NEW ARRIVAL RECORD REACHED WITH NEARLY 6 WEEKS TO GO TILL YEAR END
174.530 and counting was the message from Mahe last week, when the archipelagos previous arrival record, established in 2010, was broken with weeks to go still until the end of the year. Notably did the record breaker arrive on the latest airline flying to the Seychelles, Etihad, which is now coming 4 times a week to Mahe. At hand to receive the winning couple Florence and Arnaud Gambert from France, was Seychelles Tourism Board Chairman Barry Faure, with STBs Chief Executive Alain St. Ange also on board of the same flight, after witnessing the opening of the Seychelles embassy in Abu Dhabi / UAE by President James Michel.
This is a major achievement by the Seychelles, which has been promoting itself as a destination of choice, a destination of THE choice, since the tourism board was privatised and more so since Alain St. Ange become Chief Executive Officer. What makes this early record even more remarkable is the current economic gloom and doom talk in the worlds key economies, showing that the diversification of target markets by the Seychelles, giving added focus to new and emerging markets, has paid off handsomely. The liberalization of air transport to the Seychelles, mainly taken advantage of by leading carriers from the Gulf region like Emirates, Qatar Airways and now Etihad, has also significantly raised the profile of the archipelago through joint promotions, with 25 weekly flights reaching Mahe by the end of 2011 from almost any point on the globe with one stop only and aided continuous growth of the tourism industry.
The Abu Dhabi embassy already has a tourism attaché posted to the mission, who will actively support STBs team responsible for the region with promotional efforts in this important market. Said Alain at the occasion: That we have broken last years impressive record shows that the tourism policy of the government is working before adding: Today is clear we are on the right path. It also shows clearly that the idea of positioning our offices in key market areas and putting our own people who are selling Seychelles from their hearts at these markets has also helped to promote our destination and ensure Seychelles remains at the forefront when the world economies are suffering and our main target markets are going through financial turmoil. Seychelles, truly Another World, which by the way is and remains Affordable Seychelles, where holiday makers on a tighter budget can enjoy the archipelagos unique Creole hospitality just as much as the worlds rich and famous.
