The Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) is in full swing of its annual festive season campaign, with various affordable packages on offer.
Mpumalanga’s festive tourism campaign
Each year, the festive season sees a theme being introduced. This year, it is “Mpumalanga, beyond wildlife.” This showcases the province as a diverse tourist destination, with various tourism-related offerings for visitors to enjoy.
“The campaign is aimed at both trade and tourism consumers who travel to visit friends and relatives, for leisure and other purposes.
The campaign further aims to demystify the perception that travelling is expensive and only for the elite” explains Mr Xolani Mthethwa, Executive Manager of Tourism at MTPA. “We have put together affordable packages for this campaign which are applicable for everyone who wishes to travel to Mpumalanga.”
Bourke’s Luck Potholes, Mpumalanga, South Africa / Image via South African Tourism
Beyond wildlife
Visitors are spoilt for choice with various activities extending beyond wildlife. This includes the Geotrail at Makhonjwa Mountains, the 4×4 route at Songimvelo Malolotja Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA), the Samora Machel monument, the liberation heritage route at Gert Sibande District and the wild horses at Kaapsehoop.
“During this period we will be profiling small towns in the province as part of ‘Know Your Small Town’ campaign. This will afford us an opportunity to create awareness on the unique tourism and heritage offerings available for tourists to explore in those small towns,” says Mthethwa.
The ‘Mpumalanga: Beyond Wildlife’ campaign began with a media tour on Kaapsehoop, which is a great starting point for visitors too. It is a small town where wild horses roam freely, with hikes for visitors to enjoy and renowned pancakes to finish off a day well spent.
The campaign will run until 17 January 2020.
Robbers Pass, Mpumalanga, South Africa / Image via South African Tourism
Beyond wildlife events
Mpumalanga Cultural Experience
This is a carnival to celebrate the capital city, featuring performances and cultural groups.
30 November 2019
Nabalabantfu Picnic Festival in Nkomazi
An annual festival aimed at providing an opportunity for upcoming artists to perform
15 December 2019
Mbombela New Year’s Eve
Details for this annual event have yet to be released.
31 December 2019
Safety warnings
“As we welcome tourists to our province during the festive period, we would like to urge our communities to stop seeing tourists as soft targets that can be robbed of their belongings. We condemn acts of violence and crime against tourists.
We appeal to our communities to report any crimes against tourists to their local law enforcement agencies. Tourists contribute positively to the provincial economy and create jobs in the hospitality sector.
Let us work together and protect them” concluded Mthethwa.
Tariff increases
The Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency will also be implementing an increase in entry fees at various nature reserves around the province, coming into effect on 1 December 2019.
“We have implemented a general increase based on 4.5% inflation rate for all product offerings in our provincial nature reserves. The annual increase in tariffs provides us with an opportunity to utilise the funds to improve our facilities and the viewpoints at all our main nature reserves in order to provide visitors with the best possible experience,” says Mr. Johannes Nobunga, CEO of MTPA. “The MTPA is governed by the MTPA Act of 2005, which obliges the Agency to progressively generate its own revenue collection. It is therefore important to note that the income in general will be used for continuous upgrading of infrastructure at our nature reserves.”
The tariffs will be charged per person and will continue to be increased in line with the inflation rate.
With the Mpumalanga tourism festive season campaign in place, the province is primed to show visitors the very best it has to offer. There are unbeatable deals, offering you a trip where you can experience so much more beyond wildlife.