Tourism Fiji’s new chief has already outlined plans to promote the country as one filled with unique cultural experiences, in a bid to move away from the mass-market appeal of a flop and drop holiday destination.
The plan to focus on niche products to increase tourist income, is all part of a broader marketing strategy to add value to visitors, Tourism Fiji Chairman, Stefan Pichler told Pacific Beat.
“We have a lot of room for improvement,”
he said.
“We have to create new products for Fiji that are not designed for mass market tourists but which enable very individual, very unique experiences.
“Competing in the mass market is not the smartest thing to do because then sun and beach competes against sun and beach, and price competes against price, so what we try to do is create added value products.
“And they should make tourists more happy and they should bring more income to the country.”
Fiji’s tourism industry accounts for 38% of its GDP and it’s the country’s biggest employer.
Mr Pichler told the paper tourists travelling to Europe often spend double the amount they paid for their holiday package on the ground for events and experiences. In comparison, travellers spend about half the cost of their package in Fiji.
“We can stimulate the market, where people spend more money on the ground doing excursions, participating in events, etc,” Mr Pichler said.