SOUTH AFRICA’S HIDDEN GEM
CONNECTIONS, engagement and showcasing South Africa’s diverse tourist offerings were on the cards at the second “Learn SA Workshop” in the Philippines.
Hosted by South African Tourism (SAT), South African Embassy and Singapore Airlines, the workshop presented South Africa’s key travel opportunities, establishments and experiences to the travel trade and media.
“We are excited to be showcasing South Africa’s rich and varied travel offerings that can be packaged to the Philippines trade. We would like to extend our relations in this market by encouraging the large DMCs to work with small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs) whilst incorporating them into itineraries in a meaningful way. We look forward to building and strengthening relationships in this market whilst inspiring and encouraging people to visit the beautiful country of South Africa for business and leisure,” SAT’s Hub Head Middle East, India and South East Asia, South African Tourism Neliswa Nkani shared during the workshop.
With an aim to train over 1,000 agents across Southeast Asia, the program is aimed to facilitate a more collaborative vcand mutually beneficial learning environment.
“We noticed the behavior of the Filipino traveler is changing, they look for more experience-based and memorable holidays than simple itineraries. Keeping this in mind, South African Tourism is investing a lot of time in educating the trade partners on how they can maximize from the offerings available. We have received encouraging response for ‘Learn SA’ each year which shows that it is a perfect platform to enhance trade partners’ knowledge on South Africa,” Nkani added.
Speaking at the event, Acting Ambassador Boiki Motloung also noted, “In 2018 , the SA Tourism and the South African Embassy held a very successful ‘Explore South Africa’ tourism seminar where over 250 marketers and destination promoters participated. We are excited to once again host this auspicious occasion which promotes people-to-people contact between the two countries”
The Philippines has seen a six- percent growth from the previous year and South African Tourism expects it to only grow further in the coming years.