Maldives Marketing & Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC / Visit Maldives) has taken part in MATTA Fair 2022 to strengthen and promote the Maldives brand presence in the Southeast Asian market. The fair is on 9th – 10th April 2022. Seven industry partners took part in the fair alongside Visit Maldives.
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 Visit Maldives and stakeholders to connect with the Southeast Asian travel trade, top media, and key industry stakeholders.
MMPRC is participating in this 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. The promotional activities also extend to families and Muslim travelers aligned with our overall strategy for the SEA market. Ultimately, our goal at the fair is to revive the SEA 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.
The Maldives has recently eased travel restrictions imposed on tourists which enforced presenting of negative PCR tests by all travelers. In this regard, from 4th March 2022, tourists visiting the Maldives are no longer required to present a Covid-19 PCR negative result upon arrival if the prescribed doses of vaccine are completed 14 days prior to date of arrival. As of 13th March 2022, the Maldives has also lifted the national public health emergency, imposed in response to the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic. The ease of travel restrictions and measures would make it easier for tourists to visit the Maldives.
MMPRC carried out 260 different marketing activities in 22 global markets last year, including fairs, roadshows, familiarization trips, marketing campaigns, webinars, and interviews. The greatest testament to the success of these activities came late last year, as the Maldives secured the title of ‘World’s Leading Destination’ (among several other accolades) at the 2021 World Travel Awards, globally recognised as the hallmark of industry excellence. This is the second consecutive year that the Maldives had successfully earned this prestigious title, a shining testimony of the trust placed in the ‘magic of Maldivian hospitality’ by travelers from all over the globe.
This year also celebrates an exceptional year to visit the Maldives – the Golden Jubilee celebration of tourism in the Maldives kicked off earlier last year with plans to conduct new and exciting activities throughout the year. MMPRC has planned over 60 in-person events for the year 2022, including 11 fairs, roadshows and events scheduled for just the first quarter.