According to Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, South Africa has seen a great number of visitors coming to our country. Between January and June, 2.2 million people visited. By October, the number had risen to 4.2 million.
And within our borders, the numbers looked equally promising with 15.2 million domestic trips in the first half of the year.
Purpose-driven travel
2022 was a wake up call, especially for travel, but this added a new sense of life and revival for the sector. The majority of us are seeking new adventures and ways to explore while we still can.
That includes; staycations, revenge travel, bleisure adventures, heritage holidays, multi-generational jaunts, Luxury time outs or sustainable tourism. The goal is to have these travel trends continue into the new year.
Profitroom
Since the pandemic Profitroom has on-boarded 61 hotels onto the world-class booking platform; with another 60 due to go live over the next three months. The result is that hotels that have implemented the Profitroom booking solution have seen direct revenue increases of between 49% and 150%.
Direct revenue is critical for hotels, they decrease costs and the hotel doesn’t have to pay an intermediary.
Currently, South Africa is the fastest-growing international market for Profitroom and Profitroom is the fastest-growing hotel booking engine within the South African market.
What the future holds
By using technology to address people’s desires for more meaningful, flexible, holistic travel experiences, can not only help ensure the sustainability of the travel industry, but the places people travel to as well.
South Africa’s travel industry will continue to show signs of improved health. James Vos, mayoral member for economic growth, said this regarding tourism in Cape Town: “Through tourism, we can continue to economically empower communities, while showcasing and sharing Cape Town’s rich cultural and historical heritage with visitors.
“My team and I at the City's economic growth directorate, together with Cape Town Tourism, the City's official destination marketing organisation, will continue working around-the-clock to secure more city-to-city connections with direct flights and trade agreements.
“(We will) implement clever campaigns backed up with conversion, which will drive demand and increased volumes to benefit business,’’ he concluded.