A COPA Airlines aircraft.
PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA) and
St. Maarten Tourism Bureau (STB) have congratulated COPA Airlines on resuming its flights to St. Maarten. COPA Airlines resumed weekly flights as of Friday, November 20, but will increase frequency during the second week of December to four times weekly.
Virtual FAM Trip.
Prior to COPA’s return, SHTA and STB organised a digital marketing event with 234 travel agencies from across South America participating. The webinar provided insights in the ongoing tourism recovery of the destination, as well as health protocols for travellers to St. Maarten. Travel agents asked live questions to an online, seven-person SHTA and STB panel. The event is the second in a series where St. Maarten tourism partners collaborate with airlines to stimulate the recovery of tourism.
For this edition, new features were added such as live reports from Mullet Bay Beach and the Concordia Monument, creating an interactive and dynamic experience for participants. Mullet Bay Beach was chosen because of its beauty and popularity with both visitors and residents, while the border monument highlights the historical uniqueness of St. Maarten/St. Martin in all the Caribbean.
“I commend the efforts of STB and all stakeholders involved that have taken an active role in ensuring that our airlift numbers continue to increase. As governments all over the world continue to deal with the realities of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, a safe St. Maarten remains our main goal in order for the economy to return to pre-pandemic levels,” Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transportation and Telecommunication (TEATT) Minister Ludmila de Weever was quoted as saying in a press release on Monday.
St. Maarten Tourism Bureau in collaboration with Sonesta Maho Beach Resort, Copa Brazil and InterAmerican also held a St. Maarten virtual FAM trip on November 19. The virtual FAM trip which is a webinar to present activities and services to international tour operators was presented in Portuguese to over a total of 100+ participants, which consisted of tour operators.
The widely attended webinars are considered an effective way to reach a core supporting audience by providing a virtual travel experience for the agents, and positive return on investment by all partners. The success of the first two webinars, with more than 500 travel agents attending, encourages the organisers to host additional digital updates, along with airlines and the agents that service the hubs.
