With South Africa finally being removed from the United Kingdom’s restrictive red list which has prohibited travel between the two countries since May, Tourism KwaZulu-Natal (TKZN) is encouraging residents to travel and explore the hidden gems of the province.
TKZN’s acting chief executive officer, Phindile Makwakwa, said they are delighted with the announcement of the country being removed from the UK’s red list. “With the country also being on level 1, we are looking forward to welcoming tourists to KZN.
A report from SA Tourism indicates that KZN has had the most number of tourists comparing to other provinces in South Africa. This indicates that most South Africans still choose KZN as a tourism destination because they realise that there is still a lot of places to visit in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. As we approach the summer season, we are appealing to residents to explore KZN in order to uncover the parts of the province they have not seen. We will be launching our summer campaign with MEC Ravi Pillay soon where we will explain our summer travel packages,” she said.
Makwakwa added that the Department of Economic Development and Tourism has been driving the ‘Vaccination for Tourism’ campaign to encourage more people to get vaccinated.
“Getting vaccinated helps assure the rest of the world that they can tour South Africa and KZN in particular as it is safe to travel now. When tourists travel, they spend money and jobs are created and other jobs are retained, we want the economy to recover from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic which is why we are encouraging people to travel,” she said.
The theme for this year’s Tourism Month, which was in September, was “Tourism for Inclusive Growth” and in keeping with this year’s theme the Province and TKZN rolled out activities to promote the transformation and inclusivity agenda which lies at the heart of people-centred tourism.
TKZN hosted media and stakeholders at the four-star Royal Thonga Safari Lodge, situated north of the province in order for them to understand the story behind the lodge and how government, the private sector and the community at large have developed this unique reserve.
Lodge owner, Prince Hlengiwe Wilfred Tembe, said apart from employing staff from the local community, in 2017 the lodge discovered a talented group of young people from the community which are now identified as Royal Thonga Messengers.
“These teens perform for our guests whilst making a livelihood through singing and writing music. The lodge also supports the community by offering guests community visits such as Injemane (Palm Wine) tasting, a sangoma visit, a day at a local school or community garden and traditional fishing or food tastings. Activities such as these are both an experience and educational for guests yet also contribute to the community’s livelihood,” he said.
He added that with regards to offerings and activities, the Royal Thonga Safari Lodge has various accommodation and activity packages for game, kayaking, hiking, birding, faffia forest walks, tiger or traditional fishing and picnics, boat trips, snorkelling, arts and craft.
