Reach For A Dream and Air Mauritius launch another Travel Dream Room 

In November 2019, Reach For A Dream, together with Air Mauritius and other key travel partners, unveiled the very first Travel Dream Room at the Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in Johannesburg.

An initiative that was launched by Reach For A Dream in 2018, Dream Rooms are dedicated spaces in hospitals for children who are facing life-threatening illnesses and undergoing treatment. 

They provide families with the opportunity to spend time in bright and colourful areas that inspire hope and where children can experience the joy of being a child.

Travel dream rooms serve as escape 

The Travel Dream Room, spearheaded by Air Mauritius, will serve as a sanctuary for the brave children and parents who need a safe place to relax in hospital, and escape their clinical surroundings, with the added inspiration of travel.

“For many people, travel serves as an escape and as inspiration. Children who are facing life-threatening illnesses and undergoing treatment, where not physically possible to travel, should also have a place to escape; a place filled with hope; a place to dream and to be inspired. This is the intention of this Travel Dream Room,”

Regional General Manager of Southern Africa and Latin America at Air Mauritius, Carla da Silva

Other partners involved in the initiative 

Air Mauritius has long been a supporter and partner of the Reach For A Dream Foundation and the incredible work that they do, and when the very first Dream Room was launched in 2018, the Air Mauritius team knew that it was something they absolutely had to throw their weight behind in whatever way they could. 

“When the opportunity presented itself, we reached out to various partners within the travel industry who were wholeheartedly happy to join us on this mission to create the very first travel-inspired Dream Room. 

da Silva.

We cannot thank Reach For A Dream and our incredible partners; Flight Centre Travel Group, XL Travel, Travelstart, Club Travel and BARSA (Board of Airline Representatives South Africa), who helped to make this Travel Dream Room a reality,”

da Silva.

Eight Travel Dream Rooms around South Africa 

While this is the first Travel Dream Room, Reach For A Dream has already proudly opened eight Dream Rooms across South Africa together with various partners. They can be found at Chris Hani Baragwanath, Charlotte Maxeke, Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria, Donald Gordon Medical Centre and the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town.

“Our Dream Rooms have created much popularity amongst the children in the hospital. These beautiful spacious facilities are a dream come true for the many children fighting life-threatening illness on a daily basis. Eventually, there will be 50 such rooms at hospitals which provide critical care to children with life-threatening illnesses,”

CEO of Reach For A Dream Foundation, Julia Sotirianakos. 

To support Dream Rooms around the country, please contact Natalie Lazaris at natalie@reachforadream.org.za.