Joburg on show @1foxprecinct #gplifestyle #mycityofGold pic.twitter.com/OX18cMRDoN
— Meruschka (@MzansiGirl) September 28, 2017
The inaugural event, designed to bring the travel trade together to celebrate Gauteng as a destination, saw over 300 people from the tourism industry, 46 exhibitors and guests that included MECs, popular footballers, actors, musicians, mainstream media and well-known Joburg bloggers and social influencers in attendance on the western edge of Johannesburg’s city centre, in historic warehouses dating back to the city’s gold mining roots.
The streets were populated by exhibitors ranging from guesthouses, hotels, activities and adventure specialists, museums and sightseeing tour operators to transport companies affording them excellent opportunities for networking; food and drink stalls were dotted amongst the streets and there was music, entertainment, and dancing late into the night.
The street party featured entertainers including Eskimo aka Sivan, Gordon Franks, The Kiffness - a live electronic act from Cape Town and ChianoSky, one of South Africa’s most exciting fresh and talented new discoveries. The Kiffness and ChianoSky launched a collaborative live set and debuted new material at the event, and MixFM’s DJ Kerry-Anne Allerston hosted the music event in the Good Luck Bar. They all waived their fee.
Stakeholders who put their weight behind the event included Alexandra Tourisms, Amanzingwe Lodge, Anthology/Cradle Boutique/African Rock Hotel, Apartheid & Mandela House Museum , Avon & Justine, Birchwood, Brand Crafters, City Sight Seeing, Constitution Hill ,Cradle Tourism Company, Doveton House, In Vino Veritas, JHB Tourism, Kgokrae Tours, Kimmo, Kwel Breweries, Laid Back, Lilies Leaf, Lion & Safari Park, Magalies Canopy Tours, Melville Koppies, Mercedes-Benz Gauteng East, Morrels ,Mzansi Tourism Experience, Protea, SAB, (Secluded Country Lodges) Haywards Grand Safari, Sheila - Peanut butter & Chilli Pickle, Sibani Lifestyle, Sojo, Soweto Hotel & Conference Centre, Soweto Tourism, TA Cuisine & B&B, The Capital, The View and Toadbury Country hall.
Gauteng Tourism Authority’s CEO, Siphiwe Ngwenya enthusiastically re-iterated his confidence in the initiative: “The tourism trade is an important stakeholder in the We do/I do Tourism campaign that South African Tourism is championing and that GTA is part of. The campaign aims to grow tourist numbers by five million over the next five years and a bulk of that will have to come from Gauteng as the most visited province in South Africa. We are targeting a contribution of one million, which will only be achievable if the trade sector comes to the party. Therefore, we hope to grow this event into a premier showcase of the city of gold – Johannesburg, and Gauteng as a whole.”
