Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has begun hosting a joint webinar with Expedia for the Travel Agent Affiliate Programme (TAAP) targeting the United States (U.S.) market. The webinar provides the latest destination updates, information on products and experiences, and promotes the Maldives as a safe haven for the travellers.
The ultimate objective is to deliver the latest destination information to the travel trade and to maintain the momentum of arrivals from the U.S. market and achieve pre-pandemic arrival figures. TAAP is a programme launched by Expedia through which agents in the U.S. can access its global inventory and earn commissions on hotels, dynamic packages and activities. The 45-minute webinar session educates the agents on the Maldives as a popular and safe tourist destination to ensure that the agents can promote the correct strategy and messaging for their clients.
The presentation focused on individual products and experiences available in the Maldives with a focus on the unique geography of the destination and the safety provided by the natural socially-distanced scattered islands and the one-island-one-resort concept. In addition, information regarding the COVID-19 situation in the Maldives, entry requirements as well as the latest travel guidelines were presented during the webinar.
The U.S. is currently ranked as the 6th top source market in the Maldives with an arrival figure of 13,446 and a market share of 3.6% in 2021. As the U.S. is one of the target markets for the Maldives, with MMPRC constantly conducting marketing activities for the market. Activities planned for the U.S. market include destination training and webinars, group media familiarization trips, roadshows, media events, visibility campaigns and joint campaigns with stakeholders.
While there is a decrease due to the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, the market holds great potential for the Maldives and plays an instrumental role in achieving pre-pandemic arrival figures.