HELSINKI -- After nine years since the last participation, ENIT-Italy attended the 2017 edition of the international tourism fair in Helsinki, Finland, the main industry event in northern Europe.

 To give an idea, the 2016’s fair counted 66,794 visitors, including 13,700 workers. The international tourism fair in 2017 (MATKA) was held from Jan. 19 to 22.

 The return of ENIT-Italian Government Tourist Board on the Finnish market was a result and testimony of an effective system action with Italians institutions in Finland; the Agency had an institutional stand of 50m2.

 Preceded by networking events "Matka Global Workshop" and "Matka Nordic Bloggers’ Experience,” the exhibition was inaugurated on Jan. 19, the day reserved for trade, while the general public could access the event from Jan. 20.

 The target of the ENIT mission in Finland was to provide new impetus to the tourist promotion of Italy in the Finnish market, limited in scale but with high propensity to spend for tourist services.

 According to the Flash survey Eurobarometer 2016 "Preferences of Europeans towards tourism” 85 percent of Finns travelled during 2015, a figure that places them in third place among the EU28 countries for travelers in relation to population, an increase of 5 percent from the previous year.

 The natural tendency of the Finnish consumer prefers destinations that combine culture and mild weather conditions, thus presenting ample opportunity for the Italian offer.

 According to the latest available data from ISTAT, the top five Italian Regions for Finnish tourists are Lombardy, Lazio, Veneto, Tuscany and Sicily.

 The challenge and the main lever to favour the increase Finnish tourism in Italy is to widen the flow to less known destinations, with a view to enhancing the extraordinary Italian tourism offer of diversity.

 Even dialogue and increased cooperation with the tourism "bloggers" are a priority in the successful implementation of the new promotional strategy on Finland.

Finland under the spotlight

 Finland was under the international spotlight because of its various and well organized travel and tourism destinations, in particular Lapland and the lakes areas, rich in nature and sport activities both in winter and in other seasons, and easily reachable from all over the world thanks to an expanding network ‘always improving according the needs of the customers,’ as stated by the national airline Finnair’s VP Global Sales Mikko Turtiainen.

 The airline, a pioneer in sustainable flying, is the European launch customer of the next-generation, eco-smart Airbus A350 XWB aircraft and is the first airline listed in the Leadership Index of the worldwide Carbon Disclosure Project.

 The only Nordic carrier with a 4-star Skytrax ranking, Finnair has also won the World Airline Award for Best Airline Northern Europe for the past seven years running.

  MATKA being the leading travel fair in Northern Europe, each year the event presents approximately 1,000 exhibitors representing 80 countries and attracts 70,000 visitors of which 15,000 work in travel trade, offering a unique opportunity to get acquainted with Finland, Scandinavia and whole world under one roof.

 When compared to the other major travel events like ITB or WTM, due to its compact nature MATKA offers an excellent opportunity to see the whole event and all its exhibitors and destinations during one day.

 The Finnish Travel industry has bloomed in the past few years with strong players focusing in quality, efficiency and innovation to offer the best experience to both business and leisure travelers.

 Finland has been rated internationally as one of the best destinations for travel and business, and is celebrating its centenary in 2017. (www.suomifinland100.fi)

One third travels for food

 Finnish professionals have placed Finland on the gastronomic world map and food played animportant role in the MATKA Nordic travel Fair.

 Every third Finnish traveler chooses their travel destination based on the cuisine. Food is a particularly important aspect for younger travelers, students, business travelers, decision makers and people living in the Helsinki metropolitan area.

 Almost a third -- 27 percent -- of Finns also choose domestic travel destinations according to the food offered. In addition to presenting travel destinations from around the world the MATKA Nordic Travel Fair showcases food travel especially on its Tasty Travel area.

 Food travel interests approximately 30 percent of Finns, and Finnish travelers travel abroad for good food rather than travel in Finland. This information is shown in a survey done by Kantar TNS, commissioned by the MATKA Nordic Travel Fair. The results represent the views of Finnish people, excluding the Åland Islands. 

 Finnish travelers recommend the cuisine of destinations abroad rather than the cuisine of domestic destinations -- 35 percent of Finnish travelers have at least once or more recommended a destination abroad to others based on the destination’s cuisine.

 The Culinary Journey through Finland presents the country's best culinary destinations: Anttolanhovi, located on the coast of Lake Saimaa that specializes in local delicacies, restaurant Peak of the Chalet Ruka Peak boutique hotel, the Krapi Hotel's restaurant Krapihovi serving the Finland 100 centenary menu, and Laitalan lomat in North Karelia specializing in reindeer delicacies. Food and Fun showcases an annual food festival held in the city of Turku dedicated to good food from around the world.

 nkd-gn