Big rise in October tourism

Indications from Air Malta and Malta International Airport show a nine per cent gain in October tourism over the same month last year, translating into 116,000 visitors - an all-time record for the month.

The National Statistics Office has not yet published the final results for August, September and October, but preliminary figures showed that, in volume terms, Malta enjoyed a good summer, said Tourism Minister Michael Refalo.

The trade had also confirmed a healthier than average November and December and indications pointed towards a positive conclusion to 2002.

Dr Refalo said returns showed "excellent" performances in the four core markets - the UK, Germany, Italy and France.

Tour operators had noticed an increase in winter traffic, while some had already taken an appreciable amount of summer bookings, which was a good augury for UK traffic in 2003, he said.

Malta was selling early and at non-discounted prices, which vindicated the decision to withdraw the Tour Operator Support Scheme.

Dr Refalo said the French market had remained at 2001 levels, while a slight overall increase was expected from Italy.

On the other hand, reports from Germany showed that outgoing tourism would take longer to recover, so autumn's results were a "welcome achievement".

Scandinavia and The Netherlands still posed problems, but emerging markets, such as Spain, Russia and Japan, were sending positive signals, while the US market had maintained its share.

Dr Refalo was delivering the closing address at the Malta Tourism Authority's fourth annual conference, 'Three Years of Achievements - A Review of the Malta Tourism Authority's Performance', held at the Corinthia San Gorg yesterday.

The minister referred to the authority's impressive list of initiatives and programmes.

He said the MTA had "successfully passed the acid test of its first triennium" and praised those who had contributed to "turning a very difficult year into one that has exceeded popular expectations and official forecasts".

Dr Refalo dedicated a good part of his speech to the importance of EU membership for the tourism industry, stressing that Malta "must take up the ultimate challenge and grasp the opportunity of a lifetime".

Only membership could help the industry out of the 10-year trough it had been stuck in.

EU membership was a determining step towards the solution of problems that the tourism industry had had to grapple with for so long; problems that limited its potential, growth and seasonal spread.

EU membership was the solution to Malta's most pressing problem, an increase in air-seat capacity and additional accessibility - "an opportunity that tourism cannot miss".

Membership was the key to free Air Malta from the shackles of air service agreement constraints and opened up "untold opportunities" for the airline to develop maximum flexibility.

Air Malta was prepared for the challenge of increased competition that had led other carriers to reduce fares and improve services, Dr Refalo maintained.

The end of discrimination meant that Malta could compete on a level playing field with member states and gain a competitive edge in holiday pricing terms when compared to non-European and other destinations.

Dr Refalo said the imposition of visas had its advantages and disadvantages, but the impact was minimal.

He said the UK had placed Malta on a par with member states, reducing its passenger departure tax by 75 per cent as from this month.

During the conference, which enjoyed a positive turnout, MTA chairman John C. Grech traced the authority's strategy to establish a unique value proposition for the Maltese Islands and the repackaging of the Malta product.

Now, it was time to change Malta's supply conditions - still a major challenge ahead. The new brand promise had to be sustained by an improvement in Malta's tourism offer, Dr Grech said.

In his opening address, the chairman insisted on the need to deliver promises and "keep hospitality at the core" for the tourism industry to grow.

The MTA's role was also to ensure that standards were met and it "intends to seriously enforce them. Although we want to be an industry-friendly authority, we mean business," Dr Grech said.

The MTA would not be allowing anyone to flout the standards agreed on and damage the industry for others.

The community was starting to understand that tourism belongs to everyone - another of the MTA's aims.

"Let us own the industry if we want to achieve," Dr Grech stressed, encouraging the community to be proud of the product, always innovative and on the go.

The unofficial figures for September and October showed a "strong comeback" for the Malta product, he said.

Speaking about the World Travel Market experience in the UK last week, Dr Grech said most, if not all, tour operators were "increasing capacity and the market was doing well for Malta".

Since the removal of the TOSS, tour operators, which used to be subsidised and "spoilt", were "not mentioning cheques" and had accepted that Malta was willing to put money in their direction, but in the form of exposure and promotion of the brand.

"Things are happening" and, following talks, tour operators in the UK and Germany would be including a list of Malta events, which are being organised on a three-year basis, in their brochures.

Dr Grech said the future of Malta's tourism industry lay in a differentiated product, which was being understood by the tour operators.

"Malta is no a longer the discounted, last-minute booking destination, visited because there is nowhere else to go," Dr Grech said, adding that there was no future in that approach.

Speaking about where the MTA was going, Dr Grech said the core markets had to be consolidated and were showing stability and some growth, while emerging markets - Spain, Poland and China - were being developed.

He urged the government, local councils, corporations and individuals to "take the environment seriously", manage waste and embellish the surroundings.

MTA chief executive Leslie Vella, who outlined the authority's achievements over the past three years, said it was proposing the retention of the revenue, generated from the management and collection of licence fees, from 2005.

The revenue is estimated at Lm850,000 per annum.

About 93 per cent of MTA's budget was from the government and seven per cent from the private sector, while nine per cent of tourism earnings went to the government and 91 per cent to the private sector.

The visitmalta.com web-site, which has been visited by close to one million internet users, was providing opportunities for direct bookings, he said.

Mr Vella pointed out the MTA's limitations in terms of jurisdiction over aspects of the overall tourism product and the limitations of huge advertising costs.

MTA strategic planning senior manager Marie Louise Mangion spoke about the MTA's performance in the context of the authority's strategic planning process.

A total of 39 of the 49 broad programmes of the Strategic Plan 2000-2002 had been implemented.

Ms Mangion said seven working groups had been set up over the past five months on the EU, diving, Germany, performing and visual arts, service culture and training, heritage and the environment. Next year, working groups on language learning, Gozo, information provision and systems, among others, would be set up, and action plans proposed.

The MTA's directors also delivered presentations, detailing their activities in the fields of product planning and development, marketing and promotion, enforcement, human resources and support services and the internet.

An added feature at the conference was the presence of booths hosting representatives of the MTA's overseas network who were available to discuss aspects of the authority's work in the various source markets and to answer any queries.

An exhibition, detailing the MTA's achievements to date, was also set up.