Stellenbosch makes an
Impression at ITB in Berlin
Stellenbosch’s Wine Tourism
campaign goes global
Issued by Random Hat
Communications on behalf of Stellenbosch Experience
The Stellenbosch
American Express ® Wine Routes, South Africa’s first and
foremost wine route and gourmet capital of the country, made its debut at the
2014 ITB, Berlin earlier this month. ITB is the world’s largest tourism
convention and was the perfect platform for the global launch of the region’s wine
tourism marketing campaign, Stellenbosch Experience.
The aim of this
dynamic campaign is to reaffirm Stellenbosch as the wine tourism capital of
South Africa and the ideal hub from where to explore Cape Town and the Western
Cape, and from 5 till 9 March, representatives from the granddaddy of South
African Wine Routes met with top trade and media to showcase the area’s diverse
and unparalleled wine tourism offerings.
“Research has shown
that more and more visitors opt for experiential, multi-dimensional
destinations and experiences rather than merely being passive spectators when
on leisure or business trips. In addition, travellers who engage in culinary
and wine tourism attractions during their travels, tend to stay longer and
spend more in the destinations they visit,” shares Annareth Bolton, CEO of the
Stellenbosch Wine Routes.
The Stellenbosch team
engaged face to face with close to 400 members of the travel trade and media
during the three-day event in Berlin. A highlight of the global launch activities
at ITB was collaborating with TripAdvisor for their ITB networking event held
at the popular Soho House in East Berlin. The event was by invitation only and
attended by 300 of the top international trade and industry
representatives.
“TripAdvisor is
delighted to have collaborated with Stellenbosch Wine Routes at our ITB
networking event. Wine tourism is certainly growing in popularity and
travellers look for memorable tourism experiences, which Stellenbosch
delivers. With the recent launch of the new TripAdvisor domain for South
Africa, we are pleased to have been able to highlight one of South Africa's
tourism destinations that is rich in both quality and authenticity,” said
Helena Egan, TripAdvisor Head of Destination Marketing Sales Europe, Middle
East and Africa.
Leading up to ITB,
international trade and media were invited to select their ‘ultimate bucket
list’ from an enticing itinerary of experiences in and around Stellenbosch,
ranging from harvesting with a winemaker and dining with a local celebrity
chef, to game viewing in the Winelands and learning how to drive a tractor.
During TripAdvisor’s
ITB networking event, guests were automatically entered into the campaign’s
“Ultimate Stellenbosch Bucket-list Competition”, which closes on 31 March when
one lucky trade representative and partner will win their ultimate bucket-list
holiday to Stellenbosch and the Western Cape.
In association with
three of its campaign partners, Simonsig, Van Ryn and Kleine Zalze,
Stellenbosch Wine Routes gave away bottles of Simonsig Kaapse Vonkel and Kleine
Zalze wines and one guest walked away with a big hamper of Stellenbosch wines.
Samples of Van Ryn’s 20 year old brandy were included in the event goodie bags
along with information on Stellenbosch.
“We are approaching
marketing platforms like trade shows in a different way. We identify marketing
partners and standout opportunities for joint marketing that fit our brand
offering and guarantee high impact and measurable results for our region and
marketing partners. TripAdvisor, which is the world’s largest travel site, is
the perfect marketing partner as it has a huge influence in people’s travel
decisions,” added Bolton.
Campaign partners
Delheim, Spier and Waterkloof were singled out as exemplary responsible tourism
case studies in Mariette du Toit-Helmbold’s presentation at the ITB Convention
on the “Status of Responsible Tourism in South Africa”. Du Toit-Helmbold
is the owner of Destinate, an international tourism marketing agency, working
with Stellenbosch Wine Routes and Stellenbosch 360.
The latest global
tourism travel results and trends, which were released at ITB confirm a rosier outlook
for tourism in 2014. International tourism reached a new record high in 2013
with a 4-5% growth forecast for 2014, despite the uncertain world economy.
Outbound travel grew by 4% in terms of trips and spend was up by 6%. Emerging
markets such as China and Russia were again the top success stories with high
growth rates for outbound travel, whilst Asia and Europe performed well. The
good news for South Africa is that Europe, still the country’s biggest source
market, is expected to show solid growth in 2014 on the back of a two-year
period of economic depression.
“This is good news for
tourism growth in Stellenbosch, but it means we have to respond with
innovative, enticing travel offers to a world that is spoilt for choice, easily
influenced and still under economic pressure. We believe the Stellenbosch
Experience campaign is well timed to attract more visitors to our
region,” said Bolton.
Other Stellenbosch
Experience campaign elements planned for the rest of the year, include
an innovative wine tourism blogger campaign with top international and national
travel, lifestyle and food bloggers that kicks off at the end of April, just
before the campaign is showcased at Indaba from 10-12 May 2014.
For more information
on the Stellenbosch Experience initiative visit StellenBlog at http://blog.wineroute.co.za/,
contact Mariette du Toit-Helmbold at experience@wineroute.co.za or phone 083
225 5955.
