In conjunction with the reopening of Maldives’ borders and the launch of “Rediscover Maldives…the Sunny Side of Life” campaign, Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has kick-started two campaigns with Dnata Travel and Emirates Woman.

Being a part of The Emirates Group, Dnata Travel is the UAE’s longest standing travel provider with more than 60 years of experience in the industry. The company’s multi-channel offering includes stores across the UAE and GCC, a call centre offering 24/7 support, a website (dnataTravel.com), and social media presence with prominent reach.

During the two-month joint campaign with Dnata Travel, Maldives will be promoted through a dedicated page on Dnata Travel’s website, EDMs, promotional videos, paid social media advertisements, promotional flyers (digital and print), retail POS advertising, training programmes, and PR initiatives.

With over 40 years at the forefront of publishing in the Middle East, Emirates Woman is the leading women’s fashion and lifestyle brand in the region.

The two-week advertising campaign with Emirates Woman will focus on articles highlighting travel to the Maldives for UAE residents. These articles will include attractive images as well as links which will give readers a better picture of the destination.

The newsletter and social media platforms (Facebook and Instagram) of Emirates Woman will also be utilised to bring out the full benefits of the readership. The cumulative reach would be 450,000 website views and 243,000 social media followers.

“The key objective of both campaigns is to increase the destination presence and tourist arrivals by reassuring tourists in the Middle East that Maldives remains a safe haven for all travellers to enjoy,” MMPRC said, in a statement.

“The messaging would highlight the safety measures that are undertaken by the Maldives along with the naturally distant islands that are geographically isolated which adhere to the idea of safe travel.”

With the Middle East being one of the leading markets in terms of arrivals to the Maldives, MMPRC continues in its efforts in popularising the destination within the region.

Earlier this year, Maldives was promoted in the Middle East by conducting media fam trips, marketing campaigns through Vogue Arabia, mall and taxi branding, and the virtual Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2020.

In 2019, tourist arrivals from the Middle East to the Maldives stood at 60,003 — a 15.1 per cent increase compared to 2018.

Prior to the lockdown in March, there were 13,436 visitors from the Middle East. A total of 2,799 visitors from the Middle East has been recorded after the border reopening in March, making it the number one post-reopening source market.

Photo: A file photo from 2019 shows the Maldivian delegation attending the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) Dubai. FILE PHOTO/ MMPRC