Tobago Tourism Explores German Airlift, Marketing Opportunities

Tobago Tourism Agency Limited (TTAL) officials sought to further capitalize on their presence in Germany for ITB Berlin by reconnecting with key travel partners across Germany in a 3-day mission from March 01 – 03, to reignite interest in destination Tobago and lay the foundation for increased visitor arrivals from the GAS (German, Austrian and Swiss) market.

Ms. Alicia Edwards, Executive Chairman of the Tobago Tourism Agency Limited stated:

“Considering the composition of the GAS market, TTAL’s marketing approach for Destination Tobago has always been to maintain good relations with the travel trade industry, from travel agents and tour operators to airlines and travel media, in order to amplify the island’s presence and connectivity. These intimate business discussions are critical in our overarching strategy to raise the profile of Tobago in the GAS markets, especially during this period of post-COVID recovery for our tourism sector.”

Rekindling tour operator relations

On March 01, TTAL kicked off their series of engagements in Munich by meeting with FTI – the 3rd largest tour operator in Germany – which helps promote Tobago and the island’s tourism accommodation options to its vast audience of travelers.

Discussions centered around post-pandemic trends that Tobago’s tourism stakeholders should be capitalizing on, including the shift from “brick and mortar” to digital, as well as opportunities for increased business for smaller Tobago properties. TTAL also met with another major German tour operator, DER Touristik, on March 02 in Frankfurt, where their team showed enthusiasm in maintaining relations with Tobago’s tourism authorities, and aggressively selling the destination once again.

Following up on these meetings, TTAL will be hosting FAM trips with both tour operators later in 2023, enabling them to experience the island’s unique selling points and the current post-COVID touristic experience, in order to create strong marketing content targeting German travellers.

Exploring airlift with Condor

While in Frankfurt, TTAL’s team met with Condor Airlines as they continue to advocate for additional direct airlift between Germany and Tobago, explore airlift possibilities for the Scandinavian region, and work on an agreement for Winter 2023/2024. The airline will continue aggressive and consistent marketing actions in the German region as part of a joint marketing agreement with TTAL, ensuring that potential travelers are aware of the key selling points of destination Tobago, even in the absence of a summer 2023 service.

TTAL’s pre-ITB mission ended in Hamburg on March 03, where the team met with leading trade magazine in the German market, FVW. As one of the most influential travel media in Germany, FVW is read by key decision makers throughout the industry. TTAL has partnered with FVW in the past for the impactful Dreaming Beyond digital campaign in 2020, and will continue collaborating to produce destination campaigns in the German market – including an ITB 2023 media collaboration.

TTAL will continue engaging travel partners in Germany and the wider European region to stimulate growth in arrivals to Tobago, and drive business to on-island tourism partners.