CYPRUS
TOURISM ORGANISATION
PARTICIPATION
IN THE BIRMINGHAM NATIONAL WEDDING SHOW
28/2-2/3/2014
The Cyprus Tourism Organisation successfully
participated in the recent Birmingham Wedding Show between 28/2-2/3/2014.
The CTO standhosted Cypriot hoteliers while more of
the Cyprus private hotel businesses, Tourism Boards and Municipalities from the
regions of Pafos, Lemesos and Ammochostos attended the fair.
The presence of the CTO was enhanced by the traditional
Cyprus wedding delights loukoumi/pastichi and the wedding cake, a sponsorship
of Confectioneries and Bakeries in Cyprus. Additional give aways like the
wedding bonbonieres, the ‘Marry Me in Cyprus’ cotton bags andthe heart
keyringsenhanced Cyprus presence.
The UK market is a priority market with 50% market
share and which amounts to 4000 wedding ceremonies. As for the year 2013, due
to the economic crisis and the factit was considered by the British as an
unlucky year to marry,no further increases are to mention.However, 2014 and
2015 will be a lot more promising.
According to AntigoniKapodistria, CTO Tourism Officer,
in charge of the wedding tourism in Cyprus, and from data retrieved by the
municipalities and the Tour Operators, Cyprus still has a dominant position in
the wedding industry compared to other European and Mediterranean destinations.
Cyprus remains the number one preferred wedding and honeymoon destination for
the British couples. Some of the reasons are the direct flights to and from the
island especially from the regional airports, the guaranteed sunshine,the lower
cost for combining wedding and holidays for the couple and its guests, the
variety of wedding venues out of Town Hall, the organizational expertise of the
local wedding planners and the municipality wedding officers, the simple
procedures and the identification of Cyprus with Aphrodite, which has made it
widely recognized as the ‘Island of Love’.
AnnitaDemetriades, CTO Strategy Dpt Director, points
out that wedding tourism is a major economic source for both the Municipalities
and the tourism and greater industry of Cyprus in general. The main goal is to
intensify actions towards the development and the promotion of this special
product in bothpriority markets like the UK, Israel, Lebanon and Russia and in new
non-Europeanpromising ones.
The Cyprus Tourism Organisation promotes the wedding
tourism through the participation at specialized wedding shows, the hosting of
press -familiarization tripsand important
personas, the online advertising campaigns through the CTO specialized webpage www.marrymecyprus.com , the
cooperation with specialized Tour Operators, the advertising in print media
etc.
Moreover, the CTO is enabling the registration of the
Pancyprian Wedding Planners Association with the goal to organise, develop,protect
and promote the Cyprus wedding product and businesses.
CTO would like to express its gratitude to the private
sector and to all public bodies and
services who greatly support its efforts in this vital sector.
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