Inaugural Cheapflights Travel Awards winners announced

28 Nov 2016

The winners of the inaugural Cheapflights Travel Awards, which recognises the best South African travel and tourism business and brands, have been announced. Categories ranged from the best local airports and airlines to the best wine and safari offerings. South Africans casted their vote for their favourite travel brands and businesses over the past month, as nominated by the South African Travel Massive blogger community.

Keynote address delivered by Enver Duminy, CEO of Cape Town Tourism, who provided insight into the current developments in Cape Town and surrounds.

Signs of a growing wanderlust in SA

With over 50,000 votes cast, managing director of Cheapflights Andrew Shelton said: “We were overwhelmed by the response and the number of votes that came in for our first ever travel awards. We want to thank everyone for participating and congratulate them for being recognised as one of the top performers in their category. South Africa is a premier destination, with world class offerings, and it shows in the numbers with international visitors to South Africa is growing by 30% year on year.”

Shelton was joined by a delegation of Cheapflights colleagues, who over the course of a three-day visit met with a number of tourism industry stakeholders and partners to better understand the South African travel market and discuss the benefits of the Cheapflights metasearch products to both businesses and consumers here.

Cheapflights has seen a 69% increase in demand over the last 12 months, across its web and app platforms, and revenue growth of 131% - evidence, he believes, of a growing wanderlust in the Rainbow Nation: “The falling value of the Pound, and the increased competition that platforms like ours bring to a market, are all good news for South African travellers. By giving them accurate and timely information on the best value flights when they are searching, we help them to make the best choices – simplifying what can be a daunting and confusing process, and giving them to confidence to make a purchase.”

Table Mountain - winner of Best Attraction/Experience

The winners of the 2016 Cheapflights Inaugural Travel Awards were as follows:

• Best Airport: OR Tambo International Airport

• Best Airline Lounge: Emirates at Cape Town International

• Best Local Airline: South African Airways

• Best Airline in Africa: Air Namibia

• Best International Airline: Emirates

• Best Car Hire: Avis

• Best Hotel Chain: Tsogo Sun

• Best Independent/City Boutique Hotel: One & Only Cape Town

• Best Attraction/Experience: Table Mountain

• Best Safari/Lodge Experience: Sabi Sands Game Reserve

• Best Wine Farm Experience: Spier in Stellenbosch

Cheapflights partnered with Africa Geographic and Travel Massive. Further information about the Cheapflights South Africa Travel Awards winners can be found at here.