IN PROMOTING the province’s holiday and tourist attractions, MEC for Economic Development and Tourism Michael Mabuyakhulu launched the ‘KZN is Summer Campaign’ at Alkantstrand in Richards Bay on Saturday.
The campaign, in its fourth year, aims to encourage people to visit the province to promote domestic tourism and mobilise South Africans to go beyond our shores and position KZN as a popular destination.
With Richards Bay hosting this year’s campaign, the region benefitted from the marketing spinoffs as SABC 2 Morning Live Show broadcasted live from Alkantstrand and hundreds of people flocked to the area to enjoy the entertainment line-up of top local deejays and artists.
The annual event is held in different parts of the province and exposes beaches as a key tourism ingredient.
Launching the campaign at the breakfast meeting, MEC Mabuyakhulu said KZN is home of the endless summer with its warm weather all year round mirrored by the warmth of its friendly citizens.
‘We have a unique offering and our competitive advantage is that this is a hot sub-tropical paradise.
‘Beach tourism is a niche market and of the 41 beaches being granted Blue Flag status, seven are in KZN, one of which is Richards Bay.
‘This confirms that the beach experience is a key ingredient to tourism and we have to market the coastlines to attract visitors.
‘Tourism offers an experience and this industry is labour intensive and still needs people to work in it.
‘This sector creates more employment than any other in the world and this is our gold. Our beaches along with the natural scenic beauty are our draw cards.
‘We offer everything from extreme action sports, white water rafting, kayaking, bungee jumping, mountain biking and so much more,’ he said.
