Tourism authorities come together to promote EC

In a first for tourism in the Eastern Cape, the EC Tourism Board, Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism, Tourism Buffalo City and Ectour (a private sector group marketing organisation) have joined together in an effort to promote the province to tourism entities on the Garden Route.

“The rest of the country is under the impression that the Eastern Cape stops in Port Elizabeth,” says Ectour chairperson, Anleen Louw. “The purpose of this tour down the garden route by the various entities is to connect with our counterparts in the Western Cape and teach them about all of the wonderful tourist destinations in our province. We want tourists who come along the garden route to continue their journey up the Eastern Cape coastline to the Wild Coast.”

Eleven delegates from the various tourism entities in the Eastern Cape, as well as chairpersons of Ectour nodes have dedicated four days to helping to change the perception of the region. They are taking part in a roadshow travelling from The Boardwalk, down the Garden Route and back.

“This is one of the first times that all of the various tourism entities have joined forces,” says Jonker Fourie, NMBT trade coordinator. “More and more people are planning their own holidays and are obtaining info via the internet. This trip will help educate the various Garden Route establishments about the huge variety of activities available in the Eastern Cape so that they can then encourage tourists to visit the region.”

Erica Mcnulty from the Sunshine Coast Marketing Association agrees. “I recently met two German tourists who were on their seventh trip to the Eastern Cape because they loved the area so much and they felt they still had so much more to see! This is the kind of enthusiasm for the region that we want to spread right through the garden route.”

The tourism delegation also includes representatives from a number of hotels, B&Bs and game lodges. “We hope that by representing our product to the Western Cape we will show that there are also world class hospitality facilities in the Eastern Cape,” says Zingisa Siwisa, marketing consultant at Lalibela Game Reserve. “The Eastern Cape is really an undiscovered gem but this tour will help make the region a whole lot more visible.”

“We are educating the local South African market so that they can then pass on that knowledge to the international market,” says Bev Selwyn Smith who coordinated the trip together with Ectour.

The delegation left The Boardwalk on the morning of March 23 and various tourism venues in the Tsitsikamma area. They will be travelling through Knysna, George, Wilderness, Mossel Bay and Oudshoorn and will arrive back at The Boardwalk on Friday, March 26.

Author: Siyathetha Communications