Grenada takes a stand on plastic waste
Growing opportunity
Africa was the subject of the first WTM London round table, held at Covent Garden Hotel. Gary Noakes reports
P
ut a group of Africa experts around a table and they will all agree on one thing – that for a continent so vast, Africa’s tourism potential is under-realised. WTM London’s eight-strong panel attempted to pinpoint why this was and suggest how to change it. All agreed too many countries were missing out. Live Travel owner Phil Haines said: “When people talk about Africa, they talk about the south and east, they forget that most of Africa isn’t actually there.”
One obstacle was the lack of mid-range accommodation. “It tends to be either very basic or very high end; there’s a gap in the market,” said Emma Campbell, Tucan Travel’s Africa and Europe destination manager. Martin Hawke, TripAdvisor Experiences’ Africa senior account manager, mentioned difficulties persuading local operators to trust internet selling: “Our main challenge is finding reputable suppliers. They exist, but it’s an education to get them to come online,” he said.
Air connectivity was another issue, although the panel felt it had improved, particularly with new routes from Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways. “It has got better, particularly between east and southern Africa; before, we had to offer private jets,” said Julian Asher, founder of luxury specialist Timeless Africa. Africa Oracle’s Kojo Tawiah, an adviser to tourist boards, is lobbying for Tanzania to get a London-Dar es Salaam flight – dropped four years ago – reinstated. “We’re also talking to private jet companies to do celebrity tourism. We’re looking at Zanzibar and Zimbabwe.”
8 wtm insights autumn 2018
Tawiah said client welfare was paramount: “The main issue with a lot of African countries is stability of the government – are your clients going to be safe?” The idea that Africa was one entity when natural disasters and epidemics occurred was another setback, the panel agreed. Hawke added: “We had people cancel trips to Johannesburg because of the drought in Cape Town.” The panel agreed that Africa tended to mean safari and beach and that other aspects need to be promoted. “The biggest trend we are seeing is the increase in food tourism,” said Hawke. “It’s something Africa needs to tap into because it is vast globally.” But Mark Hathaway, Gondwana
Tours and Safaris managing director, said: “I’ve been selling Botswana for eight years; we’ve had three clients say they are foodies. We said leave your foodie ambitions behind.” Asher said art tourism was “up and coming” in Africa.
Service levels could be another drawback, the panel agreed. “Many staff come from small villages and have never stayed in a hotel,” said Asher. But he added that at the luxury end “the challenge tends to be too much service”. Wi-Fi was a bone of contention, with some clients insistent on it despite remote locations. All agreed tourist boards needed to
do more, with fam trips around trade shows like Indaba and WTM Africa. “I spend five months a year in Africa,” said Asher. “There is nothing that replaces that experience; we will not sell a safari camp that a staff member has not stayed in, so pre and post tours is something that should be looked at.”
G
renada has stopped the import of polystyrene products ahead of a
complete ban on their use next year together with all single use plastic. The Caribbean island’s Non Biodegradable Waste Control Act barred the import of polystyrene or Styrofoam products at the start of the month. The products, which commonly include cups and plates, must be taken off sale by March 1, with a complete embargo on their
Maldives reports increased arrivals
N
ew high-profile resort openings helped the Maldives grow its tourism arrivals in the first half of 2018.
Total international arrivals for the first half of the year
reached 726,515 – a 10.5% rise over the first six months of 2017. The increase is attributed to a host of new resort openings, including more than 20 in 2018. UK arrivals to the islands increased by 11.2% during the first six months of the year. The Indian Ocean destination welcomed 57,535 UK arrivals between January and June 2018, compared with 51,737 visitors during the same period last year. According to arrival figures for June, the UK is the Maldives’ third largest international source market with a 6.9% share – ranking only behind China (17.5%) and Germany (8%). Tourism minister Moosa Zameer said: “The increase is testament to the country’s world-class tourism industry and with several exciting developments planned for the remaining months of 2018 and into 2019, including the opening of a number of resorts, we look forward to welcoming even more UK tourists to our shores.”
Turkey ‘back on the map’
Turkey ‘back on the map’
wtm.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
