From October 1 to 4, the Tourist Office took part in the 25th edition of the FIT fair (Feria Internacional de Turismo) in Buenos Aires, one of the most important promotional events in Latin America.
On a superb 26 m2 stand decorated with panels illustrating all the facets of the island, Saint-Martin took care of its image with Argentineans during the 4 days of the FIT show. With nearly 50 participating countries, this international event was indeed essential for the Tourist Office, which was able to establish numerous commercial contacts and reposition the destination on this market.
If the Argentines already know and appreciate Saint-Martin, the post-Irma reconstruction and the renovation of the hotel park required an enhancement to rediscover the destination. Since last June, the resumption of Copa Airlines flights between Panama City and Sint Maarten, with two rotations per week, also offers excellent service to the island for all Latin American countries, allowing to avoid a detour via Miami.
More than 73000 visitors present, including 2600 professionals
On Saturday October 1 and Sunday October 2, the delegation of the Tourist Office, its representatives in Argentina, as well as the territorial adviser, Marc-Gérald Ménard, welcomed the general public.
Monday 3 and Tuesday 4 October, the doors of the FIT show were open to professionals. After having met the local specialized press, the representatives of Saint-Martin chained a large number of appointments with tour operators and travel agents wishing to sell the destination to their customers and obtain contacts for the reception of groups. Fruitful exchanges also took place with the representatives of important partners in Argentina such as the airline Copa Airlines and the hotel group AM Resorts (Secrets). "We felt a very strong interest from Argentines for the destination because there has been a significant revival of the offer since Irma" comments the Communication Officer of the Tourist Office, Sacha Bresse. “For many professionals, this is a new offer in the catalog, and for us an excellent opportunity to establish our presence on this market. A strong expectation from the Argentine public which should generate fairly rapid economic benefits, especially since there is a certain familiarity between the rather European culture of this country and the offer of the Saint-Martin destination”.
Along with Brazil, Argentina remains the main commercial target in Latin America. This market is all the more attractive as it has a significant potential for travelers during calmer periods in Saint-Martin, because its nationals travel a lot during the Argentine winter season, between May and August. _AF
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