Bernadette Willemin, the Seychelles Tourism Board director for Europe announced tourism statistics of Seychelles from Europe and reveals predictions for the year end figure during the Tourism Board’s mid-year marketing meeting. Seychelles Tourism Board expects tourist arrivals from Europe continue to grow by the year end despite drops from Russia.
With tourism arrival recovery taking hold for the past five years ( 2011- 2015) on the European market, which brought 63 % market share to Seychelles, the Seychelles Tourism Board took stock of “substantial market lose” in the Russia/CIS with – 23 %. The Seychelles Tourism Board said despite the decrease in arrivals Russia, Europe still remains a “major source tourism market for Seychelles’’.
“For the European market, although we have lost market share compared to 10 years ago, the absolute number of tourism arrivals coming from this market still outweighs other major non-European markets . Europe continues to hold the throne of Seychelles’ leading tourism market’’. Mrs Willemin is confident of closing the business year on 5 % growth.
Mrs Willemin said that markets out of the Euro Zone such as Great Britain recording +36 % increase visitors to Seychelles ( 2011- 2015) had since this year changed its strategy to remain profitable for Seychelles. She said that in Britain she was ‘’ investing heavily on training with travel agents’’ to ensure Seychelles continues to grow its visitor arrival numbers from Great Britain.
Direct flights out of Paris, increased flight frequencies and increased media presence and growing consumer interest will help Seychelles tourism to attract more French tourists.
