Maldives Marketing & Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has taken part in MATTA Fair 2022 to strengthen and promote the Maldives brand presence in the Southeast Asian market. The fair was held from April 09-10. Seven industry partners took part in the fair alongside MMPRC.
MATTA is Malaysia's premier travel extravaganza providing global exposure and endless business opportunities in this exciting era of groundbreaking travel innovations and technological advent. The fair provides the perfect opportunity for MMPRC and stakeholders to connect with the Southeast Asian travel trade, top media, and key industry stakeholders.
MMPRC said it is participating in the fair under a strategy to reorient the perception of Maldives solely as a honeymoon luxury destination by focusing on resorts, guesthouses, liveaboards, and hotels, as well as the unique experiences travelers can have in the Maldives adding the promotional activities also extend to families and Muslim travelers aligned with the overall strategy for the SEA market.
MMPRC noted the ultimate goal of the fair is to revive the Southeast Asian market and achieve pre-pandemic arrival figures as soon as the market fully opens for international travel. It further falls under a new short-term strategy devised to address the evolving geopolitical climate in the world following the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war. With Russia and CIS topping the arrivals figures in recent years, the strategy is aimed at mitigating the potential negative impact on arrival numbers from this region by restrategizing marketing activities in selected markets to minimise the potential adverse effects on the Maldives tourism industry and the nation’s economy.
Last year, the Maldives welcomed 9,539 tourists to the country from the South East Asian market. This year, until February, the country has recorded over 755 arrivals from the South East Asian market. MMPRC has successfully initiated several marketing campaigns for this market so far in 2022, including a marketing campaign with TripZilla, a campaign with Apple vacations, and an E-Learning program for the travel trade.