STB and tourism ministry honour World Travel Award winners |20 July 2017

Seychelles winners at the World Travel Awards 2017 were yesterday honoured in a press event organised by the Seychelles Tourism Board and the Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports & Marine.

The event, held in the conference room of the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB), was an occasion for the awardees to be presented to the people of Seychelles through the media. It is to be noted that STB is the third time winner of such an award in a row despite being small with limited resources but seen as very effective.

And for a fourth time in a row Seychelles has clinched the award for the Indian Ocean leading cruise destination with the unique selling point being island hopping.

In regards to the awards, Sherin Francis, chief executive of STB, said “what sets us apart from other Indian Ocean islands are the people who are working in the industry ‒ at Air Seychelles, at the Seychelles Ports Authority, hotels, etc ….  And it is also because we have a product which we believe in; we are not selling Seychelles just because we have to sell it but we passionately believe it is one of the most beautiful islands in the world”.

Seychelles won nine awards in both the Indian Ocean region and in Seychelles itself. For the Indian Ocean awards the winners are The Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) ‒ Indian Ocean’s Leading Tourist Board; Seychelles: ‒ Indian Ocean’s Leading Cruise Destination in 2017; Air Seychelles ‒ Indian Ocean’s Leading Airline; Indian Ocean’s Leading Airline ‒ Business Class; Indian Ocean’s Leading Cabin Crew; Indian Ocean’s Leading Airline Brand; Port Victoria ‒ Indian Ocean’s Leading Cruise Port; Constance Ephelia ‒ Indian Ocean's Leading Green Resort; Raffles Praslin, Seychelles ‒ Indian Ocean's Leading Villa Resort.

And for Seychelles itself, the winners are  MAIA Luxury Resort & Spa for Seychelles' Leading Boutique Hotel 2017; Hertz for Seychelles' Leading Car Rental Company 2017; Eden Bleu for Seychelles' Leading Conference Hotel 2017; Constance Ephelia for Seychelles' Leading Family Resort 2017; Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort & Spa for Seychelles' Leading Green Resort 2017; Constance Lémuria Seychelles for Seychelles' Leading Hotel 2017; Two Bedroom Presidential Villa @ Hilton Seychelles Northolme Resort & Spa for Seychelles' Leading Hotel Suite 2017; MAIA Signature Villa @ MAIA Luxury Resort & Spa for Seychelles' Leading Luxury Hotel Villa 2017 and Enchanted Island Resort  for Seychelles' Leading Resort 2017 .

Besides Mrs Francis also present at the event yesterday were her deputy Jennifer Sinon and representatives of all winning establishments in both categories.

“We are in a people industry and we know that people relationships are really important. As a destination we are very much relevant. And the people who did the voting saw us as a destination, being relevant and the various services related to the industry be it the hotels, the airline, the port and STB and probably this is why we have received the awards,” said Mrs Francis, adding that they had to make it work for Seychelles hence they always want the best and be better.

The chief executive of Air Seychelles Roy Kinnear said Air Seychelles last year made history by being the first airline to win the World Travel Award in the Indian Ocean.

“And for a second year in a row we have won four awards again. And for an airline as Air Seychelles to win four out of five awards in a row, I think it is a phenomenal feat,” he said. Elaborating on the first time winning of leading airline brand, Mr Kinnear said it is the first time it is being awarded in the airline category and very important for Air Seychelles against many competitors in the region. Brand, he says, means something about the word Seychelles, about the airline’s reputation and awareness of it and we really should not underestimate the value of being ‘brand recognised’,” he said.

The GM of Raffles Hotel on Praslin, Joerg Roterberg, thanked Air Seychelles on its achievements.

“Without Air Seychelles, Raffles Seychelles would not exist,” said Mr Roterberg, highlighting the resort’s reliance on the national airline to attain its occupancy target.

He said Raffles Seychelles should really realise what that win means, while comparing the resort with other Indian Ocean islands like Mauritius and Maldives.

Kai Hoffmeister, general manger of Constance Ephelia, expressed his pride and appreciation on the win as Indian Ocean leading green resort, and said the win affects everybody as we strive to be more green.

He said visitors to our destination realise how green and luxurious this country is.

“The contribution towards the environment is at the heart of our priority. We are also Green Globe Certified,” he said, describing the process as lengthy but believes the environment and the surrounding are unique, Seychelles especially.

Hubert Hoareau, deputy CEO of the Seychelles Ports Authority, said the port operates on a 24-hour basis and therefore dedicates the award to all the staff. The port is continuously improving its facilities and public relations activities.

“It is a great job for Seychelles since we do not have a new and modern port as Mauritius, as Ethiopia, as Djibouti and other islands. But what we have is an old port which we inherited and with that same old port we have seen a welcome heart from Seychellois people,” said Mr Hoareau, which he said has shown surrounding countries of the Indian Ocean that with an old port we can be the best.