Despite no established reopening date for visitors, the Montserrat Tourism Division has been engaging in a series of marketing activities to enhance the island’s destination awareness in North America and Europe.
Beginning in February, the division participated in the Adventure Travel Network Conference & Marketplace and were joined by industry veteran, James “Scriber” Daley in a series of one-on-one meetings with travel professionals who specialize in developing outdoor/adventure programmes for groups and individual travelers from the UK.
This was followed in March by Virtual Unite Caribbean, another UK event that brought together tour operators and travel advisors in the UK for one-on-one meetings with national tourism offices from the Caribbean.
Market Development Officer at the Tourism Division, Cherise Aymer, noted that “these virtual events have given Montserrat the opportunity to network directly with travel companies and professionals that either specialize in the Caribbean or in the niche markets that are relevant to our product on-island.”
The focus shifted to media events from April into May, and the Division participated in Meet the Media, Ireland, the Caribbean Meets the Media, hosted by the Caribbean Tourism Organization UK/Europe Chapter and ANTOR Meets the Media (ANTOR is the UK-based Association of National Tourist Offices and Representatives, of which the Tourism Division is a member).
“Each of these events afforded us the opportunity to conduct individual meetings and make destination presentations to journalists, bloggers, publishers and media professionals,” noted Warren Solomon, Director of Tourism. “Our main challenge now is being able to facilitate visits for all of those who have indicated that they would like to get a first-hand look at the island. It’s not normal to be able to meet with over 50 media representatives in such a condensed period. These were amazing opportunities that, quite frankly, we would not have been able to take advantage of, since all of these activities normally take place in-person over in
the UK.”
These media activities complemented the virtual press trip hosted by the Tourism Division at the end of April, which attracted 52 participants from media houses that cover travel and lifestyle from the US and Canada. The division also formed a partnership with ‘Uncommon Caribbean’ – an online travel brand, to promote the Remote Worker Stamp. The programme sees the co-publisher and his family experiencing the digital nomad lifestyle, giving thousands of followers a first-hand account of what it’s like to work and go to school virtually from Montserrat for two months.
It is hoped that this initiative will help to increase the island’s awareness and build consumer confidence in the Remote Worker programme. Travel officials said Montserrat also benefits from social media engagements, featured articles and being the backdrop for the Uncommon Caribbean weekly live show on Instagram.
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