In a first for both South Africa and the continent, the African Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AAVEA) released the highly-anticipated results of its inaugural attractions benchmark survey at its AAVEA 2021 Virtual Conference today, Thursday 19 August 2021.

The attractions benchmark survey results, researched and analysed in the second quarter of 2021 by Sabine Lehmann, an esteemed tourism industry professional, CEO of Curiositas, and the executive director of AAVEA, were compiled using data collected for 2019 and 2020. Bearing in mind the impact of COVID-19 and the national lockdown, the attractions benchmark survey report yielded the following fascinating snapshot of the attractions industry:

• South African attractions received a total of 11,7 million visitors in 2019.
• In 2019, the domestic market was the largest single source of visitors for attractions and experiences with 61%of visitations being domestic visitors.20% of full time jobs were lost at attractions between 2019 and 2020.
• The majority of attractions (66%) were closed for the equivalent of half a year or more in 2020.
• 27% say the attractions industry has changed fundamentally and we won't see those numbers again.

The full survey results report is available on the AAVEA website.

As the first membership-based organisation of its kind on the continent, AAVEA represents the interests of visitor experiences and attractions, raises awareness of the contribution they make to the broader tourism industry, and hosts events and online sessions that provide education, valuable engagement with industry peers, and collaboration opportunities.

The organisation announced its partnership with South African Tourism (SAT), the marketing agency for the Department of Tourism, in 2020. The survey results report is one of the key deliverables of this partnership.

Lehmann is delighted to be able to present this pioneering report and is looking forward to extending its reach in the future:

“If we wish to advocate for our sector within the tourism economy, then having data available to prove our importance in the industry is vital. Never has the role of the attractions and experience industry been more important than in the year when we lost international tourist arrivals. For the domestic tourism economy, visitor attractions and experiences are an instrumental driver of leaving home for a fun day out. We wish this to be the first of an annual attractions and experience survey which will eventually be extended to attractions and experiences in Africa.”

For more information about AAVEA and its industry data gathering initiatives, please visit www.aavea.org.za.

The African Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AAVEA), led by esteemed tourism professional Sabine Lehmann, is delighted with the release of the Department of Basic Education’s proposed staggered 2023 inland and coastal school holidays calendar for comment.

This proposed staggered school holidays will ensure a number of benefits to tourism operators, attractions, and the domestic tourism market, including the following:

Staggering school holidays, particularly the summer school holidays, would extend the domestic tourism season thus critically supporting this industry. Demand for accommodation, local flights, long distance bus trips, and camp sites would be spread across a broader time span. This would increase the opportunity for South Africans to enjoy their own country and could reduce the cost of domestic travel. Inter-provincial road travel would be spread over a broader time span, thus reducing traffic on the roads, leading to lower accident rates.Staggering school holidays would result in a longer peak season. A lengthened peak season increases the sustainability of tourism and results in job growth.

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has advocated reviewing school holiday schedules as a strategy for boosting domestic demand. AAVEA has lobbied with the Department of Basic Education for the past four years, advocating the benefits of staggered school holidays.Having first engaged the then Minister of Tourism Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane at its 2019 conference,

AAVEA is delighted that national government has now taken consideration of this global best practice:

“We encourage the Department of Basic Education to consider making this a permanent move both to aid tourism recovery as well as to encourage and promote domestic tourism in the years ahead. We look forward to assisting the Department in any way that we can with the next steps for this exciting development,including by sharing data we have recently collected in our first benchmark survey of South African attractions ”, says Lehmann.

As the first membership-based organisation of its kind on the continent, AAVEA represents the interests of visitor experiences and attractions, raises awareness of the contribution they make to the broader tourism industry, and hosts events and online sessions that provide education, valuable engagement with industry peers, and collaboration opportunities.The organisation announced its partnership with South African Tourism (SAT), the marketing agency for the Department of Tourism, in 2020.

Join the #StaggeredSASchoolHolidays conversation online this August:

AAVEA and its partner South African Tourism are excited to discuss this promising new development with participants at their upcoming AAVEA 2021 virtual conference on Thursday 19 August 2021. Registration is now open.For more information about AAVEA and its lobbying initiatives, please visit www.aavea.org.za.

The African Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AAVEA), in partnership with South African Tourism (SAT), the marketing agency for the Department of Tourism, is pleased to announce that it will host its second virtual conference, AAVEA 2021, on Thursday 19 August 2021.

This year’s virtual conference will feature a theme focussed on "Unfolding future: Insights that will inform our approaches for tomorrow" and is set to be a day of inspiring presentations by keynote international speakers, thought-provoking panel discussions, an interactive exhibition space, and more.

Stepping up to virtually inspire the continent’s attractions and visitor experiences professionals at the AAVEA 2021 conference are:

- Liam R Findlay, a Themed Scent Consultant for AromaPrime in the UK. AromaPrime provides attractions with every smell from Pirate Ship to Penguin Sick! Past projects include an authentic T-rex scent for the British Museum, celebrity fragrances for Madame Tussauds, and horrific stenches for Halloween scare mazes. Liam’s AAVEA 2021 virtual presentation will focus on  how to boost profits at local attractions with multisensory tricks.

- Chao Tayiana Maina is a Kenyan digital heritage specialist and digital humanities scholar working at the intersection of culture and technology. Chao is the founder of African Digital Heritage, a co-founder of the Museum of British Colonialism, and a co-founder of the Open Restitution African Project – each an online initiative seeking to encourage a more critical, holistic, and knowledge-based approach to the design and implementation of digital solutions within African cultural heritage. Her AAVEA 2021 virtual presentation will focus on exploration of digital initiatives within African heritage and building sustainable digital solutions within heritage practice. 

An exciting addition to the 2021 virtual programme is the highly anticipated release of  the results of the first ever benchmark study for South African attractions. Using data aggregated from visitor experiences and attractions across the country, the benchmark study will help attractions managers and the tourism industry to understand the important role that visitor attractions play, particularly in the domestic tourism economy. Additional speakers and programme news will follow in the months to come. 

Sabine Lehmann, president of AAVEA, is excited to welcome attractions professionals to the second virtual conference:

“Hosting our conference online presents us with the unique opportunity to welcome participants and speakers from all around the world and elevates the experience! When you have the greatest minds in the industry meeting, learning, and being inspired by each other it doesn’t matter if we’re online or in-person - the possibilities for collaboration and growth within the attractions sector are endless. The AAVEA board and I look forward to engaging with all conference participants this August!” 

AAVEA and South African Tourism (SAT) announced their collaborative partnership in 2020. The national tourism marketing agency is thrilled to co-host the virtual conference once again: 

"South African Tourism has an exciting three year partnership with AAVEA and we are pleased to be collaborating with this key association this year again. We are working together to positively help the recovery of our tourism industry and to honor our heroes in this sector that have managed to survive during this difficult time in our country. The virtual conference will be an incredible springboard to use to connect, share insights including the first ever benchmark study for our own South African attractions and experiences" ,says Amanda Kotze-Nhlapo ,Acting Chief Quality Assurance Officer of South African Tourism. 

Be inspired at the AAVEA 2021 Virtual Conference: 

Registration for the AAVEA 2021 Virtual Conference will open in July 2021. Fees are R1 500.00 for AAVEA members and R2 600.00  for non-members. For more information about the conference and South African Tourism, please visit www.aavea.org.za.

Cape Town, South Africa (November 2018) - A new website is here, dedicated to those looking for special deals on tours and activities in South Africa. Special Tours provides the most comprehensive list of things to do, as well as the best prices offered. Using a simple, clear design, the website brings a South African itinerary to both locals and tourists alike.

South Africa is a gem of tourist attractions, and Special Tours aim to highlight this throughout the website. Created with the purpose of being an extensive source of information on the top things to do in South Africa. The website hosts a wide range of content relating to experiences found in SA.

Some of the main areas that the website will focus on are Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban, the Garden Route. With already some interesting listing like boat cruises, paragliding, Cape point tours, Table Mountain activities, helicopter rides, ziplines and safaris. The website is poised to showcase some of the best activities and experiences that South Africa has to offer and allow users to search and pick tours for the best price using the advances compassion features.

Activities and prices are constantly updated to give users the latest information and best experience. The website also offers helpful guides on the best way to enjoy South Africa and at great prices.

Users are able to find the best things to do in each location of SA, activities are separated by area. This feature allows users to plan activities that are near to each other. It also allows visitors to SA to easily view things that they can do around their holiday destination.

Details of tours and activities are stated clearly on the website, with a simple button to book each one. The option to review these activities is offered, allowing users to review and to check other reviews before booking.

To learn more and use this new website to take advantage of its innovative features, please visit  https://specialtours.co.za

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SpecialToursSouthAfrica/

Twitter https://twitter.com/SpecialToursZA

Pinterest https://za.pinterest.com/specialtourssouthafrica/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/specialtours.za/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcDVrVYeysZB6xZf5yVIy3A

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/special-tours-south-africa/

The spectacular, Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa continues to demonstrate its cutting-edge relevance and elegance by adding numerous, prestigious awards to their already impressive list of accolades. The renowned Johannesburg establishment has received three World Luxury Awards, The Diners Club Platinum Wine List Award 2017, and obtained an astounding 97% grading score from South African Tourism thereby cementing their long standing Five Star status. These achievements are indeed testament to the excellence and innovation that Fairlawns is synonymous with. Fairlawns has recently been awarded multiple awards including the Diners Club Platinum Wine List Award for 2017, Luxury Hotel Restaurant, Regional Category, at the 2017 World Luxury Restaurant Awards, Luxury Spa Hotel – Country Winner and Luxury Boutique Hotel, Regional Winner: South Africa.

 Their latest source of pride is the decadent MUSE Champagne Room and adjoining Courtyard, in collaboration with French Champagne House, Perrier-Jouët, a sumptuous mix of elegance and contemporary design, using nature as its source of inspiration. MUSE offers an eclectic range of designer cocktails, as well as a signature Casse-Croûte menu.  

The Fairlawn’s flagship restaurant, Amuse-Bouche, was announced as a winner in the Luxury Hotel Restaurant, Regional Category, at the 2017 World Luxury Restaurant Awards held in Hanoi, Vietnam. Awards in this category are based on the food experience combined with aspects of service excellence, presentation, quality and menu choices, as well as the high standard of interior design. 

The World Luxury Hotel Awards bestowed a further two awards on Fairlawns; “Luxury Spa Hotel – Country Winner” and “Luxury Boutique Hotel, Regional Winner: South Africa”. These prestigious awards are truly something to be proud of and to win in three categories, admirable!   The World Luxury Hotel Awards is the pinnacle of achievement in the luxury hotel industry, offering international recognition as voted by guests, travellers and industry players alike. Over 300 000 international travellers vote each year to select the winners. The World Luxury Hotel Awards is a recognised global organisation providing luxury hotels with recognition for their world class facilities and service excellence provided to guests, (https://luxuryhotelawards.com/).  

Fairlawns Boutique Hotel &  Spa is an all-round star in all aspects; food, beverages, accommodation, spa, service, decor and guest experience!  It is therefore only fitting that they receive an almost perfect score from South African Tourism. They are incredibly proud to have earned a very impressive, 97% score in their grading as a 5-star boutique hotel. Undisputedly one of South Africa’s very best boutique hotels!  

“As we stand on the cusp of December 2017, it is imperative for me to reflect on what has essentially been a continuation of Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa’s ‘butterfly years’ – taking the property from a grand old dame, to an exquisite tour de force, not only from a South African perspective, but also internationally. I stand indebted to my wonderful staff, and also to the guests of Fairlawns, both those who have been visiting our lovely oasis in the city for years, even decades, and also those who have only recently discovered us. I am humbled by these achievements and would like to thank each and every person, including our most loyal guests, who contributed to Fairlawns’ success over the past year. It is full steam ahead for us as we have dreams to build, plans to action, smiles to create, and wings to grow”, shares Michael Kewley, Managing Director of the Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa.

Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa, an award-winning five-star boutique hotel, is conveniently situated in the Sandton suburb of Morningside Manor. A short 6 km from central Sandton, and 20 km from the Johannesburg city centre, Fairlawns offers the upmarket guest a delicate mix of luxury and convenience. Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa opens up a whole world of relaxation, complimented with superior service, a personal touch and always surprising guests by transporting them to a sanctuary that appeals to all six senses. A unique, exclusive, up-market oasis.

The City Lodge Hotel Group will soon start developing the 90-room Road Lodge Pietermaritzburg which is scheduled to open for business in November.

The group announced at its interim results in Johannesburg last week that Road Lodge Pietermaritzburg will commence before the end of February, becoming the 22nd Road Lodge in the country and the 56th hotel in the City Lodge Hotel Group.

Road Lodge Pietermaritzburg will be situated on the corner of New England Road and Hesketh Drive in Hayfields and will employ at staff of 15.

Road Lodge is the budget one star brand within the four brand City Lodge Hotel Group – the other three brands being the four-star Courtyard Hotel, the three-star City Lodge Hotel and the two-star Town Lodge brands.

Targeting both business and leisure travellers, Road Lodge Pietermaritzburg will enable up to three guests to share a room for the single room rate.

November 2014

On Monday, 24 November, the 5-star Kurland Hotel, situated in Plettenberg Bay, hosted this year’s CXPRESS Garden Route Culinary Awards, at its seasonal restaurant, Katarina’s Kitchen + Bar. At the awards ceremony, Kurland Hotel Restaurant was presented with the Best Service 2014 Award, which was accepted on behalf of the Hotel by Executive Chef, Leon Coetzee.

Owner of Kurland Hotel, Peter Behr says: “We are proud to receive the Best Service Award and it’s a wonderful way to start the summer season ahead. It was also a great platform to showcase some of our culinary offerings for the season ahead at both Kurland Hotel Restaurant, the finer dining option, and Katarina’s Kitchen + Bar which is family bistro style cuisine.” 

This event was judged by head honcho of the South African Chaîne de Rôtisseurs, Francois Ferreira and Anne Hadley, local foodie supreme and better half of the late Ian Hadley, who started the awards shortly after the turn of the century to acknowledge local service and cooking excellence. The judges were supported by a team of 16 ‘ghost diners’.

This press release has been distributed on behalf of our client, Kurland Hotel.

For more information,

contact Reservations on 044 534 8082.

Kurland Hotel can be viewed at: www.kurland.co.za

South African Airways warns the public of fraudulent sites that give misleading information about SAA’s Cadet Pilot Development Programme and cabin crew recruitment process. We provide information on what people should be aware of.  

Johannesburg, South Africa – South African Airways (SAA) would like to advise the South African public that it has taken note of unofficial websites that purport to be SAA official websites. Those websites contain false and/or misleading information about SAA’s Cadet Pilot Development Programme and cabin crew recruitment process. 

SAA would like to clarify that it does not have any relationship whatsoever with those false channels (websites), nor the individuals behind them. Members of the public are advised to take caution and are encouraged to contact SAA telephonically in case they need to verify the official SAA electronic platforms that they should use.

A quick way of identifying these bogus sites is by looking out for a fee that is required to be paid to “secure an application, or to ensure that an applicant gets shortlisted’’. SAA never charges any fee during recruitment drives.  

Cadet Pilot applications

On 14 September 2014, SAA invited young South Africans who aspire to become pilots to send their applications for the 2014/2015 intake of SAA’s Cadet Pilot Programme. The advert was placed in some of the national weekend newspapers. In addition, the following official SAA electronic communication channels carried the advert: SAA website (flysaa.com), SAA’s Facebook page (FlySAA) and SAA’s Twitter account (@flysaa). The closing date for the submission of applications was 27 September 2014.

Due to the high demand, SAA decided to extend the closing date to 3 October 2014. That date has since passed and no further extensions have been granted.   

Unofficial websites

SAA views the fraudulent use of its corporate identity in a serious light. It is not only potentially harmful to the brand but poses a risk of exposing unsuspecting members of the public to the risk of having their personal information getting into the wrong hands.   Should the airline obtain reliable information about any persons behind this scam, SAA will not hesitate to take legal action.  

About SAA

South African Airways is a Star Alliance member that offers flights to 38 destinations worldwide. Domestically, SAA operates 544 flights a week between Johannesburg – Cape Town, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth. Regionally SAA offers 24 destinations across the African continent and its international network creates links to all major continents from South Africa through 10 direct routes. In the regional category, SAA has received the Skytrax ‘Best Airline in Africa’ Award for 11 consecutive years.

October 2014– At the 2014 Diner’s Club Winelist Awards, the 5-star Hotel Izulu, Ballito, has been awarded, for the second time, the impressive Diamond status, gaining a score of over 90%, for its new and extensive wine list.

This is the fifth year that the Hotel has won an award and the second year it has gained the prestigious Diamond status.   States Managing Director, Grant Pringle: “We’re incredibly proud of the team for achieving this and gaining such high results due to our new culinary and beverage experiences.

Based on organic ingredients the extensive menus in Gigi’s Brasserie, the private Chef’s Table, the romantic Wine Cellar and banqueting in the Imbizo Hall have all been created by Executive Chef, Jennifer du Toit.

Our pioneering monthly Wine Markets, in conjunction with leading and award-winning South African Wine Estates, have really gone a long way to uplifting wine awareness in our region.”  

Voyagers throughout the world who want to fulfill their African safari dreams can now plan personalized journeys by banking on Selftours, a registered company that is bonded with SATSA (South Africa Tourism Services Association). The national members of SATSA look after your financial security totally and meet complete holiday requirements. Selftours is one of the most eminent South African Tour Operators which provides customized and affordable South African holiday tours that can be tough to forget throughout life.  

Selftours gladly announces its recent 6 days self-drive tour packages of the Southern Cape Coast of South Africa. The package contains economical B&B accommodation, car rental assistance, road maps, 2 nominated drivers, motoring tips, brochures and lists of things to view in travelling area that can help tourists to be completely worry-free and make a trip to remember. The offer is valid till August 2014.The 6 days and 5 nights self-drive tour package gives the tourists an opportunity to spend 3 nights in Cape Town and 2 nights in stunningly beautiful Knysna with special add-ons of Kruger Park Safari, Gorilla trekking etc.By availing the Economical Cape Town & Knysna Garden Route package, tourists can experience the grand Victoria Falls, Madagascar and Zanzibar just at R4702 till October, 2014.  

Those who are looking forward to have complete assistance in self-drive tours, guided coach tours, adventure package tours and hotel packages in and around South Africa, Selftours is the ultimate solution for them. The well-experienced and reliable team assists the travellers in arranging their holiday and creates a holiday schedule based on the tourists’ requirements and budget. For tourists looking for beaches or countryside- Selftours proposes the best alternatives. From South African Garden Route tour to Cape Point-Winelands tour, Kruger National Park safari along with other self-drive tour packages, Selftours offers the voyagers to explore the unparalleled beauty of the nation.  

For further information on planning safari tours in South African countries visit http://www.selftours.co.za/. 

About Selftours:

Selftours, founded in 2000, is a leading South Africa based tour operator and travel agency that specializes in tailor-made safari tours and holiday packages for travellers across the world. Interested clients can visit the main office in Cape Town on Monday to Friday from 8:30 to 16:30 to get sincere assistance.  

Contact:

Tel: 021 591 0261
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

107 Hamilton St
Goodwood.
7460
Cape Town
Western Cape
South Africa