India is set to become the biggest source market for South Africa Tourism in the next five years, its Country Manager Hanneli Slabber said. The country expects five lakh Indian travellers by 2020.
“We are consistently increasing our marketing spends in India and expect about 12 per cent growth in arrivals this year,” she said. At present, the UK is the top travel market for South Africa, followed by Germany and the US. India is among the fourth and seventh largest markets.
South Africa also announced a new immigration policy. Now, business executives from BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) nations can get a visa up to 10 years depending on the validity of the passport and an extended validity for intra-company work permits. “Earlier, business visa was available for three months to two years,” Slabber said. It has also added seven more centres in India to process visas. “Apart from this, we are working with airlines to improve connectivity, and also on delivery on home ground to improve the travel experience for Indians,” she added.
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