Tourism Fiji launches "innovative" new website
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E-mail Xinhua, April 26, 2013
Fiji's effort to attract more international visitors was given a "significant boost" with the launch on Friday of a new Tourism Fiji website to showcase the country and its attractions, the government said.
The search engine-friendly address, www.fiji.travel.com, is "a state of the art, interactive site" that allows holidaymakers to organize most aspects of their visit themselves before they leave home, including obtaining quotes and making bookings, the Ministry of Information said in a statement.
The website's built-in Travel Planner can tailor individual preferences for the full range of Fiji's offerings -- family holidays, romance, backpackers, diving and adventure. Prospective visitors can also share their holiday plans with friends and family via social media outlets such as Facebook.
Designed by a New Zealand-based company, the new website is part of the recently announced global rebranding of the country's tourism effort under the slogan "Fiji -- Where Happiness Finds You ", said the Ministry of Information.
Launching the site in the resort town of Nadi on Friday evening, Attorney General and Minister for Tourism Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the initiative put Fiji on the cutting edge of website marketing and had important benefits for the Fijian tourism industry.
"We expect that the ability of holidaymakers to get quotes and book their holidays direct will lead to an overall increase in the number of bookings. Those direct bookings mean more money in the pockets of local operators, rather than their overseas agents," said Sayed-Khaiyum, adding that the website exemplified the efforts of the government to harness the most innovative means, where possible, to advance the national interest.
"The international tourism market is highly competitive and there are many other destinations vying for the same trade. This website puts us in a great position because of its interactive capability and the imaginative way in which it showcases the unique Fijian travel experience," he said.
Elizabeth Powell, acting chair of Tourism Fiji, said prospective holidaymakers now had a much higher degree of control over what they wanted to see and do in Fiji.
"Visitors used to be dependent on travel agents for advice or the word of mouth of family and friends. Now they can examine all of the available options on one interactive website from the comfort of their homes anywhere in the world," Powell said.
According to the Ministry of Information, the new website is a vital component of the major overhaul and brand transformation announced by Tourism Fiji last year, which includes the appointment of a new global advertising agency, the selection of new public relations and media partners in Australia, New Zealand and the United States, the appointment of a new social media partner and the appointment of a new chief executive officer. Endi
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