IHG Leading The Hotel Industry Worldwide

This Month I was invited to the IHG Media Briefing at The Holiday Inn Express Umhlanga Ridge.

Director of Sales and Marketing in Africa Michael Opondo - one of the Speakers at the briefing.


IHG was here at Tourism Indaba and they proved to be gracious hosts.  In case you don't know it
IHG stands for InterContinental Hotels Group.  They are the leading Hotel Group in the World and
represent a number of leading brands in the Industry.

They are present in 11 Countries and have 9 Franchises in SA.

At the Briefing we were informed on all the latest trends in the Hotel Industry and IHG has
all the latest trends ready for you.

Here are some of the latest trends in the World and in Hotels.

• iPhone booking apps
• The Aerotropolis  - mini cites that grow up around Airports these include hotels, retail malls, offices, business centres, logistics centres and warehouses.  
• Brain Spa's - Lectures, courses, TED Talks
• Ambient Shopping - eg Apple Stores
• In Store Cafe's 
• Performance Sleeping - $70 Billion Dollars Are Lost In Productivity
• Urban Farm Restaurants - Restaurants that farm for themselves
• People will be able to rent their own clothing at Hotels or Shops so you can travel baggage free

IHG also has the following initiatives:

• Green Engage - Online Hotel Design
• IHG Academy - A Global Talent Pool of people that train and work in the Hotels
• IHG Shelter in the Storm - Helps with Natural Disasters
• IHG Innovation

The IHG Brand Includes

• Intercontinental
• Crowne Plaza
• Hotel Indigo
• Holiday Inn
• Holiday Inn Express
• Candlewood Suites

After the Media Briefing we were given a short tour of the Holiday Inn Express.

It really is a wonderful Hotel with some lovely rooms, wonderful sea views and they also offer

Free Wi-Fi options for Clients.   

                  One of the Wonderful rooms at the Holiday Inn Express - Umhlanga Ridge

The Hotel has wonderful attention to detail so much so that you can choose from 3 types of pillows 

for your Bed.

Useful Website Link for IHG

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/ihg/hotels/us/en/reservation

(Story and Pictures by @fredfelton) 

                                                            Picture Of The Week

Umhlanga Pier Like You Have Never Seen It Before 

Picture by @fredfelton

This picture is getting a great deal of RT's and Shares all over.  

Time for Tourism Indaba 2012

It's almost time for Tourism Indaba 2012 and there will be so many events coming up.

Buyers at this year’s INDABA won’t have to walk the exhibition flat to get an excellent sense of the extent and variety of excellent tourism experiences on offer in South Africa. For the first time ever, a series of speed marketing sessions will give product owners, specialising in adventure, responsible tourism and culture and heritage, a unique platform to interact with interested buyers.

During INDABA 2012 South African Tourism’s global product team will host a series of speed marketing sessions enabling 25 product owners in each of the following categories: adventure, responsible tourism, and culture and heritage, to showcase their offerings to more than 200 interested buyers.

“Our research tells us that the global traveller is looking for more variety in their travel experience, something that South Africa is certainly not lacking. However, with a busy INDABA schedule and more than 2000 exhibitors to see, it is not always easy for buyers to track down the best of what South Africa has to offer. The themes have been chosen based on solid consumer research in key markets,” says Chief Marketing Officer Roshene Singh.

“To make it easier we have identified three areas at this year’s INDABA where South Africa really sets itself apart – adventure, responsible tourism and culture and heritage. We have set up speed marketing sessions to, in a short time, give buyers the chance to get to know the people behind South Africa’s tourism industry and be introduced to some of the products that can make a trip to South Africa truly extraordinary,” explains Singh.

Named the Shongololo Sessions, because they have been designed to give local businesses legs (something that the shongololo is literally in no short supply of), they provide the perfect opportunity for partnerships to begin and for working relationships to form.

Speakers will each be given five minutes to address more than 200 buyers about the journey their business has taken, its unique components that make it distinctive and how these will add value to packages and itineraries.

Each session will begin with a short overview by an industry expert, responsible tourism by Fair Trade in Tourism’s Katarina Mancama, adventure by Dirty Boots’ Johan Radcliff, and a special not to be missed session on culture and heritage by South African musical legend Johhny Clegg.

“While speed marketing may be new at Indaba it is not new for South African Tourism. We have used it successfully over the last couple of years to give inbound tour operators the opportunity to learn more about what lesser visited areas in the country have to offer,” explains Singh.

Last year South Africa hosted seven speed marketing sessions in the Western Cape, Kwa-Zulu Natal, North West, Gauteng, Free State and Limpopo, attracting a total of 102 tour operators and 280 South African products.

Event Facts

When:

12 May 2012, Saturday - 12h30 to 14h00
Responsible Tourism in partnership with Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa
www.fairtourismsa.org.za

13 May 2012, Sunday - 12h30 to 14h00
Adventure Tourism in partnership with Dirty Boots
www.dirtyboots.co.za

14 May 2012, Monday - 12h30 to 15h00
Culture and Heritage Tourism in partnership with the National Department of Tourism and Moja Media
www.tourism.gov.za / www.mojamedia.com

Where:

Venue: Room 22, Durban International Convention Centre

Useful Contact Details For The Indaba Team.

The INDABA Team
Tel: +27 (0)11 467 5011 / 5024
Fax: +27 (0)11 467 5350
E-mail: indabavisitor@indaba-southafrica.co.za

(Source:  The Indaba Team)  

                                                                Seen Around Town

South African Speaker Claire Newton and Canadian Speaker Charles Marcus 

at the @psasouthafrica National Convention 2012 #vocalislekker