Launched in February 2016, the fun domestic tourism campaign [#Welcome2Jozi] is designed to encourage Joburg’s residents to make the city’s visitors feel warmly welcomed. It also has an important educational objective, designed to inform Joburgers of the tourism sector’s importance, who constitutes a tourist and how to be even better hosts.
What is the Welcome to Jozi Campaign About?
The Welcome to Jozi – Make a Visitor’s Day! campaign, which launched in February 2016, aims to inform and educate Joburgers on how to be great Johannesburg ambassadors, promote the city, enhance the Joburg visitor’s experience and ensure that visitors have great memories of Joburg. It will also illustrate how tourism impacts each and every Joburg resident.
As Africa’s most visited city and the continent’s leading business and lifestyle destination, Joburg attracts visitors from Gauteng, from South Africa’s other provinces, from other African countries and from destinations around the world. The reasons they come to Johannesburg are as diverse as the visitors themselves. They could be students studying at our tertiary institutions, people who come for medical reasons, business people visiting the city for meetings, business events, exhibitions and incentives, sports enthusiasts, concertgoers, those seeking leisure, lifestyle, heritage and cultural experiences, and those who come to visit friends and relatives.
The Domestic Tourism Awareness Campaign (#Welcome2Jozi) is all about educating Joburg residents about the importance of the tourism sector, who tourists are and how everyone in the City has a role to play in the Tourism Value Chain – dining out, shopping, being entertained, taking tours,visiting sites and attractions, attending events, shows and so on.
The Campaign explains how there are different types of tourists/sectors through seven different themes:
International Students are Our Tourism Business
Meetings are Our Tourism Business
Shopping is Our Tourism Business
Leisure is Our Tourism Business
Friends and Family are Our Tourism Business
Health is our Tourism Business
Sports are our Tourism Business
The Welcome to Jozi – Make a Visitor’s Day Today! campaign takes a collaborative approach, encouraging all Joburgers to go the extra mile and make a visitor’s day each and every day.
They are encouraged to be helpful, courteous and friendly. This may be a simple gesture such as – helping a visitor with directions.
They are also encouraged to learn more about visitors to Joburg – for example by providing Indian diners with plenty of serviettes and a finger bowl as they generally eat with their hands. The campaign will also educate locals on how to interact with visitors. For example, etiquette and conversing in their languages to make them feel welcome
Joburgers can also make a visitor’s day by showing them the city’s rich culture, heritage, leisure and lifestyle attractions and activities. This means that they have to be familiar with the city’s tourist attractions and how to access them.
As in many other destinations around the world, residents often remain unaware of their city’s tourism and leisure offerings and the campaign aims to address this.
Joburg is so much more than a stopover city, with a great deal to experience and explore. Our struggle history, and culture and heritage attractions provide fascinating insights into the city’s past and current developments.
Among the many exciting things to do:
• Visit historical sites such as the Apartheid Museum, Constitutional Hill and Liliesleaf;
• Take a walking or cycling tour of Soweto or downtown Joburg;
• Hang out in the funky Maboneng District and Braamfontein where you’ll find Joburg’s hip crowd exploring art galleries, theatres, bookstores, food markets, bars, specialty stores and more ;
• Adventure and adolescent junkies love the bungee jump at Orlando Towers in Soweto, zip lining in Melrose and go-karting at Kyalami Race Track;
• The City Sightseeing Red City Tour hop-on-hop off bus takes visitors to some of Joburg’s most iconic attractions and is a must-do adventure for any visitor to Joburg;
• Eating out at our many fine restaurants for a culinary experience;
• Shopping at our world class malls;
• Explore Joburg’s art scene at fine art galleries and markets;
• Enjoying World Class productions at our many theatres;
• Taking part in our many outdoor annual sporting events;
• Being part of exhilarating music concerts, entertainment and lifestyle events.
When compared with other global cities, Joburg is one of the most affordable to visit for both domestic and international visitors, whether it’s paying for transport and accommodation, entry into the city’s many tourist attractions, shopping, or enjoying its superb restaurants, nightlife and cultural attractions.
