Slovenian bees circle the world

Published: 25.5.2018

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Slovenian bees circle the world

Slovenian bees circle the world

Ljubljana, 24 May 2018 –  To celebrate the first World Bee Day properly, the Slovenian Tourist Board organised a press trip, which was attended by renowned foreign media. The images of our green, active and healthy country and the stories of the tireless Carniolan honeybee and Slovenia’s efforts to ensure its survival circled the entire world, have circled the world. Among them, a video of the Reuters press agency, which was published 221 times, stands out. On the Voice of America programme alone, it reached 236.9 million viewers. On Sunday alone, more than 4000 hits on the topic of World Bee Day, reaching nearly 29 million people, were found on the web. 

Among the topics that the Slovenian Tourist Board includes in its marketing communications activities, bee-keeping and bee-keeping tourism is considered a special feature of our country, which Slovenia uses to contribute to its sustainable development. The Slovenian Tourist Board highlights the topic of bee-keeping at its business events and on its social media, on the website www.slovenia.info, in press releases, various publications, etc. Last year, for example, it caused excitement over bee-keeping tourism, which is considered a very sought-after niche segment of tourism in the British market, by having a stand at the global WTM London trade show, at which a replica of Janša's apiary with beehive panels and the meaningful slogan Be(e) Responsible was set up. 

Work with foreign media and social media influencers is also an important part of the promotion of Slovenian tourism. With the expert support of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food and the Government Communication Office, the Slovenian Tourist Board marked World Bee Day by organising an excursion for ten participants from globally influential media companies, such as BBC Wildlife, National Geographic Russia, The Independent, Air Canada enRoute, TRAVELBOOK Magazine, and the Reuters press agency. On this occasion, Reuters carried out various interviews and recorded footage of honey-making procedures, colourful apiaries, the landscape, and features of bee-keeping tourism for a report in which it emphasised our efforts to conserve bees and other pollinators, our commitment to sustainable development, and a rich bee-keeping tradition. It highlighted that Slovenia was the only EU Member State to protect a native bee variety, namely the Carniolan honeybee. Reuters showed Slovenia as an interesting and unique green destination, in which visitors can have boutique experiences. This message was summarised by 33 TV networks, which broadcast on different continents, and online media outlets. 

Monitoring online publications using the mediatoolkit tool showed that, between 22 April and 22 May, there were nearly 10,000 pieces of online content related to World Bee Day; they reached more than 49 million people around the world. Posts on the social media pages of the Slovenian Tourist Board related to the observance of World Bee Day in Slovenia and highlighting Slovenia as its initiator and a green, active, and healthy tourist destination reached at least 500,000 followers. 

“All of the media attention paid to Slovenia due to World Bee Day is an invaluable contribution to the recognisability of our country as the initiator of this holiday and as a unique green, active, and healthy destination with excellent bee-keeping tourist features that could help position Slovenia as a destination for five-star experiences,” says Maja Pak, Director of the Slovenian Tourist Board.

The Reuters report can be seen here: 

https://uk.reuters.com/video/2018/05/18/slovene-beekeepers-hope-to-have-a-stingi?videoId=428194063&videoChannel=118261&channelName=News+Agency

The Euronews report can be seen here: 

http://www.euronews.com/2018/05/20/it-s-the-first-world-bee-day 

The Telegraph report can be seen here: 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/beautiful-slovenia/bee-tourism/ 

The New York Times report can be seen here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/09/travel/fall-in-love-with-bees-on-an-apitourism-trip-to-slovenia.html 

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Contacts

Global public relations and Marketing
e-mail address: press(at)slovenia.info

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