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A total of around 3 million Germans visit South Africa each year. Considering that the average stay is 14 days with a daily average spending of EUR 55 or ZAR 500 per person, the German market alone has a value of R 2,1 billion per annum.

Yet how many guests houses, hotels or other tourism establishments in South Africa market to the largest spending group of tourists visiting our shores - hardly any. Statistics show that 49% of all reservations are done directly on-line. Would you anticipate a German sitting at their PC typing search words into a search engine in English or German?

Any business spends thousands of Rands on marketing and on the development of a web page - yet why not make your web page work correctly and target the audience that spends most of the tourism Rands in South Africa?

A copy of the your web page translated into German, with German search engine modification will attract, without any doubt, far more clientele and a lot more bed nights, and is far less expensive in regards to marketing than expensive ad's.

British Airways Increases Capacity To Cape Town

British Airways has announced that it will reduce some of its Johannesburg capacity from the end of October.

The airline will still operate its double-daily services between London and Johannesburg but will suspend flight BA34, which operates as a third daily flight on the route five days a week.
At the same time it will introduce an additional six services to Cape Town to offer 13 weekly flights from London over the South African summer period.
Sue Botes, British Airways’ commercial manager in South Africa, explains that some capacity had been withdrawn from the global network during the recession but that South Africa had been protected because of the World Cup.
“Now that the tournament is over, we’re adjusting our capacity to better match demand. That’s why we’ve increased services to Cape Town, where we’re expecting bumper demand this summer.”

Source: SA Tourism Update

27 September World Tourism Day

Kleinmond Tourism has arranged a Safari Dinner and Treasure Hunt. Gansbaai Tourism has arranged quad bike rides and wine tasting between 14h00 and 18h00. The day aims to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values.

For more info contact:

Gansbaai Tourism Bureau at 028 384 1439

Kleinmond Tourism Bureau at 028 271 5657

CWC Goes Gaga At Getaway

CWC wins 'Best Destination Stand' at the Getaway Show.

The Getaway Show is an informative and interactive 3D experience of everything the Getaway brand epitomises - beautiful and unusual destinations, affordable accommodation, the latest outdoor gear and gadgets, 4x4 vehicles and accessories, an array of camping equipment and incredible adventures – all under one roof.

The 18th Getaway Show takes place from 10-12 September 2010 at the Coca-Cola Dome in Johannesburg. This show is still considered the No 1 Travel and Outdoor Show in Africa.

In 2009 the show attracted 19 500 show goers, and 250 exhibitors. The show also includes a number of activities that take place alongside the exhibits, including:
• Photography and GPS Workshops
• Adventure Arena
• Beer Tent
• Kiddies Area
• Spin & Win
• R1 million worth of prizes
• For the past 5 years the show has had a 4x4 vehicle (in 2009 a Honda CR-V) as the main prize.

HSI Supports Shark Finning Workshop

PUNTARENAS, Costa Rica (September 10, 2010) – A two-day international workshop on shark conservation, hosted by Costa Rica’s Fisheries Authority INCOPESCA and supported by the NGOs Pew and Humane Society International, took place in the Costa Rican port of Puntarenas. The workshop, which focused on the technical aspects of landing sharks with their fins naturally attached to their bodies, was attended by delegates from 13 North, Central and South American countries.

The “fins-attached” method has gradually been gaining international recognition because it is the best response to end the practice of shark finning and ensures fewer shark catches. The United Nations General Assembly, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the review process of the UN Fish Stocks agreement have all recommended “fins-attached” policies.

Facts:
Sharks are apex predators whose survival affects all other marine species and entire ocean ecosystems.

"Finning" refers to the act of cutting off a shark's fins and throwing the rest of the shark back into the sea. It is estimated that tens of millions of sharks are killed to supply the wasteful demand for shark fin soup every year.

For hundreds of years, shark fin soup has been served as a symbol of social status and a traditional way for the elite to display their wealth in Eastern Asian. Countries such as China (including Taiwan and Hong Kong), Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and Thailand import thousands of
metric tonnes of shark fins each year.

The practice of shark finning is global and has led to severe declines in shark populations. Unlike other fish species, sharks produce very few young and mature slowly and consequently, overexploited populations can take years or even decades to recover.

Most fishing nations do not have finning bans in place, while others require that carcasses be retained, but allow the fins to be removed from the carcasses at sea provided that, when landed and weighed, the fins weigh no more than 5 percent of the weight of the shark. This has resulted in lengthy disagreements over the 'correct' weight ratio of the fins. Furthermore, doubts have been raised about the availability of sufficient resources to monitor compliance, which would require the weighing of every shark catch that arrives at dock.

Fins-attached policies require no weighing, therefore facilitating compliance. Shark conservation is greatly enhanced by fins-attached policies, as fishers have to store every shark that they catch, reducing the total catches and ensuring full usage of the carcasses and decreased wastage.

The CWC Whales Are Being Snapped Up

Our Cape Whale Coast competition is taking off folks. Putting-Pat was snapped up by Pebble Beach Guest House and Whale-Watching Walter has just been sold to Southern Right Charters.

Don't delay, as they say, "You snooze, you looze". If you would like me to customize a whale with your corporate identity or reserve one from our gallery please don't hesitate to contact me on 082 411 6588 or 028 316 1868.

It's A War Out There

A price war is raging among top-end hotels in Cape Town with all players jostling for their share of a depressed market resulting from a sharp increase in inventory, a slow pace of business and an overall slump in tourism after the Soccer World Cup.

Average online five-star room rates on September 2 were R2 400 per night, with at least 12 five-star properties charging less than R2 000 a night, the lowest being Bantry Bay Luxury Suites at R1 000 per night.

The average room rate of four-star hotels was R1 300 per night, with at least 10 properties charging less than R1 000 a night, the lowest online rate being R550 per night at the Harbour Bridge Hotel & Suites.

The average three-star room rate was R736 per night, the highest rate of R1 035 per night charged by Protea Hotel Cape Castle and the lowest rate of R370 per night offered by the Ritz Hotel.

Source: SA Tourism Update