Tourism Month launches with Sho't Left billboards

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The 10 billboards, worth more than R2 million, are placed in Gauteng, as this is the province that is the greatest source market for domestic tourists.

The new website, www.tourism.gov.za, of the Department of Tourism also went live today, Thursday 27 August.

Stated Van Schalkwyk: “By travelling at home, South Africans contribute meaningfully to the tourism industry and its competitiveness, as well as to local economic growth and job creation.”

“As you travel your own country, you learn more about its diversity and tourism offerings. You also help to improve service levels and the competitiveness of the industry as a whole. This in turn makes all of us better hosts for regional and foreign visitors.

“Less than 300 days away”

“We are less than 300 days away from the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and now is the time for all of us to contribute in every way we can to make sure we offer the world an unmatched experience in our fantastic country,” the minister said.

The minister also announced that as part of the Sho't Left campaign, and based on the success of its previous partners such as Kulula.com, Thompsons Tours and Southern Sun, a number of new partnerships with the private sector has been entered into- the Peermont Hotel group, Flight Centre and Computicket Travel.

Tourism Month is celebrated annually in South Africa in September and during the month, the focus is placed on domestic travel experiences as well as the offerings in lesser visited provinces of the country.

Each of the country's nine provinces holds special gems that will be profiled during Tourism Month and that richly reward trips away from home for domestic tourists.

Tourism Month culminates in a World Tourism Day celebration in Kimberley on September 29. UNWTO's Tourism Day celebration theme this year is Tourism Celebrating Diversity. Events in Kimberley next month will hone in on South Africa's great and remarkable destination diversity and will celebrate the richness and texture of this destination whose stature has grown significantly in the last decade and whose global competitiveness is entrenched.