Keen to develop the Indian market, its largest source market, Maldives is keen to penetrate different regions and segments in India in order to keep the number of Indian travellers growing, says Fathimath Afra, Chief Marketing Officer, Maldives Marketing & Public Relations of MMPRC, in an interview with India Outbound. Afra adds that one of the highlights of the promotional activities this year is a uninque story tellers’ conference which will feature 50 story tellers and content creators from around the world.

How was 2022 for Maldives Tourism?

I would say 2022 was a very successful year as we managed to meet our targets before the deadline. And India was doing very well as our top source market. I would say all in all, it was very successful year for us. We received over 246,000 visitors from India in the year.

How does it compare with 2019 figures?

This is recovery and hopefully we will have more tourists coming in this year as well I am very hopeful that this going to we’ll see some positive growth figures this time.

What is your target for this year, any projections?

The target for total arrivals in 2023 is 1.8 million and we are hoping that India will take a big chunk of that number.

Which source cities performed the best last year?

Tier I and Tier II cities were our main targets from the previous years but now our strategy is to go to the Tier II and Tier III cities as well. We don’t the statistics of who is coming from where but I will say it is like we have seen a lot of people coming from other regions as well. Through our roadshows we have got a lot of good feedback and through our partners we know that people from other areas also travelling now.

Which was the biggest source city for you? Mumbai or Delhi?

We don’t have the city-wise figures unfortunately, but one thing is that we are pushing as Maldives was pushing affordable luxury a lot, with accommodation options like guesthouses, so Tier III segment is becoming increasingly important. We don’t have city-wise data, but Tier I and Tier II have always been important targets, but now besides Tier I and Tier II, we are also looking at Tier III cities. As Tier I is quite established, Tier II and Tier III will be a big focus this year and promoting them for affordable segments as well and in our roadshow, we would also be covering those areas this time.

What is your strategy for the mid-term?

Promoting the Maldives, keeping Maldives as a top of the mind destination for the Indian travellers so that they choose Maldives as their preferred holiday destination. So that is the objective for us to keep promoting.

What are the key activities planned by you this year in India?

We are taking a 360° approach to marketing, so we will be in all the platforms. With the physical events coming up, fairs will be big part of our marketing and then we have roadshows, partnerships with online travel agencies and working closely with airlines and tour operators and print media and organising fam trips. Those would be some of the activities that we will be planning for the year.

What is the objectives of the story tellers conference?

The main objective is to promote the Maldives, to get people to talk about the destination, its beauty and experiences. It is part of the new initiatives that we will be doing this year, so we are bringing together 50 content writers, travel writers and story tellers to the Maldives for five days of events. First day would be the official part we have the conference with keynote speakers speaking on topics like sustainability and other important topics.

At the conference venue, we will have various stalls where you can experience the handicrafts and different cultural elements of the Maldives. On the first day, we will have a gala event and after that we are taking the group, dividing them into eight smaller groups and taking them for a 3-day visit to eight different regions of Maldives to have unique experiences in that part.

What is new for repeat Indian travellers to Maldives?

We have four different kinds of accommodations options and each gives you a different experience. For instance, when you stay in the resorts there is a different kind of experience that you get, with over the water villas, the dining, the cuisine. We also have clubs and those things at the resorts. When you stay on the local islands, then you get to interact with the local communities and be part of the various cultural activities happening there. I think there are hundreds of different experiences that one can actually have in Maldives.