Saint-Martin Tourist Office launches locally created ‘It’s a Feeling’ Tourism Campaign

GRAND CASE, Saint-Martin--The Office de Tourisme de Saint-Martin has launched a new international destination campaign, “It’s a Feeling,” built around the idea that what distinguishes Saint-Martin cannot be captured by beaches and scenery alone, but by the emotions, culture, people, food and experiences visitors associate with the island.

The campaign was officially unveiled Friday at Grand Case Beach Club before tourism stakeholders, invited guests and members of the media, marking what Tourism Office officials described as the first major destination communication campaign of its kind for Saint-Martin in more than 10 years.

Rather than immediately moving into a conventional presentation, the Tourism Office designed the launch around an airline travel experience. Guests arriving at the venue were first presented with passport-style surveys asking them about their favorite places to eat, preferred viewpoints and other island experiences. The responses also formed part of the Tourism Office’s ongoing statistical information gathering.

Guests later received access cards designed to resemble airline boarding passes before moving into another room arranged to create the atmosphere of an aircraft cabin, where the campaign and its creative concept were formally presented.

The central message unveiled during the event was simple: Saint-Martin. It’s a Feeling.

Tourism officials explained that the campaign was developed only after a broader process of consultation and research involving residents, tourists, tourism professionals and others connected to the destination.

The Tourism Office also looked beyond Saint-Martin itself, engaging with people connected to neighboring destinations including Anguilla and St. Barthélemy as part of an effort to better understand the island’s place within the wider regional tourism environment.

Officials said that process was important because Saint-Martin has long been identified with the “Friendly Island” image, a strong identity that the Tourism Office did not want to discard. Instead, the challenge was to develop an international signature capable of complementing that established reputation while reflecting how visitors actually experience the island.

The resulting campaign focuses on emotion.

Tourism representatives noted during the presentation that sun, sea and sand are available throughout the Caribbean. Saint-Martin, they argued, must therefore communicate more than the physical attributes commonly used to promote island destinations.

The new campaign instead points to what visitors feel while they are here and what they remember when they leave.

Those experiences include the island’s people, its mix of cultures, cuisine, spices, restaurants, turquoise waters, hills, sunsets, water activities and the atmosphere created by the many different elements that make up Saint-Martin.

The Tourism Office said it consistently hears from visitors who feel compelled to return because there is something about the island they have difficulty describing. “It’s a Feeling” is intended to give that emotional connection a central place in Saint-Martin’s international tourism identity.

The campaign presentation demonstrated that concept through a series of experiences.

Some places, officials explained, catch the eye. Others cause visitors to slow down and relax. Food and cuisine awaken the senses, while water sports and activities can increase the pace of a vacation.

Other experiences bring people together.

The Tourism Office highlighted growing interest in group travel, girls’ trips, bachelor celebrations and multigenerational vacations, with groups and families increasingly choosing Saint-Martin as a place to spend time together.

Romance is another area the destination intends to develop.

Tourism officials said romance has been identified as an important tourism pillar, with increasing numbers of visitors choosing the island for weddings and other romantic experiences. During the launch, reference was made to one tourism professional already having seven weddings planned for 2027.

Officials also pointed to measures that have helped facilitate weddings on the island and indicated that the destination sees room for further development in that market.

Food will likewise remain a major part of the island’s tourism identity.

During the campaign presentation, officials emphasized the range of cuisines, aromas, spices and dining experiences available in Saint-Martin, presenting the island’s culinary diversity as one of the characteristics capable of separating it from competing destinations.

Water activities are another element highlighted in the campaign, alongside the island’s beaches, natural environment and opportunities for visitors simply seeking rest and rejuvenation.

The underlying idea is that visitors do not necessarily remember Saint-Martin because of one attraction. Instead, individual moments combine to create an experience that remains with them after the vacation has ended.

One of the most significant aspects of the new campaign is where it was created.

Tourism Office officials said major international firms would ordinarily be called upon to develop a destination campaign of this scale. Work on the new campaign had in fact initially involved an international company, but the Tourism Office eventually reconsidered that approach.

Officials explained that Saint-Martin is difficult to understand from the outside because its tourism product does not fit neatly into a single category.

The island does not cater exclusively to one type of visitor or one level of clientele. Instead, its tourism industry serves different markets, interests and types of travelers.

Tourism representatives said they came to the conclusion that properly communicating the island required people who understood not just tourism marketing, but Saint-Martin itself: its rhythm, character, people and energy.

The strategy was subsequently reviewed and the campaign developed locally.

Officials described the finished campaign as 100 percent made locally, while acknowledging members of the team who contributed to its communications, strategy, optimization, photography, visuals and overall creative development.

Among those recognized during the launch were Edouard Glasgow from the communication service, Anouk Talbot for work connected to strategy and optimization across the markets where the campaign will be developed, photographer and creative contributor Thomas Proust, Christophe Champard and others involved in bringing the campaign together.

The Tourism Office also made clear that “It’s a Feeling” is not intended to remain static.

Officials said its fonts, colors, imagery and other creative elements can continue to evolve as the campaign develops, allowing Saint-Martin’s international communication to adapt while maintaining the central identity established by the new signature.

A teaser version of the destination’s promotional video was also presented during the launch. Officials said the material will eventually be distributed across the Tourism Office’s communication platforms, through paid campaigns and during tourism trade events.

The campaign is also being positioned for international deployment, including within the North American market.

Tourism officials stressed, however, that international marketing alone will not determine whether the campaign succeeds.

Residents, businesses and tourism stakeholders were described as the island’s first ambassadors, with the Tourism Office encouraging stakeholders to understand, adopt and help communicate the new destination identity.

Aida Weinum of the Office de Tourisme told those gathered that tourism cannot be built by the Tourism Office alone and that stakeholders need to understand where the destination is going, why the strategy is being pursued and how the sector can move forward together.

The broader goal is to create a unified message about Saint-Martin while giving the destination a tourism identity that goes beyond traditional Caribbean imagery.

The campaign suggests that some destinations may catch a visitor’s attention while others remain with them long after they leave.

For Saint-Martin, the Tourism Office believes that difference is something visitors experience rather than something that can always be explained.

Saint-Martin. It’s a Feeling.

Images and information taken from the live coverage of All Access with Audrey Jack.

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