The number of rooms and beds available in the Falkland Islands has increased significantly over the last two seasons, both in Stanley and Camp, Stephanie Middleton, Executive Director of the Falkland Islands Tourist Board told the Penguin News.
The Falklands has achieved a satisfaction rating of 8.9 out of 10 on travel-based social media site TripAdvisor, up from 8.8 last year, according to the Falkland Islands Tourist Board (FITB).
The Falkland Islands has had its best season for land-based tourism for 10 years, and the second best ever, with leisure tourist arrivals increasing by 14.9% compared to the previous season.
Falkland Islands tourism ambassadors Steph Middleton and Carli Sudder are returning from the United States after attending this year’s International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) conference in Newport, Rhode Island. Steph Middleton is Executive Director of the Falkland Islands Tourist Board, while Carl Sudder is Tourism Coordinator at Sulivan Shipping and Chair of the Falklands Travel Association.
Visitor arrivals to the Falkland Islands were up 3.1% compared to the previous tourist season, confirmed Executive Director of the Tourist Board Stephanie Middleton to Penguin News. The Falklands' season ended on April 7 with total visitor arrivals for the season at 57,496. Ms Middleton outlined how, as with last season, it was the expedition vessels that mainly contributed to the hike in numbers.
Despite the cancellation of two planned ship visits in November, Falkland Islands agencies are optimistic about the prospects for the 2017/18 cruise season. Carli Sudder of Sulivan Shipping Ltd told Penguin News she thought the season was looking “pretty good” with some new ships like Silver Muse (capacity 590) and the return of others like Island Sky (capacity 114).
In response to calls from the Falklands cruise sector the Falkland Islands Tourism Board (FITB) has launched a new grant scheme to encourage investment in the cruise sector. Executive Director of FITB Stephanie Middleton said “Cruise operators tell us that they are keen to see more options for visitors when coming on shore.
The Argentine embassy met with officials from the Uruguayan Rural Association, ARU, to express their disappointment since the Falkland Islands have a stand at the Great Britain pavilion in the Prado agro-industry show in Montevideo, according to a report from Television Nacional, which belongs to the Uruguayan government media complex.
The current focus of the Falkland Islands Tourist Board's digital marketing strategy is social media marketing using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, confirmed Executive Director Stephanie Middleton. The Board has turned to the popular sites in order to raise awareness of the Falklands and in turn increase the number of visitors in the new website.
Visitor expenditure in the Falklands increased from both land-based tourists and cruise passengers last season. With all the figures from Immigration now in, and the cruise and air surveys analysed, the Tourist Board has a good picture of how last season performed they told Penguin News.