Legacy Hotels & Resorts
Update from our MD, Neil Yates
Dear Legacy Family
I trust that you and your loved ones are all well and staying safe. We are now some eighteen months into the Corona Virus pandemic, and it looks to continue for the foreseeable future. I know we all have “Covid Fatigue”, but as it is not going away, we cannot ignore it, we need to deal with it. The pandemic has had a devastating economic impact on the world, the countries we operate in, our company Legacy, and has impacted each of our lives.
The following are some statistics I have picked up which highlight this impact.
° Globally, travel and tourism are one of the most impacted and affected sectors.
° International travel dropped by 74% in 2020 and almost 62 million jobs in travel and tourism were lost worldwide.
° Foreign arrivals to South Africa dropped from 15.8 million in 2019 to 5 million in 2020.
° It is estimated that the South African tourism sector lost R54.2 billion in 2020.
° From 1.6 million jobs being supported by tourism in 2018, this has fallen by 60% to approximately 640,000.
While now having been through a very tough period, the reality is that the world is now starting to open up again, and the travel starved are planning their next trip. As Legacy, we are working together to ensure that South Africa and Namibia are front and center when they are considering where to visit. In order to be there, we need to be considered a safe destination to visit – we know that with all South Africa and Namibia has to offer, we are already a great tourist destination, so the emphasis now is on SAFE.
The World Health Organisation regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, made the statement “we know no one will be safe until everyone is safe”, or simply put, no one is safe until everyone is vaccinated.
The data shows that vaccines work and are safe. The risk of being adversely affected post vaccination is extremely low, and is substantially lower than the risk of being adversely affected post Covid-19 infection. People who are vaccinated pose less of a risk to others when they contract Covid-19, with their transmission risk being 50% to 80% lower should they inadvertently contract Covid-19. The vaccination is the single most important thing we can do to protect ourselves and others against Covid-19.
In summary, times are tough, but we remain positive and are hard at work to make our hotels and lodges the first choice to both domestic and international travellers, leisure and corporate. As already stated, that means we need to be seen as a safe destination to visit, and the first step in achieving this is by all staff getting vaccinated.
Stay safe and remember to social distance, wear a mask, and regularly wash your hands and sanitise.
Neil Yates
Managing Director
Legacy Hotels & Resorts
2021 TRAVEL TRENDS
"As the world slowly starts getting back to normality, we must remember that change has not only happened within our own walls. It has also brought about a shift in the travel trends and behaviours of our target market. We, as an industry need to remain nimble footed and structure our business models around this as well ", according to Hara Jackson, Sales Director of Legacy Hotels & Resorts.
Emerging 2021 travel trends that we've noticed:
° Proximity to Gauteng
° Lastminute Travel
° Cape Town to flourish once again
° Flight shortages
° Vaccinations and Sanitisation
° Conferencing on the rise
° Corporate travel remains slow
Aerial photo/video service/inquiries: info@traveltonamibia.com
Sd TW.
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