ESTONIA is looking to leverage its popularity as a cruise destination to generate repeat visits, the country’s Ambassador to Australia, Kersti Eesmaa, told Cruise Weekly. Speaking in Sydney last night at Jones & Co’s inaugural series of roadshows, the Ambassador emphasised the importance of showcasing why travellers should return to...
ESTONIA is looking to leverage its popularity as a cruise destination to generate repeat visits, the country’s Ambassador to Australia, Kersti Eesmaa, told Cruise Weekly.
Speaking in Sydney last night at Jones & Co’s inaugural series of roadshows, the Ambassador emphasised the importance of showcasing why travellers should return to the Baltic country.
“We have many people who come to Estonia with cruises…what happens is they cross Estonia off the list,” Eesmaa said.
“[Passengers] have to stick with the group sometimes, so I feel they are missing out.
“Our main message here is that Estonia is so much more than seeing a little bit of the Old Town…we have old places, hipster places, you can go to the forest, the wetlands, the islands.”
Eesmaa also emphasised that the capital Tallinn, a city of just over 400,000, struggles with the same problems as many major European cruise capitals, without many of the same benefits.
“We are a harbour city, and our harbour is very close to the city, it’s only a 15-minute walk.
“People are saying we should limit the cruise numbers, we’re not there, we welcome the cruise tourists, but what we’re trying to say is come back for more.
“We’re trying to get cruise tourists to buy more than an ice-cream and a 5 souvenir.”
The Ambassador is pictured far right, with McKinlay Kidd’s Robert Kidd, Hummingbird Travel’s Tomas Cochrane and Jones & Co Founder Nadine Jones.
