It’s not just a new year, but a new decade and predictions are that 2020 will mark significant shifts in the travel and tourism industry.

Fuelled by technology and innovation, as well as a growing sense of responsibility and deeper connection with the people and places we visit, we are on the brink of a completely new travel era. Read our 2020 Travel Trends Report to find out more about which trends will impact travel behaviour and why. 

We are excited to be part of this movement of change as we prepare for a busy year of Destineering.

Women matter

We will be rolling out our Destinate Travel all-women tours to Portugal and South Africa this year before we introduce new destinations in 2021. The focus is on empowering women to have a more meaningful travel experience, connecting deeply with self, place and like-minded women. The tour programme will include an array of unique experiences tailored around each group, never exceeding 15 women, with a focus on culinary, creative, cultural and conscious experiences.

As part of our passion for women and travel, we have cemented our relationship with Women in Travel CIC based in London and will roll out a Women in Travel Africa programme this year.

The programme is expected to kick off with the first in a series of women breakfasts, followed by the Women in Travel Summit in association with World Travel Market Africa in April and master classes covering business management, marketing and human relations. We will share more information on the Women in Travel Africa programme by the end of January.

Wine tourism

We will build upon our strategic wine tourism programme with destinations in Europe and South America that want to use wine tourism as a catalyst to stimulate rural tourism, grow the local economy and improve seasonality and the spread of visitors to lesser-known regions.

Chief Destineer, Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold, participated in the UNWTO’s 4th Global Wine Tourism Conference in Chile at the end of 2019, speaking on the potential of wine tourism as a catalyst of local economic development through community involvement.

We have seen wine tourism transform rural regions in South Africa and look forward to continue our work in wine tourism locally and with a number of international destinations.

An initiative that proved very successful in 2019 was a wine tourism mission to the Cape Winelands with Portugal. We will coordinate a mission to Portugal for members of the South African wine and tourism industry in the first quarter of 2020 and facilitate similar missions for other global wine regions to South Africa later in 2020 and 2021.

Strategic marketing and communications

Under the strategic marketing and tourism division of Destinate, we will continue to work with private companies, national corporations and destinations on strategic communication projects, marketing campaigns and tourism strategy development.

Breaking rules, building brands 

With more than 40 years combined experience in tourism, marketing and strategic business management, a number of new business concepts and brands have been developed over the past years.

In November 2017 Destinate launched the Joburg Wine Club to grow the local wine market. The Club’s prestigious wine events are complemented by PR and media promotions, consumer competitions, winelands travel packages, interesting wine selections and sales.

The Club’s membership base now exceeds 2 200 and we are ready to reveal 2020’s exciting programme of events that kick off with the popular Summer Garden Party at Buitengeluk on 16 February. It will be a Midsummer Dream Romance followed by the Royal Red Party in May, a Winter Winelands Tour in August and the Spring Party in October. 

We live in interesting, but challenging times. To stand out and be relevant we cannot blend in or conform to the norm. It is this passion for pioneering solutions that are relevant and innovative that drive the team of Destineers. One thing is certain, opportunity beckons amidst uncertainty and challenges and we will continue to break rules, build relationships that span accross the globe and have a lot of fun whilst doing it. As Jon Acuff said: "You are more successful when you have fun." 

Contact us to help you identify your unique brand identity and to help tell your story through shareable and meaningful content, campaigns, video, imagery and an effective marketing and communications strategy.

As we enter this new decade of travel, we’re excited to see how the industry transforms and to be part of all the positive changes that are set to take place! We would love to hear your feedback, so get in touch and let us know what your expectations are for 2020 and the rest of the decade.

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