Joburg Tourism unveils spring campaign and launches online booking portal

As part of its Tourism Month activities the Johannesburg Tourism Company (JTC) looks forward to unveiling its annual spring campaign to media and tourism industry stakeholders on Thursday, September 1

As part of its Tourism Month activities the Johannesburg Tourism Company (JTC) looks forward to unveiling its annual spring campaign to media and tourism industry stakeholders on Thursday, September 15, 2011 at the Sandton Sun. Entitled โ€œLive it Up in Joburg This Spring!โ€ the campaign forms part of JTCโ€™s marketing strategy to entrench Joburg as a global, year-round business and leisure destination, brimming with special events, attractions, tastes, sights, and sounds to encourage visitors to stay longer, spend more, and enjoy exploring further afield. From Arts Alive, the Joburg Shopping Festival and SA Fashion Week in September โ€“ to Africa Fashion Week and the Sansui Summer Cup in November – Joburg has a calendar jam-packed with special consumer and lifestyle events, festivals, and celebrations.

JTC has once again partnered with a host of event organizers, hotels, and tour operators to promote these signature Joburg spring events โ€“ enhancing them with special packages and offers. Aside from the live events feed and gig guide on its website ( www.joburgtourism.com ), a brand-new channel in the marketing process is JTCโ€™s newly-launched booking portal: http://travel.joburgtourism.com .

JTC also be will be deploying the Jozi Pass during September, a Mobicode Mobile ticketing and voucher platform. The system allows for partner offers to be promoted on the JTC website, http://www.joburgtourism.com . The Jozi Pass mobicode system will not only help build awareness of the great value that Johannesburg has to offer, but will also directly drive feet through partnersโ€™ doors, increase visits and hopefully increased spend. Most importantly it will leave visitors with a positive disposition towards Johannesburg.

โ€œWhile affirming Joburgโ€™s position as Africaโ€™s leading business tourism destination, Joburg Tourism is also focusing on beefing up the packaging and presentation of leisure offerings to the consumer market. This includes creating a diversity of packages and options around the cityโ€™s calendar of signature events and activities.

โ€œWeโ€™re very excited about the launch of our booking portal, as it provides a powerful touch-point to connect consumers globally with the variety of products, leisure options, and activities available in Joburg. While weโ€™ll always be a longhaul destination, this portal brings the city closer to people through very personal mediums like mobile phones and PCs. Weโ€™re truly just a click away now โ€“ anywhere in the world โ€“ in your office, home, or in your pocket. We encourage people to use the portal and enjoy exploring Joburg. We also invite Joburg-based tourism, leisure, and hospitality stakeholders to participate by partnering with JTC to bring value-add packages to market, to promote travel and tourism in our city.โ€

The first batch of JTCโ€™s pre-negotiated packages to be uploaded on the booking portal include the FNB Whiskey Live Festival Home Drive and Accommodation Packages, as well as the Riverdance Stay & Show packages โ€“ with plenty more in the pipeline.

JTCโ€™s ONLINE BOOKING PORTAL

In line with the expansion of the Internet accessibility, Joburg Tourism has now launched the first phase of its online booking portal, a convenient, cost-effective โ€œone-stop shop,โ€ giving travelers the means to take advantage of special offers and packages, while making all their travel reservations for Johannesburg online โ€“ from flights, car hire, and accommodation to tour and events packages.

โ€œAs one of the continentโ€™s most accessible and major entry points, it’s incumbent upon JTC to assist travelers in planning [an] entire trip to South Africa โ€“ while showcasing all there is to do while spending time in Jozi on stopovers,โ€ said Kwele.

Joburg Tourism has appointed the well-established Sandown Travel Group (ASATA and IATA members) as the preferred service provider to negotiate and manage customized packages around events and attractions in Joburg. This includes managing the back-end fulfillment and issuing of tickets, online fulfillment, and electronic payments for bookings.

Using the fully-integrated Travelnet booking engine, which boasts the largest range of real-time bookable inventory in South Africa, the Joburg Tourism Booking portal focuses on Joburg-based signature and special events, promoting customized packages around them. The Travelnet system is well established and has enjoyed widespread acceptance internationally – including adoption by Travelport, and owners Galileo and Worldspan, two of the worldโ€™s largest GDSs.

The portal inventory is accessed from multiple inventory distributors, including wholesale and receptive tour operators, hotels, B&Bs, airlines, and low-cost carriers, as well as pre-negotiated specials and packages, giving stakeholders and tourism providers the opportunity of partnering with Joburg Tourism.

The booking engine already offers the most comprehensive database of real-time inventory in South Africa. It has also been comprehensively populated with tourism and up-to-date product information.

Johannesburg Tourism is a member of the International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP).

For more information, go to: http://travel.joburgtourism.com or email: [email protected] .

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

Share to...