Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO) has taken part in two major international travel exhibitions in Russia and Malaysia.
MATATO hosted a destination stand of Maldives at OTDYKH LEISURE, held from September 11-13 at the Expocentre Fairgrounds in Russian capital Moscow.
Established in 1995, OTDYKH Leisure is the largest tourism event in Russia and the CIS. It enables the development of the tourism industry in Russia and facilitates the establishment of business contacts for representatives of the tourist market, as well as advertising of the country’s capabilities at an international level. The annual event also offers a comprehensive programme for tourism professionals, including a unique combination of educational sessions, countries presentations, seminars and networking events.
Russia is one of the top source markets for the Maldives tourism industry, with arrivals increasing by 33.1 percent last year to reach 61,931 from 46,522 the previous year. That growth is set to continue this year, as 38,397 Russians visited the Maldives in the first half of the year — a 25.4 percent increase over the 30,626 in the same period of last year.
MATATO, together with the tourism industry, also took part in PATA Travel Mart 2018, which took place in the Malaysian archipelago of Langkawi from September 12-14. This is the fourth consecutive year that MATATO had participated in this exhibition, hosted by Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).
PATA Travel Mart is Asia Pacific’s worldwide travel trade exhibition featuring unparalleled networking and contracting opportunities to help travel and tourism organisations access decision makers, meet new clients, expand their networks, establish new relationships and consolidate existing business partnerships.
As a key priority, MATATO is investing heavily in destination marketing, with an emphasis to explore emerging markets from Asia to Middle East and Europe.
MATATO has so far taken part in 12 international travel trade events this year.
In April, the non-profit was in Middle East with a road show covering major cities in the gulf, with more than 10 Maldivian companies.
MATATO is also gearing up for marketing efforts in India with a campaign to raise the visitor count from India to 100,000 by the end of 2018. Under this campaign, MATATO has hosted four trade events in India this year.