FlySafair are bringing back their popular low-cost flight sales – Photo: Jonathan Khoo / Flickr
FlySafair are bringing back their popular low-cost flight sales – Photo: Jonathan Khoo / Flickr
FlySafair, you have our attention: Officials for the domestic airline have come up with a radical new blueprint for public holidays, which aims to stimulate the tourist market following a wretched 18 months of havoc sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan involves creating more ‘long weekends’ and three-day breaks.
According to the carrier, the wheels are now in motion for their attempts to ensure that South Africans can make the most of every single public holiday. On Tuesday, FlySafair went public with their intentions:
FlySafair CEO Elmar Conradie is optimistic that their proposals will pique the attention of South African lawmakers. Travel businesses have been crippled by lockdown restrictions, essentially since the start of 2020. However, flight bookings soar when a long weekend lands on the calendar.
If the way we take our public holidays changes, allowing SA citizens to enjoy more three-day breaks, this could be the key to bring our tourism industry back to life. That’s what Conradie thinks, anyway…
“If well-received by the body, FlySafair hopes this will begin the process of lobbying the Department of Tourism to introduce the amendment to Parliament. The proposal gives the government a novel idea to stimulate economic growth.”
“Our intention is in no way to diminish the importance of these historical days. Our aim would be to look at how the time off from work can be better used to benefit the tourism industry and encourage South Africans to travel again.”