At the Regional Council’s plenary session on July 12, the President of the Martinique Tourism Committee, Karine Roy-Camille, presented the Proposed Reform of Martinique’s Tourism Development Policy. In her view, Martinique is embarking on an unprecedented initiative to reform its tourism development policy.
Here are the key points of his plan
«An Ambitious Tourism Reform Plan"
»for Martinique"
3 Key Objectives for Tourism in Martinique:
· Change the image of Martinique as a destination in order to achieve a highly satisfied customer rate of 70% within 5 years
· Increase visitor numbers across all segments and welcome 1 million additional tourists by 2020
· Increase tourism revenue to €380 million in 2020
Priority markets:
Martinique has identified key markets on which its trade action plan will focus.
This initiative will focus on two categories of target markets, namely:
· Natural markets:
§ France
§ Europe
§ Caribbean
· Markets with strong growth potential:
§ The Americas (U.S., Canada, Brazil, etc.)
§ Emerging economies
A key priority of the reform: the region’s appeal
Expansion of the product and service offerings with the announcement of three main areas: hospitality, tourism offerings, and access to the island.
Revitalizing Martinique’s hotel industry is one of the key steps toward achieving the goal of attracting 1 million additional tourists by 2020. The strategy will focus on
§ The renovation and upgrading of Martinique’s hotel inventory. Strong support measures, with funding from the region and the ERDF, are helping to achieve this objective. Additional funding mechanisms are already in place following the signing of the circular issued under the decree on aid for the renovation of hotels located in the overseas departments. Twenty-five hotels have submitted applications, including leading establishments such as the Bakoua Hotel, the Batelière Hotel, and others.
§ The construction of a business hotel in Fort-de-France is planned for 2012.
§ Strengthening the certification policy for lodging and products
Efforts will be made to attract local and outside investors in order to accelerate the development of the hotel sector.
Develop new tourism offerings by building on Martinique’s strengths and attractions:
§ Develop new tourism programs tailored to specific target audiences: language study trips, golf, eco-tourism, film production, seniors, people with disabilities, etc.
§ Promote Martinican cuisine and its talented chefs.
§ Establish the "Route des Rhums" (distillery tour) to promote the sugarcane industry.
Promote the island's access to priority markets:
§ Promote Martinique's access to its priority markets (the U.S., Europe, Brazil, etc.).
· Promote the development of coastal maritime services
§ Launch a study to accommodate the A380 at Aimé Césaire Airport in Fort-de-France in order to reduce airfares
A sustained policy of major events
Creating and capitalizing on tourism-related events such as:
· Organizing a major annual sailing event (the Bénodet-Martinique Transat and others)
· The Martinique Yole Festival
· The Grand Prix for Public Figures
· The Tour de Martinique des Yoles Rondes
· Christmas in Martinique
· The Transmartinique
· The Fort-de-France Half Marathon
A Strong Commitment to Cruises
Promote cruising and boating through:
· The establishment of a hub for cruise lines
· The establishment of a mega-yacht industry to cater to the luxury yachting market
· Conducting a study for the construction of a cruise terminal as part of the Grand Saint-Pierre project
A commitment to developing projects that drive structural change:
Support the redevelopment of key areas to transform them into Regional Tourism Zones:
· Le Grand Saint-Pierre
· The town of Trois-Ilets
Strong involvement by the local community
The Martinique Tourism Committee will continue the awareness campaigns it launched in 2010, which highlight the vital role that the people of Martinique play in the development of tourism.
The tourism reform project in Martinique consists of:
· A total commitment to a new direction
· A necessary effort by all stakeholders:
o The Region and the Department of Martinique
o The European Union
o The French government
o Associations of municipalities and municipalities
o Tourism Professionals (hoteliers, transportation providers, tour guides, restaurant owners, etc.)
o The local population
· An expected impact on Martinique’s entire economy
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For more information, visit http://www.martiniquetourisme.com/
>> Please feel free to contact us at any time for further information.
Press Contacts Le Public Système:
Allison Méheust – 01 41 34 23 25 – ameheust@lepublicsysteme.fr
Célina Da Silva – 01 41 34 23 83 – cdasilva@lepublicsysteme.fr
Contact the Martinique Tourism Board:
Jacqueline Marie-Rose – 0596 61 84 88 – jmarierose@martiniquetourisme.com
Allison Méheust
Public Relations Officer
Phone: +33(0) 1 41 34 23 25
Fax: +33(0) 1 47 58 77 77
Email: ameheust@le-public-systeme.fr
