South Africa in the Nordics: Megafam concludes with a flourish

Johannesburg, South Africa: Following months of preparation and insights-driven planning, South African Tourism’s inaugural mega-familiarisation trip for the Nordic region took place in the second week of March 2018. Over eighty members of the travel trade spent time immersing themselves in the culture, vibrancy and warmth of the country’s nine provinces while sampling some of its many memorable attractions.

Total tourist arrivals recorded from the entire region for 2017 was 106 606, a 6% increase in arrivals compared to the same period last year (Sweden 48 552; Denmark 28 679; Norway 19 248 and Finland 10 127). “This positive growth, coupled with South Africa being named the best tourist destination at the Grand Travel Awards in Sweden in February, is testament to the fact that South Africa has what consumers from the Nordic region are looking for.”

“Our focus was on introducing variety to the region’s trade that deviated from the norm,” says South African Tourism’s Marketing and Promotions Manager for the Nordic Region, Abby Swartz. This, she says, was done by exploring ways of “enticing a largely untapped international consumer base, which seeks value-for-money experiences as well as an immersion into South African culture and the beauty of our people”.

South African Tourism partnered with 11 Destination Management Companies who made monetary contributions to the mega-fam trip, as well as South African Airways who were also integral to its success, fostering a spirit of collaboration and sustainable partnerships.

There were nine itineraries in total showcasing the entire country. Each of the nine groups had their journeys documented for purposes of sharing with their individual audiences as well as clients back in their respective countries, and a glimpse of each itinerary can be seen here:

KwaZulu-Natal (ITT Inspirations Travel and Tours and & Beyond managed itinerary):

Mpumalanga and Limpopo (Royal African Discoveries and SW Africa managed itineraries): 

Eastern Cape and North West (Tourvest DMC and Thompsons Africa managed itineraries): 

Northern Cape (Southern Africa 360^◦ Luxury Holidays managed itinerary): 

Western Cape and Northern Cape (Get Africa Travel managed itinerary):

Free State and Gauteng (SEEZA Destination Network managed itinerary): 

Cape Town City and surrounds (Giltedge Travel and Propel Africa Destination Management managed itineraries): 

Various South African industry players expressed enthusiasm at the way in which their engagement with South African Tourism and exposure to the Nordic trade had equipped them to tailor-make South African experiences for the Nordic consumer.

Here’s what they had to say:

Issued by South African Tourism

For further information, contact:

Abby Swartz at South African Tourism

Email: abby@southafrica.net

Website www.southafrica.net

Note to editors:

South African Tourism is the national tourism agency responsible for the marketing of South Africa as a preferred tourist destination. It is headed by Chief Executive Officer Mr Sisa Ntshona.

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