Last Updated on Wednesday, 19 July, 2023 at 1:57 pm by Andre Camilleri
The Minister for Gozo Clint Camilleri announced the launch of the Extended-Stay Incentive scheme for the accommodation sector in Gozo 2023-24.
The aim of this scheme is to continue attracting quality tourists to Gozo throughout the whole year.
This scheme is eligible for tourists who will be on a holiday in Gozo between the 15th of October 2023 to the 15th of March 2024, where the length of the holiday needs to be at least 10 nights, and they will be staying in one of the properties participating in this scheme. These tourists will be given a 30% discount on booking up to a maximum of €300. The co-financing of this incentive will be 80% from the Government and 20% from the private sector.
Fifteen operators are participating in this scheme as they responded to the expression of interest that was issued by the Gozo Tourism Association, with more than 140 eligible properties that tourists will be able to choose from. The properties vary from hotels of 4 and 5 stars, boutique hotels, self-catering villas and farmhouses.
“Through this scheme we will continue building on what we have already done to make it so Gozo is not only a summer destination. Therefore, we are directly targeting the months of autumn and winter”, said Minister Camilleri. He continued that during recent years, excluding the pandemic, Gozo experienced a substantial increase in the so-called shoulder months. This is due to the efforts of the continuous work of the Government and the stakeholders to continue strengthening the touristic potential of Gozo throughout the year.
Private operators will also be offering additional vouchers of 10% to those who have booked to encourage repeat returns from the same tourists during the summer months. Minister Camilleri also mentioned that Gozo has always had strong statistics in regards to repeat visitors, in recent years even surpassing 50%.
Minister Camilleri also thanked the Gozo Tourism Association which triggered this initiative, as well as the Directorate for Tourism and Economic Development within the Ministry for Gozo which worked to design this scheme, the guidelines, the terms and conditions, the expression of interest for accommodation operators and pertinent digital platforms from the Ministry for Gozo’s side. He concluded by saying that the parameters of the scheme are witness to the commitment of the ministry and the Gozitan stakeholders who whilst increasing tourists during the quieter months, the scheme is also aimed towards tourists of certain quality who visit Gozo for vacations which are longer than normal. He reiterated that these concepts are synonymous with sustainable tourism.
The Director for Tourism and Economic Development at the Ministry for Gozo Ronald Sultana mentioned that in collaboration with the international offices of the Maltese Authority for Tourism, they designed campaigns for overseas promotion.
For more information you can visit the website www.visitgozo.com/extended-gozo-stays.
