26 November 2009

Spain invites agents to take a good look around

SINGAPORE - Spain is gearing up for a major marketing push in South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

The region’s new tourism counsellor, Angela Castano Cabanas, has moved to Singapore from Los Angeles where she promoted Spanish tourism to the US.

Part of her new job will involve promoting greater awareness of Spain in SE Asia through the media and travel trade, generating interest from airlines and working on a number of strategies involving consumers.

"There is a lack of awareness about Spain in this region and I want to change that," said Ms Cabanas.

"When people from here are traveling to Europe they may not think about Spain as their first choice, so for the ASEAN market we will focus on the food and fashion of Spain to create a greater desire to visit the country."

A series of fam trips, workshops, seminars and specialist training will drive awareness of the destination.

"We’re keen to take travel agents to inspect hotels, meet suppliers and taste the local food. We want them to be comfortable with the destination which makes it easier for them to sell it," said Ms Cabanas.

Thailand (65,659 visitors 2008) is the largest SEA outbound market; Singapore (24,000) is the fastest growing SEA outbound market due to increased airline capacity.

In contrast with these figures, Malaysia (7,658) is the smallest market for Spain and also the lowest growing SEA market.

Thailand’s numbers are generated to a large extent by direct air services connecting Bangkok and Madrid, while Singapore Airlines flies daily one- stop services to Barcelona via Milan.

Ms Canabas said Spain had world-class brands including several in fashion, financial services and telecommunications.

Among the best-known fashion brands are Zara, Mango, Massimo Dutti, Ermenegildo Zegna, Manolo Blanik and Camper shoes.

Ms Canabas said prices of goods in Spain were the best value in Europe, especially compared to the UK, France and Italy.

Spain also has four of the 50 top restaurants in the world, ranked in the S. Pellegrino awards, namely El Bulli (1st), Mugaritz (4th), El Celler de Can Roca (5th) and Arzak (8th).

For the Australian and New Zealand markets, Spain will focus on visitors attracted to high-end products, including paradores, luxury accommodation in castles, palaces, fortresses, convents, monasteries and other historic buildings. There are also modern hotels, built in traditional style, in areas of outstanding beauty.

"What we are selling is a way of life that’s quite different to our competitors," said Ms Cabanas. "The gastronomy, the nightlife, the variety in the regions adds up to a very special place."