ANALYSIS
ATTRACTING VISITORS
South Africa’s tourism industry is on a mission to draw more visitors by capitalising on new products and improved airlift. Words: Karl Cushing
The UK and Ireland is a key market for South Africa, and despite a small dip in the number of arrivals in 2018, with the number of visitors from Britain and Ireland down by 4.2% year-on-year for the first nine months of 2018 (falling from 318,400 to 305,200), South African Tourism is confident the UK and Ireland market will rebound in 2019. It has developed a strategy to attract four million more international tourists to the country by 2021. Aiding the process will be increased airlift from the UK. British Airways services 38 flights a week from London, its biggest programme to date. This includes its new thrice-weekly service to Durban and increased services to Cape Town and Johannesburg. Furthermore,
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Virgin Atlantic increased its Johannesburg service to double daily in October, while passengers from the North of England are able to connect to destinations such as Johannesburg using Ethiopian Airlines’ new four-times-a-week service from Manchester to Addis Ababa launched in December. The destination will continue to push
its established selling points, not least the enviable summer weather during the European winter; the excellent gastronmic offering, from world-class wines to farmers markets; and the minimal time difference (GMT+2). Moreover, the country’s recent weakness against the pound, and its famed value and affordability, could acquire added resonance should a slump in sterling make holidaying in the eurozone less attractive.
# H O W T O S E L L SO U T H A F RI C A
DYNAMIC DESTINATIONS There’s been an increased focus on
highlighting different regions to attract new visitors and disperse tourism away from big hitters such as the Cape Winelands and Garden Route. One obvious example is KwaZulu-Natal, backed by the new British Airways flights from Heathrow to Durban. Airlift is just one part of Destination
Durban’s strategy for growing its tourism profile, however. Other current focuses include the R200 million project to build a new cruise terminal, set for completion in late 2020, and the Durban Point waterfront redevelopment, which will provide a welcome boost to the city’s hotel stock and hospitality offering. Another major project has seen the creation of uMfolozi Big Five Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal on donated tribal lands. The tract, which is being incorporated into Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park, will be backed by two new high-end lodges. Cape Town has also seen some positive UK market developments in the past few
IMAGE: PETE GODING
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