can be conflicts between aviation and tourism policies due to the difficulties of States in balancing the interests of their airlines and the optimum development of their tourism industries. Separate sectorial policies result in a fundamental disconnect, which constitutes a severe deterrent towards the development of both sectors. How do we enhance policy coherence between the two sectors, harmonize the regulatory frameworks, and prevent separate sectoral policies? How can we strike a balance to maximize the overall benefits of tourism and air transport in the national economy?

What is the current status of Africa’s regulatory framework and what is its impact on tourism and air transport (the Lomé Declaration and the related Action plans both for Air Transport and for Tourism?

How can Africa benefit from and implement the joint UNWTO and ICAO Medellín Statement on Tourism and Air Transport for Development? How can the African Governments promote cooperation and compatible decision-making among transport and tourism authorities and other ministries in charge of related portfolios, including finance, economic planning, energy, environment and trade?

What are the challenges encountered by tourism stakeholders in reflecting tourism business interests in national and regional air transport policies?

Connectivity and Seamless Travel: Best practices to serve tourists and passengers

Aviation and tourism are a customer-focused economic sector.

While there is no single definition of air connectivity, it can be viewed as the ability of a network to move passengers involving the minimum of transit points, which makes the trip as short as possible with optimal passenger satisfaction at the minimum price possible. The realization of seamless travel can improve overall travel experience, which in turn fuels tourism demand.

With the recent launching of the Single Africa Air Transport Market (SAATM), open skies over Africa may soon be a reality, building the necessary regulatory framework to increase international intra-Africa travel.

How do we optimize the flow of passenger traffic through the air transport system? How can we generate sufficient demand for direct air services between African sub-regions, especially between the East-West coasts?

How well do current air service agreements (ASAs) contribute to connectivity and what are the prospects of air transport liberalization? What constitute the bottlenecks and slowdowns of seamless travel in the air transport system? What regulatory schemes can be used or developed to assure essential air services to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS)?

What are the existing best practices and how could they be extended and adapted to other regions? What are the factors influencing airline choices for different market segments (the intercultural dimension)?

Funding and Financing for Development: Pragmatic measures to build a transparent, stable and predictable investment climate

Infrastructure deficiencies in the aviation and tourism sectors have long been an issue in Africa. While plans are in place to develop and modernize aviation infrastructure, relief is years away at best.

In the meantime, there will be lost opportunities for creating jobs and spurring economic growth. Another issue is the proliferation of taxes on tourism and air transport despite the fact that the industry recovers a vast majority of its own infrastructure costs through payments of user charges, rather than being financed through taxation.

Revenue raised by taxes can often be outweighed by the relinquished economic benefits as a result of dampened demand for air travel.

This Session will focus on

a) the creation of good governance and enabling the environment to build business confidence and encourage investments, and

b) the consolidation of planning and development efforts for aviation and tourism infrastructure in multi-modal and urban planning initiatives. What are the challenges of financing development projects related to the tourism and air transport sectors, particularly in LDCs, LLDCs, and SIDS?

What are the success stories in financing tourism and air transport projects? How do consumers perceive taxes, charges, and others levies and how to ensure transparency of taxes and charges to passengers and tourists?

Why is the limited volume of international public finance and assistance for development currently available for aviation and tourism infrastructure projects?

Travel Facilitation: Advancing visa facilitation in supporting economic growth 

Travel facilitation aims at maximizing the efficiency of border clearance formalities while achieving and maintaining high-quality security and effective law enforcement. Allowing passengers/tourists to cross international borders safely and efficiently contributes significantly to stimulating demand, enhancing the competitiveness of States, creating jobs and fostering international understanding.

In spite of the great strides made in recent decades in facilitating tourist travel in Africa, there is still room for considerable progress. For example, electronic visa processes and delivery could make travel more accessible, convenient, and more efficient without a diminution of national security.

States should also look into increasing cooperation on bilateral, regional and international travel facilitation regimes. How can new technologies be used to make travel more accessible, convenient and efficient? How to define and implement policies which facilitate international travel and tourism while ensuring the security and integrity of traveler identification and border controls?

How well do e-passports, e-visas and other documentation deal with emergent threats to security? How could the African States learn from other effective best practices?

Travel News | eTurboNews

Zanzibar sets for second, Grand Tourism Show in September

by

After a successful and the first international tourism show held in Zanzibar last year, now the Indian Ocean Island is organizing a second premier exhibition that is scheduled to take place in September this year.

An organizing committee that will oversee the preparations of the second Zanzibar Tourism Show, scheduled to take place between September 26 and 28 this year has been formed.

Zanzibar Tourism Minister, Mahmoud Thabit Kombo said when launching the committee that the exhibition was expected to be bigger this year than the previous one held in October last year  and which had attracted over    4 000 visitors, 150 tourism companies and 100 international buyers from 17 countries.

He said that the organizing committee he had launched would ensure that the exhibition was successful. The committee would also be involved in advertising the exhibition both locally and internationally, to motivate tourists to visit the island, now the fast growing tourist destination in East Africa.

The show is part of the Zanzibar government’s strategy to promote tourism in Zanzibar, which is famous for beach and marine tourism.

The Zanzibar Tourism Show is the leading tourism business platform that showcases current tourism offers, first-hand expert knowledge from industry players and significant networking opportunity to all participants.

Zanzibar is aiming to increase the number of international tourists annually, from the current 376,000 to 500,000 by 2020, as tourism accounts for more than 80 percent of the Island’s foreign revenue collections.

The Island strides well in tourism sector after the government embarked on economic reforms and transformation, thus shifting from mono-crop economy to more diverse economies.

“The Zanzibar Tourism Show is part of promotional strategies in tourism sector initiated by the government of Zanzibar in collaboration with the private sector  to  promote  Zanzibar destination in its sustainable positioning in global market”, Mr. Kombo said.

He said that the contribution of tourism to economic well-being of the Island is immense. Zanzibar depends on the quality of services provided to international class tourists and the scale of promotion of its tourist products and services to global holidaymakers.

Travel News | eTurboNews