Travel Trends to Look Out for at Africa's Travel Indaba

Travel Trends to Look Out for at Africa's Travel Indaba

South African tourism and hospitality businesses are smiling from ear to ear as our beloved industry is getting back on track. Tourists are currently flocking to our breathtaking country, especially in-and-around the buzzing Mother City and the sunny KZN region, to name but a few. Wherever one goes, whether it is the popular V&A Waterfront, traversing through top-class wine routes, taking a stroll on of our Blue Flag beaches, or hopping on the ever-popular Cape Town Red Bus Tour, tourists are excited to be back on our shores and exploring the great product that South Africa has to offer. ?

These exciting times are echoed by an article from earlier this year, where the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported that Air Traffic increased by 44.6% year-on-year in October 2022 on a global scale, whilst passenger numbers in 2023 are expected to surpass the 4 billion mark, for the first time since 2019.

Statistics like these are extremely encouraging, especially, as the industry is gearing up for the second Africa’s Travel Indaba since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.? Ahead of this year’s Indaba, ANEW Hotels & Resorts’ sales management team share their insights into some of the emerging trends that ANEW has noticed in the first few months of 2023.

Top Trends Ahead of Africa's Travel Indaba

Increase in room-nights?

“We have seen an increase in room nights over the past four months as the industry is back to normal, post the Covid-19 pandemic." says Themba Mthombeni, ANEW Hotels & Resorts’ Coastal Regional Sales Manager.? With most workers returning to working from the office, business travel is soaring in South Africa. A large trend in focusing on quality-vs-quantity is observed, with Travel Management Companies looking for multi-purpose stay experiences. With the expected 7%* rise in room rates across the globe- hotel sales teams need to make those important connections with Travel Management Companies, to effectively establish premium quality packages.

Team building and strategy sessions are back on the cards?

"Corporate companies are starting to book strategic meetings and team-building sessions with our hotels again- something very prevalent before the Covid-19 Pandemic" according to Themba. This aligns very well with the trend of hotels & resorts offering business travelers qualitative packages, which offers them a one-stop destination, mitigating the need to outsource any function during their travels. This includes offering them diverse travel opportunities, across a wide range of locations, which includes state-of-the-art conferencing and meeting spaces.

An influx in international requests?

“There has been an increase in corporate and strategy sessions, especially more towards our outlying and outer city properties.? Our corporate guests are looking for more luxury and their most prominent question is if we can withstand load-shedding and they are choosing their properties according to this. Luckily ANEW Hotels & Resorts has generators at all of its properties and can withstand our current tough load-shedding schedules, along with vast and secure Wi-Fi connections” says Tenielle Pienaar, ANEW Hotels & Resorts National Sales Manager.???

Furthermore, she adds “We have seen an influx in international conferencing requests and stay requests from the USA and a huge increase in requests and bookings from the Asian market. Hotels must remain at a high standard and focus on what the clients are getting and the extra things we will be doing for them. Luxury here is key. People are traveling for an experience and looking for something different.”?

A strong example of the untapped potential Asia holds for SA Tourism is China's outbound tourism market. Before the pandemic, they boasted the largest outbound tourism market globally with outbound Chinese tourists reaching a peak of almost 155 million in 2019. The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reported that in the same year, Chinese visitors contributed a substantial US$253 billion to the global economy. Within this lies a major growth opportunity for South Africa as the country has been named one of the country's preferred travel partners.

Africa’s Travel Indaba?

Elaborating on these tendencies and the theme of this year’s Indaba around connecting, Alan Campbell ANEW Hotels & Resorts Sales & Marketing Director, adds: “We are thrilled to see what new prospects and collaborations we will be making at this year’s Travel Indaba.? Last year’s energy on the exhibition floor was palpable.? We approached the previous exhibition with a lot of vigour, and we invested a lot in our stand. In 2023 we are aiming for another stellar year following our Inspiration Award win in 2022 at Africa’s Travel Indaba, and we hope to continue to break industry norms positively, through mindful and well-thought connections.”?

First Time Traveling to Indaba? Here are our top tips to make the most of your time

• ?Check Travel Indaba's event calendar - this will help you plan your day and ensure you don't miss out on anything.
• Use your meetings calendar wisely - it's a brilliant tool to meet with other exhibitors, buyers, or other stakeholders.
• Don’t overschedule your diary - you will need to take small breaks?and if you are booked back-to-back, that gets tricky.
• Wear comfy shoes - you will be on your feet for 9 hours - and you definitely don't want to do Indaba with blisters.
• Be open to making new connections (ones you didn’t think you would make).
• Keep an eye out for Indaba attendee-only specials, promos, and exclusive events! (Come visit our stand for a special surprise…).
• Time your lunch break strategically! Queuing is real, especially when everyone at the show gets hungry at the same time.
• Make use of the site maps and identify the nearest restroom to your stand, your meeting time is precious so you don’t want to spend an hour searching for the ladies…

And most of all enjoy the incredible friendly hospitality of the KZN locals.

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ANEW Hotels & Resorts received The Inspiration Award at Africa’s Travel Indaba 2022 as the organization that has for the past two years inspired Africa’s Travel Indaba community by the way in which it has challenged the odds to rise up and shine. As hospitality specialist, the group offers a uniquely different approach to the industry, focusing on curating a travel experience like no other!