Chennai: South Africa hopes to tap the tourism potential in the Indian market, especially with the Indian travellers showing an inclination to prefer lengthy vacations and willingness to spend several lakhs of rupees on a single trip.
South African destinations lure Indian travellers with an INR 1.5 lakh budget as effectively as it appeals to travellers with 10.5 lakh budget. Even amidst demonetisation woes and a generally gloomy travel outlook towards the third quarter last year, the Indian market showed good numbers for South Africa during 2016.
The destination closed 2016 on a successful note, noting a 27 % growth in arrivals that clocked at 81,429 by the end of the third quarter. "We want to sustain this growth and also attract return travellers. Going forward, we are going to focus on increasing the geographical scope of the market - our biggest sources are Mumbai and Delhi, followed by Bangalore and Chennai," said Hanneli Slabber, country manager, South African Tourism - India.
