The Editorial this week highlights:- a. Seychelles could be on the brink of overtourism [Travel] said on ‘Africa News’ in an interview with Minister Didier Dogley. b. 2020 starts with questions on air access for Seychelles plus needed visibility for tourism destinations. c. Then the big question of COSTA Cruises. d. Visibility is the next interesting point. e. Measles. f. Manuel Marrero Cruz, Prime Minister of Cuba. g. Uganda Tourism Trade event – The Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo (POATE). h. Working for Seychelles – Angelique Alissop – a post the speaks for itself. Congratulations Angelique. Proud of you. i. A new product using the name Seychelles on the International scene. Stand alone articles this week:- 1. Seychelles to host the 63rd Commission for Africa (CAF). 2. Mason’s Travel at the service to tourists on a daily basis. 3. Creole Focus:- NORMANDY SALABAO SALES & MARKETING MANAGER. 4. St.Ange takes center stage on SBC’s tête-à-tête programme with Patsy Canaya. 5. Seychelles – China Day 2020 another success. 6. Seychelles International Airport from a historical post. 7. Coronavirus outbreak: Mauritius places five in quarantine as Lagos, other African airports screening travelers. 8. Seychelles local Tourism Trade Partners encouraged to provide preferential terms to tourists from China. 9. Birthday of an Icon: Kempinski Lady in Red celebrates its 10th anniversary. 10. Mauritius now forms part of the Bocuse d’Or Family. 11. Rodrigues Island making noise to attract its holiday makers. 12. “The Greatest Country Music show ever staged in Seychelles” says Barry Laine. 13. Soft coral around 2 Seychelles islands suffered less than feared in 2015-17 warming, study finds. 14. South Africa Tourism CEO returns. 15. Kenya breaks two million guest barrier in 2019. 16. Closing Notes.
Alain St.Ange
Welcome to this 2nd edition of Vol 4 of the Saint Ange Tourism Report of 2020.
Seychelles could be on the brink of overtourism [Travel]
said on ‘Africa News’ in an interview with Minister Didier Dogley
Minister Didier Dogley
The Africa Tourism Report says:-
The Seychelles – the Indian Ocean archipelago, a chain of 115 islands, is a byword for luxury holidays, Instagram-perfect beaches and has gained a reputation as a honeymoon destination
High-end tourism, from Europe mainly, helped pull the Seychelles from the brink of financial ruin after the 2008 economic crisis. Visitor numbers almost doubled in the decade that followed, to around 360,000 in 2018, nearly four times the country’s population. But now the Seychelles is grappling with how many vis…
READ MORE : http://www.africanews.com/2020/01/23/…
Africanews on YouTube brings you a daily dose of news, produced and realised in Africa, by and for Africans.
Africanews is the first pan-African multilingual media outlet, unique in its concept and vision.
Subscribe on our Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/africanews and receive all the latest news from the continent.
The Saint Ange Tourism Report wishes to say nevertheless that the points made in the interview by Minister Dogley has been received loud and clear. The time is therefore now to make the point to everyone who has invested in tourism including taxis owners, car hire companies, small hotel and guest house owners, and to each and everyone who will be impacted at the end.
2020 starts with questions on air access for Seychelles
plus needed visibility for tourism destinations
As we end January of 2020 the time is opportune to reflect on air access for Seychelles and the needed drive for visibility for tourism destinations.
On the airline front their are more questions than answers and the ball lies squarely in the Seychelles court to decide how it plays the needed delicate game with airline companies who do not depend on Seychelles for their livelyhood, but who are strategic partners of the islands as far as air transportation goes. Edelweiss with its direct flights from Switzerland to Seychelles may be short lived tour operators are saying. The numbers have been rather encouraging, and the shortness of the flight a bonus – so what is wrong? CONDOR linking Seychelles with direct flights to Frankfurt is starting to question the need for its second flight. This is what transpires out of Germany. Seychelles worked hard to get this second flight from one of the island’s main tourism market. Is Seychelles going the extra mile to ensure that this needed flight is maintained? Both Edelweiss from Switzerland and CONDOR from Germany are providing what is described by the island’s private sector trade as needed air access and everyone is hoping that as the ITB Tourism Trade Fair in Germany is now on our doorstep every step will be taken to mitigate any decision being discussed that could jeopardise the Seychelles tourism industry. Germany, Switzerland and Austria remain today ‘a block’ that is seen as one of the main tourism source markets after France.
Then we can look at Air France with its direct non-stop flights to Paris. This is the only carrier linking Seychelles with a direct flight to its main tourism source market. It will be flying only in what is believed the peak holiday season. France is to a degree an all-year round source market and Seychelles has all to gain if Air France can be encouraged to stay the course. But this can only come a with partnershp approach to push the airline as the prefered partnerr on that run. It is direct, it is non-stop, it links the islands with its main tourism source market – do we need more justification?
British Airways, with their needed directlink with Great Britain. This lifeline took years of discussions to pull off. The question on everyone’s mind is if we are doing enough for this strategic partner?
Europe and Great Britain is where the Seychelles private sector trade has invested heavily for many many years to develop the market and to keep it active. The two airlines are needed partners and every step that needs to be taken should be taken to ensure long term togetherness as working partners.
Kenya Airways, the faithful partner that stuck with Seychelles even when things got tough. They continue to work with Seychelles opening up Africa and the world to Seychelles alongside Ethiopian Airlines. Are we working by their side as partners?
Air Austral is that link with what is termed a secondary market. They are needed as is Air Mauritius for these two Vanlla Islands partners.
The Middle East carriers – Emirates, Etihad and Qatar are providing a one stop access to virtually any where in the world. They are needed and must be heard when they raise what is seen as challenges.
Air Seychelles with their flights to South Africa and India, both important tourism markets for the islands. Can more be done and shouild mere be done?
A meeting with air access providers is needed. Seychelles needs to hear the challenges they have. They are strategic partners and should not be left to fend by themselves. The meeting is needed today before the main Tourism Fair season gets underway.
Then the big question of COSTA Cruises. Has Seychelles analysed the void it will create when it drops the islands from March with no plans of returning for the 2020 and 2021 season. We have known this was being discussed and we personally wrote about it months ago in this publication. This is, and this will be seen as a major tourism set back. The port and DMCs, the taxi operators will be hit hard as will be the art and craft vendors and the free independent guides. Waiting for it to return by itself is not possible and it is working as a block in the Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands that can bring some positive results. Cruise ships in Poart can be further developed as one fifty percent of the passengers are not getting out a destinations. We need to develop this temporary village attraction at the foot of the ship and pust for them to see Seychelles or recommend Seychelles to friends and family. This is the same work that is done at a tourism trade fair.
Visibility is the next interesting point worth discussing as we start this new year. Many tourism succesful indexes and surveys are being released and many of our island nations and countries on the main land of Africa are missing the the boat. The main reason is visibility and we seem unable to overcome this shortfall. Yet we have capable and dedicated press personalities in Africa over and above the African Tourism Board (ATB) sitting by our sides. Visibility is a needed ingridient for sucess by tourism destinations. Then the big challenge is for the continent to start rewriting its own narrative. We make news for all the possible negatives, but positive news does not make it to our tourism source markets because it is seen as not news worthy. Rewrite our narrative is today important and a sure part for success.
Measles
“Seychelles has already started a vaccination programme to address measles. With the discovery of new cases in our country the Ministry of Health is redoubling efforts to ensure that we address this issue once and for all. When the vaccine is available in your regional health centre be sure to take the opportunity to protect yourself. All persons born after 1988 have already received the vaccine as part of the school vaccination programme” said a post by the island’s Health Minister.
Manuel Marrero Cruz, Prime Minister of Cuba
In the last edition we announced the election of Cuba’s former Tourism Minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz to the position of Prime Minister of Cuba. He is a respecter leader in the world of tourism and he should today be in a position to further help tourism. Manuel Marrero Cruz defended his country with vigour and promoted it as the new tourism destination when he was Cuba’s Tourism Minister. He was active and was appreciated as a tourism leader. His expertise should be sought by UNWTO. As the Seychelles Minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine I got to know Manuel Marrero Cruz well and respected his ability as the face of Cuba around the world.
Uganda Tourism Trade event – The Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo (POATE)
The Uganda State Minister for Tourism Wildlife and Antiquities
Godfrey Kiwanda and Alain St.Ange at a recent tourism event in Nigeria
The eyes of the world will be on Uganda from the 4th to the 6th of February. Africa will move to showcase to the world of tourism its unique tourism attractions and all the new developments of the continent and of the continent’s islands.
Uganda, which is promoting itself as a premier tourist destination of the Continent, will host the 5th annual Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo (POATE 2020).
POATE is a tourism and travel trade exhibition which brings together regional and international tour operators, travel agents, destination agencies and various players in the tourism trade to network and facilitate tourism business.
The three-day expo will run from 4-6 February 2020 and will be held at the Speke Resort in Munyonyo.
POATE 2020 will integrate business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C) trade event format under the theme “Inspiring high-value engagement to promote intra-Africa travel for leisure, business and adventure”, aimed at raising Uganda’s profile as a preferred destination in the region and internationally.
When he launched the event, the Uganda State Minister for Tourism Wildlife and Antiquities Godfrey Kiwanda noted the Uganda Tourism Board’s focus on Intra – Africa travel.
He said, “Tourism has long been advocated as an alternative strategy for economic development and social reconstruction.
“The focus on Intra – Africa travel during this expo and beyond is aimed to increase the number of African arrivals to Uganda. With the revival of the Uganda Airlines, regional connectivity is easier and this among others will allow for Intra – Africa travel to thrive.”
UTB Board Chairman, Daudi Migereko noted that POATE was a strategic avenue to market and promote the country to a group of select hosted buyers in a broader goal to increase tourist arrivals to Uganda as per the UTB strategic plan.
“Trade expos have been to drive high-value engagement and the focus on Africa is timely for Uganda given the recent interest of travellers on the continent.
Lilly Ajarova, the UTB CEO said that POATE is one of the key strategies for the promotion of Uganda’s tourism in the region and across the world. The expo facilitates key linkages through hosted buyers between tourists and our domestic tour operators.
Furthermore, it allows Uganda to showcase directly to various groups of hosted buyers who play a key role in the increment of visitor arrivals.
“On a weeklong FAM trip, we shall host and showcase to hosted buyers to some of Uganda’s unique experiences and gems and ensure a rich and memorable experience so they get a hands-on sense of Uganda as a tourist destination.
“Hosted buyers will include tour agents, travel media, hoteliers; among others and over 70 hosted buyers are expected from Uganda’s key source markets such as Africa, North America, Canada, UK, Germany, Switzerland, among others,” Ajarova noted.
The first two days of the event will constitute seminars and workshops, B2B meetings and conferences while the last day will be open to the public for B2C engagements between the public and attending exhibitors and hosted buyers.
Commenting on the same, Pearl Horeau, the President of the Uganda Tourism Association and a young Seychellois at the same time said that the expo will present an exciting opportunity for tourism private sector to network and develop their tourism and travel business directly.
“As the private sector, we are positive about the potential business that POATE will bring to Uganda. The focus on the African market is a step in the right direction as the continent provides a number of opportunities for intra-travel trade evidenced by the number of African tourist coming to Uganda and other countries.” Horeau said.
Source:- EABW Digital
Working for Seychelles – Angelique Alissop
a post the speaks for itself. Congratulations Angelique. Proud of you
Angelique Alissop
A new product line and one item is named Seychelles. A candle and a new line of essence for homes and offices. This latest range of products has now hit the shops in Australia.
See more https://mailchi.mp/saintange/saint-ange-tourism-report-edition-2-of-volume-4sunday-27th-january-2020?e=5fe093d0fb
.jpg){kind=tracking}
