The VA TourismPodcast

In the inaugural episode of the VA Tourism Podcast for 2024, the Lady In Red team from Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City Accra explores the distinctive features that set their service apart from traditional concierge offerings. From delivering personalized guest experiences to going above and beyond, the Lady In Red epitomizes exceptional, memorable, and captivating service guaranteed to enchant guests. In a hearty conversation, guest host Samuel Obeng Appah  engages, Surabhi Mahajan and Judith Ada Agbara on 14 years of Lady In Red. Additionally, the podcast highlights David Quartey, the first Gentleman In Red in West Africa.

Today’s episode is our Final podcast for the year 2023 and episode 215. This special state of tourism review will bring you a roundup of how tourism fared and our projections of the sector in 2024.We listened to your feedback and have introduced this new format which will be a regular feature once every month to help you and in particular the travel trade to be abreast with the changes in the industry expected to shape the sector going forward in 2024.

To help me run commentary on these issues are four distinguished media personalities versed in tourism and its related sectors. I have Lebawit Lily Girma an award-winning Ethiopian American travel journalist and founder ofTourismLens.com, a platform dedicated to equitable, sustainable tourism and she is currently a full-time travel reporter at Bloomberg News.

Naledi K. Khabo, CEO of African Tourism Association. She is a global strategy leader with 25+ years experience across Operations, Marketing and technology. Naledi currently serves as chief executive at the Africa Tourism Association (ATA), a global trade association promoting travel and tourism to Africa and strengthening intra-Africa partnerships.

Kingsley D. Uranta is the Assistant General Manager-Operations at Channels Television, Lagos, Nigeria with the sole responsibility of driving strategy/innovation, partnership, corporate communications, and training. He has a robust career in communication spanning over 20 years in a variety of functional and managerial roles.

EMELIKE OBINNA is an award-winning journalist with over 12 years of experience. He majors in Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality, which he reports with passion. He heads the Travel and Tourism Desk of BusinessDay, the foremost financial Publication in Nigeria.

In today’s episode, the Manager of Enjoy, a restaurant and entertainment center in Grand Bay, Mauritius Estelle St Lambert urges the government of Mauritius to offer incentives, particularly in the creative arts sector to help develop budding talents and also create employment opportunities for the youth in the island. Estelle believes Mauritius has an enormous potential to become an entertainment haven.

In today’s episode, founders of Route Wellness International (Private) Limited Dr. Udeni Arawgoda and Lisa Payet dive into the opportunity that the wellness and medical tourism sectors offer destinations. They discuss the growing medical tourism sector in Sri Lanka and how partnership with Africa can help develop the sector in the region.

In this episode, the General Manager of Veranda Grand Bay in Mauritius Giany Bundhooa discusses the return of business to pre-pandemic levels. He singles out training and capacity building as essential to building a robust hotel sub-sector in Mauritius.

Giany, a Mauritian with a Diploma in Hotel & Business Management from the Durban International Hotel School, boasts over 20 years of experience in Food & Beverage and Hotel Operations Management. Starting as a 'Sommelier' on prestigious 5* cruise ships like Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth 2, and Caronia from 2003 to 2006, he returned to Mauritius in September 2006 to serve as the 'Assistant Restaurant Manager' at Hilton Mauritius.

His journey continued with roles such as 'Restaurant & Bar Manager' at The Oberoi in May 2007 and 'Restaurant Manager' at Le Paradis Beachcomber in July 2009. In April 2010, Giany ventured to the Seychelles for the opening of Constance Ephelia Resort as the 'Assistant F&B Manager.' He then joined Amanyara, Aman Resort in Turks & Caicos in February 2012 in the capacity of 'Assistant F&B Manager.'

Returning to The Seychelles in April 2013, he took on the role of 'Assistant F&B Director at Constance Ephelia Resorts before being transferred to Constance Lemuria in Praslin in August 2015 as the 'F&B Director' until June 2019. Since July 2019, Giany has been back in Mauritius, serving as the 'Resident Manager' at Le Tamassa in Bel Ombre. In this position, he assists the General Manager in daily operations and spearheads innovative projects.

As of May 2023, Giany has taken on a new challenge, joining Rogers Hospitality as the Hotel Manager for the opening of Veranda Grand Baie.

In this episode, the Area General Manager of Hilton Hotels in Seychelles Andre Borg doubles down on the narrative of Seychelles being a destination beyond the amazing beaches. He is optimistic of a buoyant tourism sector for the upcoming year.

Today’s episode was recorded on site in the Seychelles Island. On the final day of the maiden Mega Fam Trip organised by Tourism Seychelles in the pristine Cap Lazare Nature Reserve, I caught up with the chairperson of the Seychelles Small Hotels and Establishments Association (SSHEA) , Peter Sinon. He tells me in this conversation that, it is about time their members and properties are mainstreamed as part of the offerings of the archipelago island.

In today’s episode, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism of the Seychelles Sylvester Radegonde gives an update on the unfortunate explosion and flooding which occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning.

My conversation today is with the co-owner of Onshow Solutions Jacqui Reynolds. Jacqui unpacks the learnings from her company’s flagship project “Africa Showcase “ and its impact on Africa as a destination. She discusses trends, airlift, and partnerships, as crucial elements for the development of the tourism sector in Africa

In today’s episode recorded at this year’s World Travel Market, London, South Africa’s Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille talks recovery of SA’s tourism sector, women empowerment, SMME support, and airlift to South Africa and to the continent in general. She debunks the assertion that she is destroying the tourism industry and will crack the whip at corrupt officials undermining investigation processes at South African Tourism.