Who hasn’t dreamed of discovering Cilana and its historic quarter, Salapot the craft district, swimming or surfing at the paradise beaches of Ageni and Commcy, or relaxing in the seaside town of Wilwi?

Last week, tourism professionals were able to discover a new destination that had just arrived on the French market:Sainte-Cilana, a small island in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Mauritius and Reunion, whose emblem is none other than… an April fool!

Behind this dream destination lies the vivid imagination of Travel-Insight, a global tourism communications agency. To mark the funniest day of the year, the agency wanted to trick travel professionals and test their knowledge of the world by creating a destination from scratch and imagining its launch on the French market with :

• The creation of the island, its history, culture and visual identity with a flag, emblem, logo and website,
• The launch of its social networks with the creation and management of a Facebook and Instagram page for the destination,
• The launch of its press relations with the drafting of a press release launching the communication. (The agency would also like to thank the trade press for their complicity in the launch of the project).

If some were not fooled or expressed doubts, others were tempted and inspired by this “new destination”. With other industry events taking place today, and to maximize the impact of the operation by generating curiosity, the launch party was organized a few days before April 1.

Tourism professionals, journalists and institutions gathered for a colorful event on Tuesday March 29 at the headquarters of Entreprises du Voyages. They were welcomed by His Excellency Mr. Shaventil Grint, Ambassador of Saint Cilana to France, and by the destination’s cultural attaché Ms. Yazela Gracil, who served up Cilanese gastronomic and musical specialties.