New ways to attract tourists

The large number of Maltese who came over for the Carnival weekend was another proof that we need to create activities like this in Gozo to boost tourism in the low season.

Maltese visitors are by all rights considered a form of tourism; call it internal tourism if you wish. The income flows in and the economic effect is felt immediately.

During the two Carnival weekends, Gozo was buzzing with activity. The markets, shops and supermarkets were full of people all day and, in the evenings, the restaurants were well patronised.

A negative effect was the heavy traffic encountered on the roads, especially in streets near Victoria. It is a pity that the Victoria council and the Ministry of Gozo have not yet found a solution to this problem.

The scheme, offered by Gozo Channel for reduced fares and even a free ferry service, if you spend more than Lm10, was a very good initiative that proved successful.

More positive was the way the company handled the influx of Maltese to Gozo on the Carnival weekend. The demand was overwhelming, but the response by the company was effective and efficient. The flow to the ferries was continuous and smooth.

It has been proved over and over again that local initiatives, such as the Nadur Carnival, if well advertised, can attract thousands of people. The entire economy of Gozo is benefiting due to the hard work carried out by the Nadur council, which is always innovative in its ideas and activities.

During Carnival, the council opened the two historical towers in Nadur for public viewing - the 17th-century Ta' Sopu Tower and the 19th-century Ta' Kenuna Tower. These were extra attractions to visitors.

The response was very good, and many people took the opportunity to visit these places, which, apart from their historical aspect, are situated in very beautiful surroundings.

From Ta' Kenuna one can get a panoramic view of most of the island, Comino and the northern part of Malta. Ta' Sopu Tower is surrounded by a garigue that is rich in flora.

This habitat was recently declared a special protected area according to the criteria of Natura 2000. There is a marvellous view of Dahlet Qorrot Bay, Wied ir-Rihan and San Blas valley and bay.

Nadur is one of the most picturesque places in Gozo and Nature endowed it with enchanting bays, orchards, green fields, an abundance of natural spring water and valleys offering a good living. The council is exploiting these natural assets to the benefit of the locality and Gozo in general.

This local council is the first in Gozo since its formation to take up initiatives and organise activities that are original and on a large scale. There were risks involved but, with good organisation, the Nadur council succeeded to turn these activities into very popular events that are now part of the annual calendar.

One can mention the summer wine festival, which has also been a big success since it was started three years ago. The Christmas market is also proving to be popular. This is held a couple of weeks before Christmas, where various individuals advertise their talents and sell their products related to Christmas.

These can be in the form of art, crafts, food, drinks or sweets. For this occasion, the wartime shelters underneath the square where the activities are held were opened to the public.

It is pleasing to note that other local councils are trying to organise similar activities. One of them is Gharb council, which will be organising a weekend of activities in mid-March with the collaboration of the Gozo Ministry.

So far, no information is available to the public and their Website was last updated in September. These councils must know that, above all, publicity of these events is crucial.

A project entitled 'Information on European Parliament and Celebration of 50th Anniversary of the Treaty of Rome in Gozo', submitted by Nadur council to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, has been approved.

The main objective of the project is to organise an informative event on the European Parliament with a specific focus on the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.

An exhibition will be held in the main square of Nadur with easy and free access to the public, and the creation of a set of communication material that will address target groups in Malta and Gozo with the objective of explaining the main functions and activities of the European Parliament.

A special entertainment programme, with various cultural activities, with the participation of international and Maltese artists and entertainers, has been planned for the occasion to be spread over the last weekend of March. This will be another occasion through the initiative of a local council that will be bringing thousands of visitors to Gozo.

Another activity - an initiative of Nadur council, financed by the European Commission, DG Competition, in partnership with the Associazione Italiana Giuristi Europei - held partly in Nadur and in Malta, consisted of a number of seminars on EU Competition Law addressed to judges, magistrates and legal staff.

Its aim is to raise awareness of the Maltese Judiciary in the European Policy sector. The sessions are being held over five weekends, ending on March 24.

The next sessions on competition rules applicable to firms are to be held at Nadur council's premises on Friday and Saturday, and the last two on competition rules applicable to state aid will also be held at Nadur Council on March 23 and 24.

Nadur council has been used as an example of how local initiatives can help tourism in Gozo. The same can be said on the opera weekends, the Festival Mediterranea and the Citadella - Gozo for Arts and Culture held in Victoria.

Other councils can take up the idea and organise something similar. They have to be original and plan their activities in a way that will not clash with other activities. An entire programme can be planned for the whole year and every locality will be able to have a weekend or weekends to organise its activities.

The scheme launched by the government to help the local councils to organise such activities is a good start but they themselves need to work and tap funds from the EU or from their twinning agreements with other foreign localities.

We cannot afford to have two organisers competing with each other. Most local councils are not giving their share to help tourism in Gozo. Some of them don't look after their locality well and don't come up with ideas to attract visitors to their locality.

Agro-tourism, for example is another sector where the local councils can take initiatives.

Gozo for the tourist means a different way of living from their usual routine. Gozo still offers tourists an opportunity to enjoy a beautiful, unspoilt natural environment, away from everyday routine.