For Immediate Release | Official News Wire for the Travel Industry

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Seychelles Tourism Minister Didier Dogley expresses Satisfaction at Seychelles Tourism Industry Performance for 2019

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During his opening address at the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) Marketing Review on Tuesday, January 14, 2019, at Eden Blue, Didier Dogley, Minister for Tourism Civil Aviation Ports and Marine, expressed satisfaction over the constant and gradual increase in numbers of visitors and receipt over the past 5 years.

Minister Dogley stated that the latest figures released by Central Bank of Seychelles (CBS) confirmed a provisional increase in revenue for 2019 from the tourism industry amounting to USD576.4 million equating to a little over 8 billion Seychelles rupees.

Congratulating the tourism partners present, the Tourism Minister reaffirmed that the success of Seychelles tourism industry is dependent on the collective effort of its stakeholders and partners. 

He mentioned that according to tourism counterparts in Mauritius and Maldives, Seychelles considered as the best model in the region and referred to the local policies in place as one of the key contributors to the gradual, continual and sustained growth in both visitor numbers and receipt in revenue.

Minister Dogley further reminded the trade that the Tourism Master Plan-Destination 2023 launched in 2019 provides the guideline to safeguard the destination’s brand and image as an upmarket, selective and pristine tourism destination.

During his speech, he also prompted the assembly that the moratorium has enable the department to revisit and clean up a long list of accommodation projects of over 3000 rooms. 

“We now know who the serious investors are and who are not and what measures we need to take to facilitate serious investors and clean up our investment systems. It has also provided room for us to empower Seychellois investors, many of whom have taken the opportunity to invest in small tourism establishments resulting in the majority of rooms being in the hands of locals,” said the Minister.

Minister Dogley mentioned that in 2019, the tourism department licensed 61 new tourism establishments of less than 25 rooms adding 243 additional rooms to the destination’s catalogue.

He also recommended that players in the industry including Ministry of Tourism, the STB, the local trade, DMCs, hotels and airlines join forces to ensure that Seychelles remain a prime destination in the region in terms of visitor’s satisfaction. 

“The tourism industry is one that will always thrive if we know how to keep enticing people to visit our beautiful islands. Our pristine environment is critical to our success but one of the persistent challenges we face is that of providing value for money to our tourists.  We surely do not need to be reminded that the international tourism arena is a very congested and highly competitive one with tourists now equipped as never before to sniff out the best deals via the plethora of social media and other forums available to them,” said Minister Dogley.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

The Seychelles Tourism Board countdown to the Seychelles Nature Trail event

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The Seychelles Tourism Board and its partners gear up for the first edition of the Seychelles Nature Trail (SNT) event in a Press Briefing at its headquarters at Botanical House, Mont Fleuri this Thursday January 16, 2020.

In line with the STB’s mandate to increase the destination’s visibility, the most recent addition to STB’s calendar of event, will be taking place in May this year on Mahé.

The event aims at propelling the Seychelles’ engagement towards green tourism, enticing visitors to explore the destination’s lush biodiversity and reaches out to sports enthusiasts through the portrayal of Seychelles as a versatile destination and most definitely an ideal sports venue.

With the international event drawing closer, the STB, in close collaboration with the National Sports Council (NSC), hosted partners and press for an update on the latest development on the project.

The STB was represented by its Chief Executive, Mrs. Sherin Francis and her team including Regional Director for Europe, Mrs. Bernadette Willemin and STB representative in Reunion, Ms. Bernadette Honore and Ms. Winnie Eliza and Ms. Mavreen Pouponneau-2 Destination Marketing Executives based at Headquarters-working on the project.

Collaborating on the first project representatives from the Seychelles National Parks Authority, Absa, Cable & Wireless, SeyPearl and SkyChef were also present at this briefing alongside the STB and the NSC.

During her presentation, Mrs. Willemin provided an update in regards to ongoing registration and informed the partners on the active interest of international runners including two prominent French trail celebrities joining the SNT in May.

“We expected good participating numbers to the event as you know one does not have a chance to enjoy beautiful sceneries of paradise every day, we are pleased to announce some 200 international registrations to the event already and we are only in January! We urge our local trail runners to contact the NSC to join the event, which I believe will be a perfect challenge for them as they would measure their strength against international runners,” said Mrs. Willemin.

As a sign of gratitude for their ongoing support, the STB team further presented partners with Seychelles Nature Trail promotional materials artwork, which is currently being worked on for the promotion of the event.

For this first edition, the trail has combined several popular hiking routes, including Mont Le Niol and Congo Rouge area, into a 25km trail, which will finish in the Grand Anse Area.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles Wins KSA Arabian Business Awards’ Destination of the Year

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Closing the year 2019 on a successful note, Seychelles bagged the “Destination of the Year” Award at the KSA Arabian Business Awards at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The event, which is organized by Arabian Business (AB), one of the most prominent business magazines in the GCC region honored a number of top companies, institutions and businesspersons for their successes and excellence in their respective industries.

Seychelles, a small island destination in the Indian Ocean was recognized as the best destination of the year at the event.

Various prominent invitees from various fields within the Arabian Business Community attended the KSA Arabian Business Awards glamorous awarding ceremony as they were brought together to celebrate the awardees and to recognize their contributions to the business sectors.

Speaking after the event, Ahmed Fathallah Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) representative in Dubai stated that he is satisfied to see the increasing popularity of Seychelles as a destination.

 “These achievements continuously inspire the STB team at Headquarters and in the offices abroad including myself to keep on intensifying our efforts in promoting the destination and arranging more events as a way of acknowledging and thanking our valued partners across the media, trade, consumer and corporate sectors. Our success is a tribute to the combined efforts not only of our team, but our valued trade partners as well,” said Fathallah.

The 115 island holiday destination remains a heaven on earth paradise for many people around the world and more especially with the GCC region, not only its proximity, but also its beautiful exotic features including its sandy white beaches, warm turquoise waters and diverse unique flora and fauna.

The United Arab Emirates is currently the fifth leading market with a number of 24,112 visitors having visited the destination in 2019. 

More news about Seychelles.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles Tourism Board Present at the Fifth Edition of the “Penalty Shoot Out”

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The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) through its office in Abu Dhabi participated at the 48th UAE National Day celebrations in style as its presence was noted at the 5th edition of the “Penalty Shoot Out” hosted by Al Ethihad Sports Academy on Saturday, November 30, 2019.

“Penalty Shoot Out,” a sports event spearheaded by Al Ethihad Sports Academy under the supervision of its founding CEO Mr. Arakkal Kamarudheen, seeks to groom young talents to be professional athletes.

Bringing together over 150 youths from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, the event provided an opportunity to the promising players to showcase their athletic abilities through friendly matches at the prestigious American International School Abu Dhabi.

The Academy further encourages the development of sport skills in youngsters, giving them opportunities to be selected to train at international academies such as Barcelona FC Academy and even tour countries such as India to gain experience.

Supporting the initiative through its office in Abu Dhabi, the STB was represented the Tourism Attaché, Ms Aliette Esther, who conducted the mission successful alongside Seychelles based DMC Vision Voyages, also sponsored the event.

Recalling the fabulous experience at the ‘Penalty Shoot Out’ Ms. Esther stated that assisting the Al Ethihad Sports Academy with the event has been a means to increase visibility for the destination and expressed that STB’s involvement in such events are beneficial to the Seychelles.

“There has been talk about a much-needed shift in diversifying tourism in the Seychelles,” said Ms. Esther, “and this event fits right into it as it can create opportunities for sports tourism in the Seychelles.”

“What is most encouraging,” Ms. Esther continue, “is Al Ethihad Sports Academy’s keen interest in tapping into young players’ potential in the Seychelles. We have swimmers, footballers and cricketers in the country, so a lot of young people could benefit from such a venture. Team exchanges between the 2 countries would not only help develop youth sports in the Seychelles but also open them up to more cultural experiences and boost their confidence. Players going to the Seychelles would be accompanied by their families, therefore contributing to our tourism and economic sectors.”

Ms. Esther further stated her satisfaction to execute side-lined collaboration with her various Abu Dhabi partners as they consolidate the relationship between the two countries.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles present at the fourth edition Abu Dhabi Travel Trade Event

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The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB), in partnership with the Cerf Island Resort in the Seychelles, braved the unusual cold weather of Abu Dhabi on November 21, 2019 to attend the 4th edition of Abu Dhabi Travel Trade Event (ADTTE).

The event, organised by Mr. Conrad Caeiro of Razzmatazz 360°, was held at the Splash garden at the Aloft Hotel in Abu Dhabi. Having been a big supporter of the last three editions of the ADTTE, the STB participated to the event as a platinum sponsor this year.

The outdoor set-up at the Splash garden was perfect for the occasion and provided to the 300 attendees present an opportunity to network with the 22 exhibitors including the Seychelles delegation.

The event’s program indulged the invited guests to some attractive raffle draws, give-aways and enjoyed a lavish dinner while pursuing their networking and shopping for their next holiday.

The STB and its sole partner Cerf Island resort being a prime sponsor for the ADTTE 2019 were placed at a strategic position allowing the two Seychelles representatives to maximize on their position to provide information about the destination as a prime holiday.

In order to entice the Abu Dhabi visitors the team offered extensive information about the destination as an island hopping paradise, promoting the various other attractions including the product and services available on Cerf Island.

Speaking about the STB’s participation at the ADTTE 2019 event, the STB representative in Abu Dhabi and Tourism Attaché Ms. Aliette Esther stated the prominence of the event creates an ideal platform for the promotion of the destination, which is in line with the STB marketing strategy to increase the destination’s visibility.

“ADTTE is now a signature event and is already being looked forward to by the travel trade professionals,” said Ms Esther.  “It gives the Seychelles maximum exposure and it is worthwhile attending. 

“We had many visitors at our stand who are dreaming of going to Seychelles and we managed to convince some of them to buy the ticket and go.  Others had already been to the Seychelles and were really happy with their trip, expressing the wish to go back once more.”

Aside from the networking aspect, the event also included music entertainment and an Egyptian tanoura dancer who dazzled everyone with his entrancing whirls and brightly lit costume. There was also a special cake ceremony, which was cut by the H.E. Ambassador, Ricardo Laverie of the Embassy of Panama Abu Dhabi and Ms. Esther, STB Abu Dhabi Tourism Attaché.

There are other similar events lined up in Abu Dhabi before the end of 2019.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles to celebrate the Wonders of the Ocean through its Ocean Festival

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A series of activities have been organized to commemorate this year’s Seychelles Ocean Festival (SOF) by the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) and its various partners.

The event, which promotes marine-based tourism in the island archipelago, is to be held from Friday November 22, 2019 to Sunday November 24, 2019 and will be celebrated through a plethora of education and fun activities throughout the weekend.

In line with the STB marketing strategy, which includes promoting Seychelles as one of pioneers of conservation in the region, the SOF is a prime event for the destination as it provides a platform STB to sensitize the local population about the role and importance of the marine world for Seychelles as a destination.

The Minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine, Didier Dogley launched this year’s edition of the SOF on Friday November 22, 2019 at Eden Blue in a small ceremony, which regrouped various environment and tourism stakeholders all present for the good cause.

Speaking at the launch of the festivities Mrs. Sherin Francis STB Chief Executive commented on the commitment of the various partners in making the event a success.

“It is our civic duty to protect our environment for our future generation and for our planet. As a small country, we are extremely affected by global warming and because of that, our destination is threatened. Our promise of paradise to our potential visitors is mainly dependent on our ocean; this is why we put such emphasis on creating awareness around its conservation. It is very encouraging to see the dedication of our young people for our environment through their response to our call for collaboration,” said Mrs. Francis.

She also commended the various partners including the Ministry of Environment & Climate Change, the Ministry of Education, the Seychelles National Parks Authority (SNPA), the National Sports Council and the various NGO’s who have actively participated in the preparations of the events.

The festivities will be closed on Sunday November 24, 2019 at Beau-Vallon with a beach clean-up, a yoga session and a family fun day on the program. Several competitions– volleyball, football, amongst others are also on the activities for the day.

The SOF remains an important feature in Seychelles’ calendar of events and a key platform for highlighting the many attributes of Seychelles’ marine scene and all that it offers to visitors and locals alike.

For more news about Seychelles, please click here.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles Tourism Board led Local Trade Partners on Réunion Roadshow

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Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) and its local partners embarked on a roadshow in Réunion, Saint -Gilles- Les Bains from September 16, 2019 to September 17, 2019.

The event was organised by the STB team in Reunion who prepared presentations and workshops so that they could equip Réunion Travel Trade professionals with the tools to further boost the wave of Réunion Holiday makers in Seychelles. These sessions attracted over 40 agents.

The Réunion roadshow saw participation from local partners comprising of 7° degrees South, Mason’s Travel, Seychelles European Reservation, Summer Rain Tours, Avani Seychelles Barbarons Resort & Spa and Patatran Hotel.

The STB team consisted of Mrs. Bernadette Willemin, Director Regional Europe and Ms. Bernadette Honore, Senior Marketing Executive from the STB Réunion office.

Whilst the first session consisted of presentations showing travel trade front liners staff across Réunion about what the Seychelles has to offer its visitors, the second session focused on training the Réunion Travel Trade professionals specialising in group business. 

This destination and product training initiative provided the professionals with a better understanding about the Seychelles products so that they have enough information to encourage travellers to visit Seychelles.

The STB team also received the support of the Reunion airline partner Air Austral- that provides direct connectivity to the Seychelles- as they delivered product knowledge presentations.

Commenting on the Réunion Road show, Mrs Bernadette Willemin, Director Regional Europe, stated the STB’s commitment to increase visibility and knowledge of the product to all its partners.

“Destination and product trainings are of utmost importance in this competitive tourism world and our role as a marketing tourism professionals specialist is to ensure that the travel trade professionals we interact with to sell Seychelles are well versed with our products and confident to sell our destination” said Bernadette Willemin.

Mrs. Willemin emphasised that the product-focussed training sessions are a success with the help of the trade from Seychelles.

She added, “The STB with the collaboration of its partners will continue to organise such activity on the market making sure that our Reunionais partners have all the knowledge to attend to the clients’ requests and convert them into sales”.   

 The training sessions closed with Business-to-Business meetings, where the participants had the opportunity to hold discussions with local Trade partners and Reunion Travel Trade professionals.

Members of the trade present commented unanimously that the roadshow organised by the STB team in Reunion was very successful.

They stated that the local workshop sessions were well structured and gave them an opportunity to meet various partners from different tourism fields.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles titled Number 1 island destination in Africa & Middle East by Travel + Leisure 2019 World’s Best Award

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Seychelles has been named the top island destination in Africa & the Middle East.  It is the third time that Seychelles is rated in the top spot in this category by Travel + Leisure.

The exotic destination’s nomination results from the annual survey conducted by Travel + Leisure, which allows readers of the New York-based travel magazine to rate their travel experiences around the globe. Readers get to share their opinions on top hotels, islands, cities, airlines, cruise lines, spas, among others.

The best islands by region are rated on a number of characteristics including the destination’s natural attractions, beaches, activities & sights, restaurants, food, people & friendliness and value. The destination’s romantic appeal also features as an optional criterion. For each characteristic, respondents are asked to give a rating based on a five-point scale of excellence.

Boasting lush tropical vegetation, powder-white beaches and clear turquoise waters, Seychelles – a 115-island archipelago in the western Indian Ocean came out on top of the readers’ list when it comes to the Africa & Middle East region.

It is during a cocktail event at the Times Square Edition in New York City on Tuesday July 16, 2019 that Seychelles was revealed as No1 island Destination in Africa & Middle East.

Mr. David Di Gregorio, Executive Board Member of (APTA) Association for the Promotion of Tourism to Africa, of which Seychelles is a member, received the Award on behalf of the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB). Jacqueline Gifford, Editor in Chief and Jay Meyer the SVP/ Publisher presented the recognition to the destination to Mr. Di Gregorio.

Commenting on the award, the STB Regional Director for Africa & the Americas, Mr. David Germain stated that the prestigious title results from continuous collective efforts between the Seychelles authorities, including the STB and all its stakeholders.

“Achieving the distinction of Top Island in Africa and the Middle East for the third time is a tremendous honor for the Seychelles, recognizing that the region has much to offer in terms of world-class island experiences,” Mr. Germain.

Mr. Germain also pointed out that the STB’s maintains the hard work to maintain solid trade relations with the USA and Canadian outbound tour operators, travel agents and other trade partners in North America. He said that winning the award for a third time, is evidence that the STB’s marketing strategy in North America is working.

“The Award helps to garner recognition and provides a significant amount of visibility for our islands in North America and the region. The STB will continue to share and present the culture and tourism attributes of Seychelles to both the trade and consumers in the various North American cities, with the aim of increasing tourist’s arrival to Seychelles from this part of the world,” said Mr. Germain.

According to latest figures, the North American market has shown an increase by 8 percent from January to May 2019 in tourism arrivals in the Seychelles.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Seychelles – the garden of Eden – welcomes 12 contestants to Miss Reunion Crown

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Passengers disembarking from the Air Austral flight on this Friday morning at the Seychelles International Airport had the pleasure of stepping under the Seychelles sun alongside 12 beautiful contestants to the Miss Reunion to be crowned in August this year.

Seychelles was this year’s first choice made by the Miss Reunion Committee to host the official photo shoot of the Miss Reunion competition in preparation of the candidates for their Grand finale to be held in August.

Aside from the 12 beauty icons from Reunion, the delegation saw the presence of Miss Réunion 2018 also crowned third Princess at the Miss France 2018, Ms. Morgane Soucramanien.

The delegation composed of 25 people including Antenne Réunion television crew- Official broadcaster for Miss Reunion-, photographers of Miss Réunion, Make-up artists and designers, is headed by the President of Miss Réunion committee Mr. Aziz Patel and the director for the Miss Réunion pageant Mrs. Amida Hussein.

The STB representative in reunion Mrs. Bernadette Honore who collaborated with the Miss Reunion committee to make the project a success was also present on the flight. 

Speaking at the airport where she personally welcomed the contestant, Mrs. Sherin Francis Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) Chief Executive stated that she was pleased that the destination was chosen for their official preparation.

“It is an honour to have the Miss Reunion contestant here in Seychelles for the first time. Reunion is a flourishing market and their presence on the Island will help accentuate the visibility of the destination. It is undeniable that the media exposure Seychelles would receive through the broadcast of their journey in Seychelles will have excellent returns for the destination,” said Mrs, Francis.  

Ketsia Marie, Miss Creole Des Iles Seychelles 2018 was also present at the airport alongside Mrs. Francis to welcome our Reunion guest.

On his part, the President of Miss Réunion committee Mr. Aziz Patel mentioned that this trip is an important part of the contestants’ journey as beauty ambassadors for Reunion.

He further mentioned that is an opportunity for the candidates to learn more about themselves live together and prepare themselves for the Grand finale.

During their stay in Seychelles, the Miss Reunion contestants will be photographed at various touristic places around Mahé, Praslin and La Digue including the Botanical Garden, Victoria town and the most popular beaches.

The Miss Reunion contestants will be leaving Seychelles on July 7, 2019 on Air Austral, the partner airline of the Miss Reunion.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

Travel Trade Professionals from city of Saint Gilles in Reunion trained to be Seychelles experts

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The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) maintains its commitment to educate trade partners about the destination as the team conducted a two-day destination Training in the city of Saint Gilles in Réunion to train Travel Trade professionals to become certified smart agents.

The Seychelles smart Certification program is designed to help travel trade professionals to become specialists of the destination- ensuring that potential visitors receive the full Seychelles exposure from very first point of contact.  

The program requires the participants to complete a comprehensive training session about Seychelles Island, following which they have a period of one year to sell three Seychelles holiday packages.

An educational visit in Seychelles is the last step needed for them to be certified Seychelles smart agents.

This year’s Seychelles Smart certification-training program was conducted on the sidelines of the official mission of Mrs. Bernadette Willemin, the STB Regional Director for Europe in Réunion.

The STB Regional Director for Europe conducted the Seychelles Smart Certification Training involving some 33-trade partners. The Senior Marketing Executive in Reunion, Ms. Bernadette Honore, assisted her.

Following the success of the training session, Mrs. Bernadette Willemin stated on the importance of keeping the trade partners well-informed about the destination.

“It is imperative for a destination like ours whose majority of the business comes through the distribution channel to continue training the travel trade  front liners ensuring that they are comfortable and confident in selling our products and also capable of converting enquiries into sell,” said the STB Regional Director for Europe.

The duo also conducted a series of sales calls meetings with Reunion tourism trade professionals marketing Seychelles as the ultimate versatile destination in the region.

Mrs Willemin and Ms. Honore also took the opportunity to gather further intelligence on the Reunion market development.

STB partner airline in Reunion, Air Austral -offering direct connectivity to Seychelles- also collaborated to the programme, firming up its support towards this program by joining with the STB to promote the Réunion-Seychelles route.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel