Cyprus to spend a mere EUR 20 mln to promote tourism in 2008

The Cyprus Tourism Organization (CTO) plans to spend a mere CYP 12 mln (EUR 20,52 mln) to promote Cyprus’ tourist product in 2008.
The budget to be spent in 2008 exceeds by one million pounds the amount spent during 2007, but still falls short of the ten-fold budgets spent by competing destinations.
The CTO’s three main target markets for advertising are the United Kingdom, Germany and Russia.
CTO Marketing Director Michalis Metaxas told the Cyprus News Agency that the government body has invited tender bids for services in advertising planning for the implementation of CTO’s advertising campaign for 2008.
The campaign will include the UK, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Russia, Ukraine, France, Greece, the Middle East (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon), Sweden and Norway.
“For the above mentioned campaign we will spend more than CYP 8 mln (EUR 13,7 mln), while for 2008 our advertising expenditure will reach a total of CYP 12 mln”, he said.
Metaxas told CNA that the CTO is emphasizing on markets which have been indicated as high priority markets in the Organization’s Strategic Plan, as well as on the markets which have prospects for further development.