Indian Ocean airlines agree to help boost Vanilla Islands

The 15 regional and international carriers which were brought together for a workshop to find ways to boost the number of tourists visiting the Indian Ocean islands have agreed on several ways to promote inter-island travels, including cutting down on taxes for multi-destinations travel within the islands. 

The airlines agreed that a common advertisement for the Vanilla Islands project – a shared vision of most Indian Ocean islands to boost tourist activities in the region by promoting multi-destination packages – would be included in all the flight magazines of the 15 carriers. 

The airlines, including Air France, Air Seychelles, Air Austral, Corsairfly, Air Madagascar, Emirates Airlines, South African Airways and British Airways – decided that a common TV spot will be produced for maximum visibility of the packages. 

The airlines also agreed to cut down on taxes to promote inter-island travel and special prices for travellers who opt for multi-destinations. 

The Ministry of Tourism and Leisure and the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority in collaboration with the Regional Council of Reunion Island organised the workshop. 

The Minister of Tourism and Leisure, Mr Nando Bodha said: “The competition is not among the islands of the Indian Ocean but we have to market the Indian Ocean region as a whole to be more dynamic and boost tourist arrivals. 

“The realisation of this vision needs the close collaboration of all actors of the aviation industry. We need to work together to position the Indian Ocean as a major tourism hub of the world.” 

The workshop also attracted representatives of the Ile de la Reunion Tourisme, the Seychelles Tourism Board, the Office Nationale du Tourisme de Madagascar and the Association Comorienne du Tourisme.

By Nitesh Boodhoo