Sao Tomé & Principe
Price war on air tickets to São Tomé

afrol News, 12 January - The isolated archipelago of São Tomé and Príncipe, which is struggling to establish its tourism industry, could not have got better news. After the private Portuguese airline Air Luxor recently launched its reasonably prices Lisbon-São Tomé flights, the main operator on the route, TAP, reduced its fares by 30 percent. 

On 16 December 2002, Air Luxor STP, the São Toméan subsidiary of Air Luxor, started two commercial Airbus A320-200 flights a week between Lisbon and São Tomé. The promotional price at launching the service was at a favourable euro 750 for a return ticket, far below the euro 1100 standard price by the leading airline on this destination, Portuguese TAP. On Friday, TAP answered the new competition and lowered its São Tomé fares to euro 700. 

TAP has not wished to comment on its unannounced tariff reduction on the little trafficked São Tomé air connection, first announced by the São Toméan newspaper 'Vitrina'. The sudden change is however widely seen as an answer to Air Luxor's new campaign to the exotic tourist destination, which is expected to develop into an attractive resort within few years.

Marianela Mirpuri, Vice President of Air Luxor, on the other hand, is more than willing to describe her company's new offer. "This new destination is part of the company's strategy to establish regular flights to most of the Portuguese speaking countries," she reveals, and specially points to established links with Brazil and Cape Verde. 

Air Luxor has been careful in establishing positive relations with the São Toméan government before launching its services. The subsidiary, Air Luxor STP, has been given a local investors' majority of 51 percent. Pablo Mirpuri, the airline's President, underlines the importance to "the growth of the São Toméan economy" when describing the new services. Lower fares, "a consequence of competition," would "benefit the country and the users of the service," Mr Mirpuri stated. 

It is undoubtedly the potential of tourism - not the occasional business trip - that has produced this new competition on the Lisbon-São Tomé connection. Air Luxor's launch of the service is saturated with superlatives describing the islands as a perfect and exotic tourist destination: "The security and stability of the country, the calm spirit of its people, the beauty of its still virgin landscapes, its beaches encircled by coconut beaches, make São Tomé and Príncipe a country destined for tourism and an original destination." 

The government of São Tomé has indeed been cooperative in establishing the new service, which gives new perspectives to the country's intentions of becoming a major tourism resort. While the tourist structures still are embryonic, the capital offers a growing number of hotel rooms - also of higher standards - and of restaurants. Also, a new industry of handicraft, producing souvenirs, is in the process of being established. 

The development of tourism is among the principal economic aims of the government of Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe, Maria da Neves, an economist who has left no opportunity to promote the tourism potential of her beautiful island state. The majority of current investments in São Tomé are however bound for the development of offshore oil production, believed to start around 2006.

Sources: Based on Air Luxor, TAP, press reports, STP govt and afrol archive

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