This year, Bride Abu Dhabi celebrated its 20th anniversary, and Seychelles Tourism Board Abu Dhabi was honoured to participate in its twenty years of existence by, not only having a prominent stand at the entrance of the event, but also being one of the VIP goodie bag sponsors.
Bride Abu Dhabi is a very prestigious event in this emirate’s annual calendar of activities, and this is the 6th year that the Seychelles has participated in it. Always keen to ensure that the Seychelles always get the maximum exposure, Ms Aliette Esther, Tourism Attaché in Abu Dhabi, is of the opinion that this event is one of the best platforms to advertise the destination. “After all, the Seychelles is primarily known as one of the best honeymoon and wedding destinations in the world, and it makes perfect sense that we should have a strong presence, “she said.
Indeed, this was the dominant theme of the 18m2 stand. With life-size glossy and top quality photos of various couples getting married and obviously besotted with each other, visitors were immediately transported to these exotic islands and special moments. The stand was truly eye-catching, and no one passed by without stopping to ask questions, take a brochure or share memories of their trip there. The coco-de-mer displayed on the table was definitely an attraction too and many wanted to know more about it.
Manned by Ms Esther herself, Myra Fanchette, Marketing Executive from the STB Head office in the Seychelles, Nicky Bijlaney, Commercial Manager UAE & GCC for Etihad Airways/Air Seychelles, Mubarak Abdulrahman, Travel Consultant, Omeir Travel Agency, the GSA for Air Seychelles. 500 VIP goodie bags were given away, hundreds of questions answered, special moments of a past trip shared and desires to go again were expressed.
Organised by Informa Exhibitions and held at the spacious halls of ADNEC, Bride Abu Dhabi started its marketing campaign 18 weeks ago through key media-partners and advertisers. Loyal visitors, brides-to-be and fashion-conscious women were bombarded daily by ads on TV, in the newspapers, magazines and radio, by email, through web banners, SMS, partnership marketing, and of course the official website. Last year, there were 69,814 visitors on the website and 46,168 new visitors.
38.8 K fans followed the event on Facebook and there were 13.2 followers on Instagram. The STB logo was prominently displayed throughout these 18 weeks.
“The above figures show the immense popularity of this event, and we expect the figures to be even higher this year, “commented Ms Esther.” Judging by the large number of visitors and queries we got at the stand, we can expect visitor numbers to the Seychelles to certainly go up this year. This time last year, there was an 18% increase of people travelling to the Seychelles from this market and there is no doubt this number will improve further this year. The Seychelles is the ideal destination for couples wanting to get married and honeymooners, and this for various reasons,” Ms Esther continued to say.
“We have been in the business for a long time, so we know exactly what the customers want, and should they need anything extra, we are always ready to oblige. We are only a stone’s throw away from the UAE and no visas are required. Lastly, and most importantly, even if you look around the world, you could not find a more beautiful and romantic location than the Seychelles”.
The Seychelles Tourism Board was pleased to partner with Air Seychelles at the event this year. Apart from promoting its products and services, the Seychelles national carrier also offered UAE residents, families and honeymooners exciting discount vouchers in economy and business class for travel to and from the exotic islands. “This will also further boost traffic on flights between Abu Dhabi and the Seychelles as well as increase the awareness of Air Seychelles network across the Emirates and GCC,” said Mr Bijlaney.
“We are always proud to take part in this event,”Ms Esther concluded, “and we will be here again next year.”
