The Bermuda Tourism Authority is launching a new promotional campaign that puts Bermudians front and centre highlighting their own communities.

The 9 People 9 Parishes campaign was formally launched yesterday with an event at Barr’s Bay Park featuring a screening of nine five-minute videos in which a selection of Bermudians sing the praises of the food, sights and culture of their home parishes.

Alana Wolffe, content manager at the Bermuda Tourism Authority, told attendees that the filming for the campaign started last July with the goal of having Bermudians telling their authentic stories and experiences.

She said: “Storytelling needs to be authentic. We need to tell Bermudian stories through Bermudians.

“One of the things we hear the most at the Bermuda Tourism Authority is that their favourite thing about Bermuda is not the beautiful scenery, although they love it. They love the people.

“That is why it is important. We have to showcase the people. We have to showcase the friendliness, we have to showcase the funniness.

“We didn’t give them a script. What we did was thought of questions we could ask them to tell their story but also relate to a visitor and an international audience.”

In the Eastern side of the island, Peter Frith represented the history of St George’s and St David’s, along with the cahows of Nonsuch Island and the beaches of Cooper’s Island.

Suzette Burgess Albouy highlighted the beauty of Baileys Bay and the Railway Trail in Hamilton Parish along with Tom Moore’s Jungle, Blue Hole Park and Flatts Village.

Steven Douglas showcased the coastline in Smiths including John Smith’s Bay, Watch Hill Park and Spittal Pond, along with his favourite restaurants in the area.

John Barry Nusum, representing Devonshire, put a spotlight on the Ocean View Golf Club, fishing at Devonshire Bay, harness racing at Vesey Street and the island coming together for events at the Flora Duffy Stadium.

In Pembroke, Dion Greene talked about the murals and cultural events in the heart of the City of Hamilton, along with the joys of jumping off the rocks at Admiralty House and relaxing at Pontoons.

Jonathan Correia showcased Paget’s impressive views of Hamilton harbour, along with art at Masterworks, the Paget marsh boardwalk and a traditional codfish and potatoes breakfast at the Parquet.

Further west, Tristan Narraway noted the less-visited beaches of Warwick, together with the peaceful Southlands National Park and Sherwin Pond.

Ed Christopher, Hamilton’s town crier, highlighted his home parish of Southampton, noting the sights from Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, the long stretch of beaches along South Shore and enjoying a red and blue snow cone.

Katura Horton-Perinchief meanwhile showcased the beauty of Sandys including the scenic Fort Scaur, the quaint Heydon Trust Chapel, swimming at Somerset Long Bay and the celebration of Cup Match.

Ms Wolffe said the videos will be released on a weekly basis with Ms Horton-Perinchief’s take on the West End kicking off the series.

While a special page has been created on gotobermuda.com for the campaign, she said the website was only the start of a wider campaign.

She said: “What we say in marketing is that this campaign has got legs. We are going to put it everywhere.

“We are going to put it on our newsletter, we are going to have it live on social, our PR agencies are going to use it when journalists come to the island, we are going to build itineraries out of it.

“Once you hear it from a Bermudian and you know where the locals are going, that’s the advice you want to take.”