Dark clouds over Air Seychelles: Former tourism minister concerned

Alain St. Ange was the former minister of tourism for the Republic the Seychelles. Seychelles lives and breathes tourism. St. Ange is now heard of his own Saint Ange Consultancy firm. 

Dragged into dark clouds flying over Air Seychelles financial partner Etihad Airways, the national carrier Air Seychelles confirmed the discontinuation of its Victoria- Dusseldorf flight and a reduction of flights on its Paris run. This follows the suspension of its Durban route. The former minister Alain St. Ange worked hard to bring a new destination like Duesseldorf on board. His famous Carnival de Victoria attracted Duesseldorf Carnival officials and brought Seychelles on the tourism map in the largest outbound travel region in Germany.

Tour operators just got used and pitched to expand their reach to the Indian Ocean, when Air Seychelles abruptly pulled Duesseldorf from their network.

Alain says: “Any loss of flights to a tourism destination is concerning, and more so when it touches key tourism source markets. Seychelles needs more than ever before to work in total unity to ensure that other airlines do not follow suit. ”

“The remarkable success of our fragile tourism industry in recent years must not be taken for granted. Though we as Seychellois believe that we have the most stunning beaches and array of islands on the planet, every other similar touristic destination shares the same belief. This means that we are fishing from the same pond, and solely relying on our country’s beauty to fill up hotel beds year after year is an unrealistic expectation. “

Visibility is integral and it alone remains the key to success. Visibility keeps tourism destinations relevant – and