Maldives has showcased its tourism products and services at the the International French Travel Market (IFTM) Top Resa.
In a statement, tourism promotion body Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) said its officials along with 43 representatives from 25 companies from the industry are taking part in the travel trade fair being held in Paris from Tuesday to Friday. The Maldives delegation is headed by MMPRC’s acting chief Haris Mohamed, it added.
According to MMPRC, Maldives is being presented at a 62 square metre space featuring a contemporary design and portraying colourful imagery of the unique aspects of the destination’s tourism products.
MMPRC stressed that taking part in IFTM Top Resa will help regain the French marketshare, which has been in decline for the past few years. This year’s marketing plan for the French speaking market has been strategised to strengthen the destination’s presence in the market and aggressively promote the Maldives through extensive PR and marketing campaigns that are targeted towards the French travel trade and consumers, it said.
“France is a key market to the Maldives tourism industry. We are delighted to be at Top Resa once again with overwhelming support from the Maldives tourism industry to continue welcoming French tourists to the Sunny Side of Life,” Haris was quoted in the statement, as saying.
IFTM Top Resa was first held in Deauville in 1978 and was targeted towards leisure travellers. In 2008, the travel trade show moved to Paris and became a multi-target show covering all grounds of travel, including business, leisure and events.
Now running continuously for 39 years, IFTM Top Resa is attended by major players in the leisure travel, event management and business travel. It provides a common platform for all stakeholders to come together to share and learn through the impressive range of destinations present and to discover new products, including the latest in hospitality technology.
As one of the top generating markets as well as one of the important traditional markets to the Maldives, 2016 recorded a total of 40,487 tourist arrivals from France. By the end of July this year, there were 26,149 tourist arrivals from France. This is an increase of 2.8 percent compared to the same period of last year.
Arrivals from France is expected to increase with the upcoming launch of direct flights to the Maldives by Air France. Starting November, France’s flagship carrier will be offering two weekly flights to the Maldives main Velana International Airport on departure from Paris-Charles de Gaulle.