NMBT CEO off to London World Travel Market

NELSON Mandela Bay Tourism’s (NMBT) new chief executive, Mandlakazi Skefile, will be jetting off to London next week to take part in what is considered the premier global event for the travel industry – the World Travel Market – with the aim of capitalising on World Cup exposure.

“The massive coverage we got both as a country and a city during the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup puts us in a unique position from a tourism promotion perspective. We need to keep the momentum and interest generated over the World Cup and start leveraging it to the benefit of Nelson Mandela Bay’s tourism industry,” said Skefile, who wants to encourage World Cup visitors, particularly the English, to return to the Bay.

“The English team played in our city – which has a long British heritage still evident in the architecture and cultural traditions – this is a wonderful opportunity for them, and thousands of their fans, to be reminded of the wonderful time they had in the Bay and come back to visit.”

The World Travel Market is an annual business-to-business event presenting a diverse range of destinations and industry sectors to United Kingdom and international travel professionals over a four-day period from November 8-11.

“There is no better place than the World Travel Market to give Nelson Mandela Bay a global platform for displaying the best of the Bay,” said Skefile, who was also looking forward to using the event for networking and furthering her objectives of growing the meetings industry and sports tourism for the city.

“London is a pulsating, global city alive with opportunity, people and cosmopolitan flavour. Having the World Travel Market there means that one is thrust onstage within a city that is an international hub. We can promote Nelson Mandela Bay to the whole global travel trade. This is a one-stop-shop for meeting, networking and conducting tourism and travel business.”

According the World Travel Market organisers the event offers participants the opportunity to efficiently, effectively and productively gain immediate competitive advantage for their business and stay abreast with the latest developments in the travel industry.
 
NMBT marketing manager, Titus Chuene, is also off to Germany this week with the same objective of leveraging World Cup exposure in the German tourism market.

Author: Amy Shelver