ITB presence by Reunion Island a huge success

Vanilla Islands founder member Reunion Island recorded a big success at the recently-concluded ITB 2015 in Berlin when over 1,500 trade visitors thronged the stand to learn about the island and sign deals with hotels, resorts, DMCs, and Air Austral. Besides the team from Reunion Island Tourism (IRT) led by the President of the tourism office, Patrick Serveaux, some 19 exhibitors from the island were in Berlin to showcase the unique range of attractions.

Reunion Island, a French region in the deep of the Indian Ocean, located between Madagascar and Mauritius, offers not just sandy beaches but an outright spectacular interior where rugged canyons and deep valleys offer a paradise for hikers and mountain bikers.

On Thursday, March 5, a cocktail was organized at the Reunion Island stand. On this occasion, a raffle draw was held with many fabulous prizes, offered by Reunion Island’s tourism businesses.

For the IRT, the presence of the destination at ITB Berlin was organized around several objectives:

• the promotion of the destination and the development of its notoriety;

• strengthening relationships with professionals in the German and international market and the opening of new players in the sector;

• the presentation of new products and new offers of local partners; and

• support for the programming of international professionals.

Eight students in BTS Tourism from Reunion Island helped on the last day, which was for the general public to distribute tourist information and to share a performance demonstration of Maloya in traditional costumes from the island.

“It was an incredible experience; contact with a potential German customers has enabled us to master the language better and have a real vision of what Reunion Island has to sell abroad. Our participation at the reception booth was appreciated by visitors because of our age, and our exotic and traditional dress,” Elodie Quran said.

“A great room that allowed us to explore different destinations and has also allowed us to know the destination Reunion,” Emeline Myrtho said.

The 2015 edition of ITB Berlin has helped to highlight the current potential of tourism development in the world and particularly across the German market. This can be explained due to higher wages, stable employment, and a lower cost of living that offers good prospects in terms of tourist demand and higher arrival numbers.