- India retains its place amongst the top-3 focus markets for South African Tourism
- Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Pune continue to be top Indian source markets to South Africa
- Over 1 in 4 Indian arrivals to South Africa are motivated by MICE
- Ahmedabad emerges as one of the fastest growing source markets in India
- Constitution Hills is a Mahatma Gandhi inspired tourist attractions in Johannesburg.
NE BUSINESS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 9
The South African Tourism on Tuesday said it is eyeing 64 percent year-on-year growth in arrivals from India in 2022, capitalising on strong consumer demand in the country through various marketing initiatives, including roadshows.
India continues to be one of the top-three focus markets for South Africa, which has outlined a strategic road map to garner 64 percent y-o-y increase in Indian visitors in 2022, a senior official of the South African Tourism said.
The 36-member South African trade delegation reiterated the tourism board’s emphasis on expanding the destination and product offering – thus, offering Indian consumers More & More! In addition to experiences, representatives from accommodation establishments, destination management companies, South African Provinces, SMMEs and women-owned companies showcased their product and services, while engaging Indian travel and trade associates.
India retains its place amongst the top-3 focus markets for South African Tourism. This is aided by the fact that prior to the pandemic, India served as the 8th largest international source market for South Africa. The country is expected to maintain its position in the top-10 this year as well. Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Pune continue to be top Indian source markets to South Africa.
“We have spent the last two years hoping for and preparing for this exact moment – the return of travel! As South African businesses land on Indian shores, we are excited to be introducing our partners and consumers to a host of value-driven and thoughtfully crafted adventures. Our evolved brand strategy will help us drive South Africa’s value proposition across stakeholders while creating customized engagement models to suit the unique requirements from each of our target regions within India. We are already seeing an uptick in forward travel bookings and hope to further build aspiration and intent to travel,” said Neliswa Nkani, Hub Head, MEISEA, South African Tourism.
Ahmedabad emerged as one of the fastest growing source markets for South African Tourism in India. Consumers from Ahmedabad frequently visit the Rainbow Nation for business, leisure and VFR. Millennial families, solo travellers and friend groups are the most common traveller segments to South Africa.
Gandhi inspired tours
To a query on important take away for Gujaratis, Neliswa Nkani said, “Constitution Hills is a Mahatma Gandhi inspired tourist attractions in Johannesburg. The Gandhi Inspired tourist attractions identifies a number of places that were seminal in Gandhis life in South Africa. Identifying these places enables people from all over the world to come and walk in his footsteps, and experience the places where Gandhi made history in South Africa.
She said, “We believe the attractions will be very informative to both South African and international visitors and will resonate particularly with those who wish to learn more about Gandhi’s South African experience. This will not only tells its own compelling story, but can also be integrated into a wider visitor experience by highlighting places where Gandhi created history Constitution Hill and Johannesburg’s Old Fort Prison, a jail where Gandhi and Madiba (Nelson Mandela) were held and many more.”
Through a press conference, the tourism board highlighted that boosting connectivity and ease of travel to the destination was a core area of focus this year. The destination, which remains open to Indian travellers, is also processing tourist visas on priority. At present, several stop-over flights fly from India to South Africa, including Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, Air Arabia, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and Air Mauritius. Travellers from India to South Africa will be required to produce a negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, not older than 72 hours from the time of departure from the country of origin to South Africa.
Revealing future steps on connectivity and value, Neliswa Nkani added,“We are glad to announce that we on track to roll-out e-visas in India in the coming months. We are also conscious of the need for value-driven itineraries and are undertaking bullish measures to ensure that every rupee spent ensures maximum returns. By engaging with airlines on subsidized fares for the India market, we are looking to bring down the cost of travel remarkably.”
While consolidating its position in wildlife, adventure and cultural offerings, the destination will also target the niche film tourism market, for which South African Tourism has seen an upswing in enquiries and destination shoots. In order to arrive at this, the destination is engaging aggressively with production houses and OTT platforms.
Well-timed with the easing of international travel restrictions in India, these strategic efforts are expected to increase summer outbound traffic to South Africa and contribute to the recovery of the tourism sectors in both countries.
Website www.southafrica.net
