The Natas Trade Fair, which was held from August 26-28 in Singapore, was this year an immense success for the Seychelles islands. A large number of curious visitors had turned out at the Seychelles stand, interested to find out more about what they refer to as “Seychelles – The New Destination.”

The outcome of the trade fair was very positive, with over bookings from honeymooners all confirming their arrival in Seychelles during November and December of this year. Alongside the honeymooners were other interested individuals and families, all on the search for their next holiday destination. At the NATAS Fair in Singapore, it was again confirmed that Seychelles appeals to a large number of Singaporean travelers.

To enhance the interest of Seychelles was a two-page publication in the Straits Times Newspaper, one of the most well sought-after newspapers in Singapore. The colorful article specially published for the Natas Trade Fair boasted about the last Carnival in March 2011, which brought about inquiries on the upcoming edition.

Present at the Seychelles stand were Martin Suresh and Philip Tan, who are both representatives of Air Seychelles, and from the Seychelles Tourism Board, the Marketing Executive for the Asian Market, Maria Morel.

Promotion packages for airline tickets, as well as hotel stays, were made available by Air Seychelles, which further contributed to the increase in sales. The efforts and investment channeled into the Asian market is showing promising results for the Seychelles. With current and upcoming publications in leisure and travel magazines such as Sports and Travel, The Quaterly, Wedding and Travel, and Asian Geographic, awareness on the beauty of Seychelles is assured. Asia is a very auspicious and untapped market for Seychelles and has the potential to be one of its leading markets in the future. Asia could be referred to as a “sleeping giant that is yet to be awoken.”

“Asia remains a target market for Seychelles and more effort was being made for us to capture our fair share of the market,” said Alain St.Ange, the CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board.

Seychelles today has a Tourist Promotional Office in Singapore and one in China.