South African Tourism (SA Tourism), the national tourism agency responsible for marketing South Africa as a preferred tourist destination, is planning to attract Bollywood film makers to corner a major chunk of the Indian outbound tourist market.
Indian tourists to South Africa touched 52,000 in 2007, as compared with 36,000 in 2005.
Medha Sampat, country manager (India), SA Tourism, said the agency expected this to reach 57,000 this year and to 62,000 in 2009. “Around 30 per cent of this will be influenced by the Bollywood connection,” she added.
“We are giving special emphasis to highlight the key role played by Bollywood in showcasing South Africa to audiences in India. We had offered free scouting trips to the representatives of Bollywood production houses two years ago to help them get to know the kaleidoscope of cultures and exquisite locales in South Africa. We intend to organise such trips this year too,” she told Business Standard.
Besides Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, SA Tourism plans to promote Cape Winelands, the largest wine producing region in the country, the 18,989-square kilometre Kruger National Park that has the Big Five of South Africa – lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant and rhinoceros, Table Mountain, casino resort Sun City, sand dunes and the 216-metre high Bloukrans bungee jumping bridge as hot spots for film shoots.
“We are working closely with the Film Commission departments in various provinces to provide a single-window permission for film shoots in the country, besides facilitating access to a skilled crew and cast base and talented post-production facilities. Last year, around four Bollywood films, including blockbusters Race, Jannat and Welcome, were shot in South Africa. This year, we expect the numbers to go up to a dozen and attract more Indians to South Africa,” Sampat said.
South Africa, where tourism accounts for 8 per cent of the economy, witnessed foreign tourist arrivals of 9 million last year. It expects an influx of 10 million tourists by 2010, which looks achievable courtesy the FIFA World Cup that the country is hosting, she said. The average spend by an Indian tourist in South Africa is 11,000 rands (approximately Rs 60,500).
