The three lucky winners—Mrs. Anniessa Hoareau, Ms. Dorothy Niole, and Mr. Hubert Bouchereau—were honoured in a small ceremony on October 16th, 2024, at the Tourism Department Conference Room, Botanical House, Mont Fleuri. They walked away with airline tickets, courtesy of the Tourism Department, after participating in the Radio Listeners Competition, which ran from September 23rd to September 27th.
The competition, organised in conjunction with the 2024 Tourism Festival, ran for five days on SBC Paradise FM during the ‘Tripotaz’ show, a dedicated three-hour segment on the National Broadcaster hosted by Ms. Sabrina Maria throughout the week.
Designed by the Tourism Department’s PR team in collaboration with SBC Radio, the competition featured a maze format in which participants answered three trivia questions each day, with topics focused on personalities and attractions related to the Tourism Department’s programmes.
Listeners had the opportunity to enter via SMS or WhatsApp during the show, and only those who correctly answered all three questions qualified for a mini-draw at the end of each day. A total of five daily winners were chosen to advance to the grand draw.
On September 27th, in celebration of World Tourism Day, the Tourism Department team joined SBC Paradise FM presenters Ms. Sabrina Maria and Ms. Keisha Vidot at the SBC Studios in Hermitage for the grand draw, which was also live-streamed on the SBC Facebook page, adding to the excitement of the event. Out of the 25 finalists, three fortunate winners were awarded airline tickets to any Air Seychelles destination.
While Mrs. Anniessa Hoareau and Ms Dorothy Niole collected their prizes during the ceremony at Botanical House on Wednesday, October 16th, Mr. Hubert Bouchereau, who is currently abroad, will collect his prize at a later date.
The ceremony, broadcast live on SBC Paradise FM during the ‘Tripotaz’ show with Ms. Queenly Traore, also saw the presence of radio personalities Ms. Sabrina Maria and Ms. Keisha Vidot.
Reflecting on the success of the radio show, Ms. Nathalie Rose, Head of Radio Programmes, remarked, “The Tourism Festival radio competition was an exhilarating time for everyone at SBC Radio Studios. The game attracted significant interest, with around 100 participants daily. This naturally required a lot of teamwork as we juggled various messages across platforms. The team managed this exceptionally well. We are grateful for this fantastic partnership and look forward to more educational games like this.”
Mrs. Bernadette Willemin, Director General for Destination Marketing, highlighted the competition as a perfect opportunity to engage with the public. She thanked collaborators like SBC Radio and Air Seychelles for their support, noting that the initiative helped raise awareness of local brands and initiatives.
“The feedback was overwhelmingly positive,” she said. “We saw great engagement, with people calling in and recognising our brands. The interaction with radio presenters was particularly reassuring, proving that this was an ideal way to connect the community with local tourism initiatives like Lospitalite Lafyerte Sesel, Creole Rendezvous, and Sustainable Seychelles.”
She emphasised the importance of community support for these brands, especially in promoting authentic experiences and community-based tourism. Mrs. Willemin added that this effort is part of a broader communication plan to raise awareness using various platforms, with radio being just one approach. The Tourism Department is committed to finding more ways to engage with the local audience.
The Tourism Festival is held annually in Seychelles in September and aims to celebrate the tourism industry, which is the island’s pillar industry.
