MONTREAL — Air Transat is hoping to “stand out” from the competition with its new year-round service between Montreal and Marrakech, says Transat’s Joe Adamo.

As reported by Travelweek yesterday, the new service will kick off in June 2024, making Air Transat the only airline in North America to offer nonstop flights to Marrakech. It will also mark the airline’s first destination in the African continent. Flights will operate twice a week from June 12 to Oct. 24, 2024 before continuing once a week from November until April 20.

Following yesterday’s announcement of the new route in Montreal, Adamo, Transat’s Chief Distribution Officer and President of Transat Distribution Canada (TDC) spoke with Gary Lawrence, Editor-in-Chief of Travelweek Group’s French-language travel trade news source, Profession Voyages, about the reasoning behind Marrakech as a new destination and the airline’s ongoing global strategy.

When announcing the new route, Transat’s President and CEO Annick Guérard said that the company had been thinking about adding Morocco to its network for a long time. Why now, and why Marrakech?

“Since the end of the pandemic crisis and the acquisition of new Airbus A321 LR, we had to find new destinations to take advantage of the size of the aircraft, which offer a good balance of seats perfect for the type of market that Morocco represents. According to our analyses, the demand for this country is very real. By choosing Marrakech, we stand out and we believe we can capture part of the international traffic that currently passes through Casablanca and ultimately goes to Marrakech.”

News of the Marrakech route comes on the heels of another new destination for Air Transat – Lima, Peru. Can you tell us about the airline’s global strategy?

“Indeed, it is no coincidence that we launched these two new routes a few weeks apart. On the one hand, we are adding frequency to our existing destinations, but on the other hand we want to position ourselves in Africa and consolidate our roots in South America. We also want to take advantage of our A321 LRs, in addition to the four A321 XLRs that we have ordered, which we should receive in 2026.”

Who do you think will benefit from the new Marrakech route?

“The Moroccan community in Quebec, of course, but also Quebec travellers in general. The fact that Morocco is a French-speaking country is a big advantage; the destination will appear all the more inviting to them. That said, we will also promote this service from Toronto by inviting travellers from Ontario – and elsewhere in the country – to transit through Montreal to go to Morocco, thanks to this new connection.”

Today, Montreal-Marrakech. Tomorrow, Toronto-Marrakech?

“I’m not ruling it out, but what’s more likely is that if the connection between Toronto and Montreal goes well, we’ll use just this service to Marrakech, even if it means using aircraft with more capacity, if necessary. It’s difficult to serve the same destination from two Canadian cities especially if they are close together, like Montreal and Toronto, unless it is a very large market, as is the case for us with Paris, and with London.”

Will you be offering other products in Marrakech to complement the new flights, as was the case with Lima?

“From the route’s inauguration, there will be packages with hotels or riads offered in Marrakech and Agadir, among other cities. Offerings will quickly improve as the destination grows. Our partnership with the Moroccan National Tourism Office will allow us to draw on their suggestions, which we will then adapt to our market. To begin, four escorted coach tours will also be offered, in the dessert – a must – and on the coast in Essaouira and Agadir.”

What important role will travel advisors play when it comes to promoting Marrakech as a destination, and these packages and tours?

“We will support customers who want our tour operator products, and we also expect that a good number of passengers will travel independently. But we obviously rely on the distribution network to sell our seats and our packages. Travel agents know very well how to take care of their customers.”