The Vacation Ownership Association of Southern Africa (VOASA) says it welcomes the call made by Minister Kubayi-Ngubane in her Tourism Budget Vote Speech to partner with the leisure market in driving affordable family vacation packages and overcoming the challenges of unemployment by growing the economy through tourism.
“The shared vacation ownership and timeshare industry has always been a significant contributor to the economy through its 500 000 members, 158 resorts and 85% occupancy rate. To ensure that well-deserved quality vacations are within the reach of South Africans, timeshare provides affordable family-orientated vacations that offer home away from home self-catering accommodation and on-site entertainment as part of the vacation package,” says Alex Bosch, VOASA’s Chief Operating Officer.
The global timeshare industry spans the globe with 5 491 resorts, 194 million room nights and annual sales of $19.7 billion. By traveling to these resorts, holidaymakers make a positive contribution to the global economy by supporting nearly 1.3 million jobs and generating $146 billion in economic output.
Bosch states that the South African timeshare industry has resonated the success of the international scene. “Our industry is ranked 5th in the world for the highest vacation ownership and 4th in terms of future purchase interest, which makes it one of the world’s leading markets when it comes to promoting local and international travel”.
He adds that through the knock-on effect, shared vacation ownership contributes billions of rand to the GDP and generates employment for around 27 000 people, ranging from highly skilled to informal positions.
“VOASA applauds SA Tourism on their remarkable achievement in growing domestic holiday trips by 59,7% in the first quarter of this year, which highlights the success of their objective to make local travel accessible to all. We believe that the timeshare industry is at the heart of tourism and is perfectly positioned to support tourism in further achieving its goals in revitalising the economy,” concluded Bosch.
