Marc Cavaliere, South African Airways

Over the past several years, tourism from North America has been growing, so it’s an opportunity for ASTA delegates to get a firsthand view of what South Africa and the sub-Saharan region have to offer. As the national airline, this is a tremendous opportunity for us to not only introduce the region, but to introduce South African Airways to those who haven’t flown with us. We’re honored that ASTA selected South Africa, and to be a sponsoring partner in the IDE.

Agents that do pre- and post-conference trips at the IDE will use SAA regional flights. Is there anything they should know about SAA’s domestic flights?

While the travel agents are attending IDE, we want to give them an opportunity to see everything the destination has to offer. The destination has such a diverse experience, with its cosmopolitan world-class cities, exciting wildlife and natural beauty. SAA serves over 40 destinations within Southern Africa, so we offer the most extensive network of flights and destinations on SAA and on our regional partners South African Airways Express and South African Airlink.

How does SAA work with travel agents?

Being that we’re a long-haul, experiential destination, travel agents play a critical role in our distribution strategy. Tour operators, national travel management companies, consolidators and consortiums account for a significant portion of our overall sales from the North American market. Our Regional Sales Directors throughout North America work to educate our key Travel Partners on SAA’s product attributes, and they supply our partners with the necessary tools to sell Southern Africa and assume a consultative approach on qualifying the right clients for the destination.

In conjunction with the IDE, we’re offering special fares to ASTA delegates not only to attend the IDE, but to see other parts of Southern Africa on their pre- and post-tours. The fare from the U.S. to South Africa starts at just $599 roundtrip, and we’ve set up a special toll-free number for IDE delegates (800-521-4845).

What should agents know about SAA’s service from the U.S. to South Africa that can help them with their clients?

In February of 2009, SAA will celebrate its 75th Anniversary and at the same time, the 40th Anniversary of service to the U.S. With this experience, no other airline knows Southern Africa better than SAA. We provide high-quality, world-class, award -winning service, which has been recognized by our customers and agents, which in turn is why we’re consistently recognized by service experts as the "Best Airline to Africa." As a Star Alliance partner, we offer service from two cities — New York and Washington, D.C. — and we offer code-share service with our partner United Airlines from 26 cities in the U.S. If customers are members of United Mileage Plus, US Airways Dividend Miles or with any Star Alliance partner’s mileage program, they will be able to earn mileage on their host program when they fly SAA. One roundtrip flight from New York or Washington, D.C. to South Africa will earn them approximately 17,000 miles.

What separates SAA from other airlines that serve South Africa?

By offering the only nonstop flights, clients can get on their SAA flight from the U.S. to South Africa, and travel within South Africa and Southern Africa on only one airline for their entire itinerary. Because of the long duration of many of our intercontinental flights, our modern Airbus A340 fleet is designed with comfort in mind for both the Premium Business Class and Economy Class customer. We offer the only 180-degree lie-flat beds between the U.S. and South Africa in our award-winning Premium Business Class. And in Economy Class, we offer more legroom than any other airline flying to South Africa, with individual on-demand entertainment systems at every seat, plus complimentary South African wines and an amenity kit to freshen up during the flight. And most importantly, clients have the opportunity to start their travel with warm, South African hospitality.

South African Airways
www.flysaa.com