FASTJET LAUNCHES AGENCY FARES IN SOUTH AFRICA TO PROMOTE TRAVEL TO TANZANIA
(Posted 08th April 2014)
Tanzania’s LCC Fastjet yesterday announced the introduction of a special fare for the South African market which will allow travel agents to package holidays to Tanzania’s national parks and beaches.
The newly launched fares are valid for 12 months and are not dependent on booking class availability as is otherwise the case, giving tour operators the ability to create, price and market cost effective Tanzanian travel packages well in advance.
The fares also include one item of checked luggage per passenger, a benefit not otherwise available to regular passengers of the airline. Access to the special fare comes through a new dedicated Fastjet agent booking portal via www.fastjet.com/za. This portal allows tour operators to check availability, plan itineraries, make and manage bookings and complete all general administration processes relating to their clients’ flights.
‘Tanzania offers a diverse range of destinations and activities, from the imposing majesty of Kilimanjaro to the vast savannahs that are home to Africa’s most prolific wildlife – not to mention the magnificent beaches and cultural experiences offered by Zanzibar’ said Richard Bodin, Chief Commercial Officer of Fastjet when launching the new service before adding: ‘South African tour operators can now create cost effective packages that include some or all of these remarkable destinations, without being held hostage to exorbitant and highly fluctuating fares charged by the competition on the Johannesburg-Dar es Salaam route’.
Fastjet operates internationally from Dar es Salaam to Johannesburg and Lusaka besides offering domestic flights within Tanzania from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, Kilimanjaro and Mbeya.
Tour operators can access the details of the new booking portal by writing to justin.glanville@fastjet.com
Other fares with Fastjet can also be accessed through all main Global Distribution Systems (GDS) under Marketing Code H1 and Operations Code FN, via Fastjet’s public website (www.fastjet.com/za) or through its South African call centre.
Safari and tour operators in Tanzania have welcomed the news as it will very likely further strengthen their ties with South Africa, which has over the past years emerged as a leading tourist source country for Tanzania, of course aided by the waving of Visa requirements for South African citizens when entering the country. This latest move by Fastjet is bound to further impact positively on the airline’s market share on the route where it competes head on with South African Airways, which saw their extraordinarily high yields on flights between Johannesburg and Dar es Salaam shrink considerably since the launch of Fastjet flights on the route.
Watch this space for breaking and regular aviation news from across Eastern Africa.
