05.24.10
Record tourist arrivals expected in Seychelles in 2010
According to the Seychelles Tourism National Council, the jurisdiction is expecting record tourist arrivals in 2010.
The marketing officer of the council, Alain St Ange, said that the number of arrivals for the 1st 4 months of 2010 represents a 13% growth over 2009 and a 1% growth over 2008. It is worth noting that in 2008 Seychelles registered the highest number of visitors.
The good performance of the tourism industry reflects that this economic sphere of the jurisdiction has resisted shocks of global economic recession and the recent threat to air transport by the Iceland volcanic ash.
St Ange explained such a good performance by the new tourism policy that is based on public-private partnership and the strategy of diversification of the source market. He claimed that the new tourism policy was a win-win strategy – this is where the state regulates the industry while the private sector drives the industry. Also, he stated that the Seychelles had succeeded to get farther from its dependence on the traditional European market.
The strategy has attracted such countries as South Africa, which has already become the 6th source market for the Seychelles. The South African market has the potential to exceed the number of arrivals twice as the Seychelles is a hub for visitors from other countries, especially those from the US, as well as from the Reunion, Kenya, India and China.