Condé Nast Traveller

Ariadne Massa reports on the Italian edition of Condé Nast Traveller which dedicated its May edition to Malta, "featuring the island in all its diversity":

Malta's vibrant culture, rich heritage and traditional gastronomy have been splashed across this month's Italian edition of Condé Nast Traveller magazine. This prestigious monthly publication, the leading magazine in the travel industry, has dedicated all its 225 pages to discovering Malta's hidden assets and Gozo's treasures. With a circulation of about 80,000 copies in Italy, the magazine portrays all the islands' facets in a way that should entice Italians to hop on the next plane to Malta.

Landing all this publicity was no easy deal and Dominic Micallef, Malta Tourism Authority's segment head of history and culture, has been working on it for the past two years. The idea started brewing in Mr Micallef's head when he returned to Malta, after spending a few years serving as director at MTA's office in Milan. "The project required perseverance and Condé Nast needed assurances that a copy dedicated solely to Malta would sell. Plus, to get into their schedule you really have to think ahead," he said..."Many Italians tend to equate Malta with English language schools and the sun, but this magazine provides the perfect showcase with colourful photos of our life, sights, and sounds," he said..

While happy to have achieved this goal, Mr Micallef is not about to sit back; two weeks ago he paid a visit to Vogue House in London, to entice them to publish a Condé Nast Traveller magazine in English, with MTA support. "They were interested, but now it's a question of whether they want to put the investment behind it. We'll continue to work on it," he said. MTA wants to go a step further and even have a similar edition in Spanish. With Italy already in the bag, it has a good chance of capturing new markets.