ZANZIBAR, Seychelles and Mauritius
are looking to new markets
following a decrease in demand
from European markets, says Wayne
Troughton, ceo of hospitality and
property consulting firm, HTI Consulting.
Wayne says Zanzibar has responded
by leveraging off the lodge industry in
Tanzania. He says seven or eight years
ago 75% of Zanzibar’s market was
package tourists from Italy who would
fly in and stay at Italian-owned hotels.
Leveraging off the game lodge
industry is also changing the way the
hospitality sector is developing on the
island, he says. “They are looking at
more boutique properties and higherend
properties. People want similar
facilities to those they can get in the
game lodges and they don’t have a
problem paying for them.”
Wayne says these travellers add
beach stays to the end of a safari
package and stay in Zanzibar for two
to three days. “Zanzibar is becoming
a luxury, upmarket destination as a
result.”
Zanzibar is only a 15-minute flight
from the mainland but this is not the
case for Mauritius and the Seychelles.
These islands rely on direct travellers
who typically stay longer, Wayne says.
He says 80% of the Seychelles
market used to come from Europe
on high-end package tours. “With
the economic crisis, you would have
expected the occupancy to drop
significantly,” he says, adding that
occupancies may have been saved by
Middle-Eastern airlines. “Etihad bought
40% of Air Seychelles and now flies
direct routes to Seychelles,” he says,
adding that Emirates and Qatar Airways
also fly to Seychelles roughly five times
a week.
While the Seychelles has lost direct
flights from some key European
destinations, flights through Dubai
and Abu Dhabi have opened up the
destination. “Being one of the biggest
hubs in the world, the Middle East
is facilitating travel from all over.”
He says focusing on the luxury and
boutique market with controlled hotel
development has worked well for the
destination.
Mauritius, however, he says, is looking
to expand the tourism sector, opening
up additional resorts.
He says in certain areas occupancies
have dropped and there is an
oversupply in the five-star category.
However, he says the destination has a
strategy to address this and is looking
to different market segments and
hoping to attract travellers from new
source markets, including Russia and
the Far East.
