Protea Hotels hosting majority of World Cup teams

The hospitality group has close to 80 hotels spread across all nine provinces and the World Cup national teams will be accommodated by Protea Hotels in Johannesburg, Nelspruit, Bloemfontein, Durban, Polokwane, Port Elizabeth and Pretoria.

Protea Hotels sales, marketing and revenue director, Danny Bryer, said the hospitality group was exceptionally excited about the coming month: "It is going to be great to welcome the players and their supporters into our hotels over the World Cup period. More importantly, though, the tournament is a golden opportunity to showcase South Africa and Africa as a whole as top-class tourism destinations that rival any others across the globe. South Africa has exceptional natural beauty and wildlife as drawcards. The cities are vibrant and cosmopolitan the tourism facilities second to none.

Once in a lifetime

"This tournament will do much for the South African economy in the short term, but we have to put our best foot forward now and use wisely the opportunity to advertise the country and continent. We have the ability to show that this country offers value for money and levels of safety that match its natural beauty. It is unlikely, in our lifetimes, that we will ever again see a tourism marketing opportunity this big, piggy-backing on a global sporting event. We have one chance to grab it for the good of the country and the continent."

Bryer said the Protea Hotels hosting the national football squads had one single intention: to provide the level of care and service to the visitors that would turn each and every one of them into Protea and South African brand ambassadors when they returned to their home countries.