Being well-known for its history, art and culture, the Flemish cities in Northern Belgium has mainly been known among people specifically interested in these subjects. But with pretty buildings, charming squares, a short flight from the Scandinavian capitals, low hotel prices during weekends, a great train network making it possible to visit several cities in one weekend, and not at least numerous cultural and culinary experiences, the Flemish cities are also great city break destinations. As Scandinavian representative for VISITFLANDERS since 2014, Related has therefore worked towards positioning Flanders’ art cities as attractive city break destinations among Nordic travelers. This has been done through various PR activities, aiming to increase awareness and attractiveness of the destination – also among younger travelers who are very fond of city breaks.
Aiming to focus on the cities such as Brussels, Antwerp, Bruges and Gent instead of the term “Flanders” (which few know about), we have organized influencer and blogger trips as well as media pitches and press trips. Further, Related have coordinated competitions with brands, influencers and media to promote Hi Belgium Pass, a new product from Brussels Airlines ideal for weekend city breaks.
As a result, VISITFLANDERS received media coverage in Sweden, Denmark and Norway for a total advertorial value of almost 1 million Euro and a total readership exceeding 12,8 million people as a result of Related’s activities.
Consequently, a recent survey shows that the awareness of Belgium (the amount of Nordic people knowing about Belgium as travel destination) has increased from 66.4 % in 2017 to 76.3 % in 2020 – and no less than 56 % of all Nordic millennials (age 18-34) say that they would like to visit the destination.
