Trade upbeat as travel show concludes
THIS year’s Rendez-vous en France, the international trade show for the French incoming travel trade, had over 750 travel providers from all over the world meeting around 600 exhibitors. Held in Paris, the workshop had more than 17,000 pre-scheduled business events. Maison de la France invited visitors from 62 countries. First-time participants and promising new markets were Bulgaria, Lithuania and Macedonia from Central Europe, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Kuwait, Costa Rica and Uruguay.
Next year’s Rendez-vous en France will take place in Nice on March 30 to 31, 2010.
What was the feedback?
Roshan Pillai, general manager of Saudi Arabia’s Al Mousim Travel Group, said, “It’s a good event because it showcases every tourism product and service from France in one place.” As Pillai is also on the advisory council of Maison de la France, his role has been to provide feedback related to his market (KSA). “Maison de la France has the challenge to offer France to Saudi Arabian travellers that is beyond Paris, Cannes and Nice. In that segment, France’s biggest competitors are Italy and Spain, with Italy rapidly gaining market share.”
“The bulk of my meetings were to do with finding new, innovative products, such as the art and culture programmes and France on Wheels.” Pillai believes in marketing programmes to clients that he would enjoy pursuing as well. “The client also gets a product unavailable elsewhere. That’s the niche we are claiming for ourselves.”
Al Mousim pitches their luxury tourism products to a select clientele, marketing them through a website accessible by invitation only. “Our motto is not to be the largest in the business, but to be the best in what we do.” For Middle Eastern travellers, French shopping, beaches, theme parks and culture are big draws. Abdul Cader, tours manager at Abu Dhabi based Supreme Travel said, “Apart from being a shopping paradise, France has a lot to offer for families. I had the opportunity to talk to Marineland, located between Nice and Cannes.”
“Selling Cannes and Paris to our clients, especially GCC nationals, should be easy. Due to the lower currency conversions, they could even save money compared to previous years. Also there are many special offers from hotels and airlines.”
Khaled Ghazi, sales office manager for Air France’s Kuwait GSA, Boodai Aviation Agencies Company said their VIP clientele from royal families preferred Paris as a summer destination, followed by Cannes. “We are now trying to convince our clients about winter vacations as well. At Rendezvous en France, we spoke to winter resorts who offer skiing lessons. This May, we launch our summer campaign, so it was a good opportunity to be at Rendez-vous en France and find out what they can offer the Kuwait market.”