Travel

Our Associate Publisher Bugs Steffen, who has been travelling to Ghana for more than 30 years, writes on the interesting places to visit in Accra and beyond. People often ask me what would be THE thing to do and what would have to be included in the must-see list of things if one were to go on a holiday to …

Cape Town’s hypermodern airport welcomes visitors with its shiny and squeaky clean appearance. Everything is well-organised and immigration formalities swiftly and efficiently dealt with. And yet something seems to be missing and soon it becomes obvious: there are hardly any Black Africans. This jars with the idea of an African country. The drive to the city deepens the impression of …

In addition to its Business and Economy Class, Brussels Airlines now offers a new choice on its intercontinental flights: Economy Plus. The airline’s customers who fly to Africa, the US or Canada now have the choice out of three classes instead of two. Economy Plus is Brussels Airlines’ answer for passengers travelling in Economy Class who want a comfort upgrade …

In a newly published global ranking of countries according to the travel freedom that their citizens enjoy, the German passport came in first position, offering visa-free travel to 177 countries, out of a possible 218. The Germans dethroned the Americans who held the first position last year and in 2014, according to the Henley & Partners Visa Restriction Index, released …

Situated 10 kilometres from the centre of Accra, Kotoka International Airport (KIA) is the first point of call for businesspeople as well as tourists visiting the country. KIA, the only international airport in Ghana, is fast becoming the regional hub for air travel in West Africa. Thanks to Ghana’s increasing profile as a preferred business hub and tourist destination, KIA …

Africa’s leading hotel booking website, Jovago, has launched its #MyGhana social media campaign promoting tourism in the country worldwide. The campaign runs on Facebook and Twitter. To take part in the campaign, social media users are required to take beautiful pictures of any eye-catching monument, landscape or landmark; post them on social media using the hashtag #MyGhana, tag five friends …

The Ethiopian government is promoting the country as a favourite tourism destination despite fears of famine due to an ongoing drought. Ethiopia’s Tourism Minister Aisha Mohammed Mussa proudly presented the country’s new tourism slogan: ‘Ethiopia – Land of Origins’ at the International Tourism Bourse recently, in a new campaign to rebrand the country.  The country is proud of many unique …

Literally translated, Boa Vista, the easternmost island of Cape Verde, means “beautiful view” and it lives up to its name, surprising visitors with stunning views. But there is so much more to Boa Vista than spectacular landscapes and observation points, as our Associate publisher Bugs Steffen discovered when he went to explore.  I was asked how I came up with …

Brussels Airlines has opened a state-of-the-art lounge for its Business Class passengers at the N’Djili International Airport in Kinshasa, the capital of DR Congo. “With the opening of our very first own lounge in Africa, we further strengthen our footprint in Africa and confirm our commitment to the continent,” said the airline in a statement. The lounge, called THE SUITE, …

Visitor numbers in The Gambia continue to grow thanks to increasing halal tourist options and a new five-star resort opening outside Banjul. Only six hours from Brussels and with a negligible time difference from mainland Europe, Gambia has been steadily leveraging its golden beaches and excellent birdwatching opportunities to build up a tourist industry that accounts for around 20 per …

March 22, 2016 was a black day for Brussels Airport because of the terror attacks of that day. It was also a tragic blow to Brussels Airlines, which has its home base at the airport, with the carrier’s flight operations massively disrupted by the closure of the airport for clean-up and security review and upgrade.  The airport is now slowly …

The 50th anniversary of the International Tourism Bourse (ITB) Berlin, the world’s largest travel trade fair, took place on 9-13 March on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds ICC.Many of the stands were very busy. Remarkably, the mood at the fair this year was buoyant in spite of the many different challenges facing the sector. African destinations, such as Egypt and Tunisia, …

The 50th anniversary of the International Tourism Bourse (ITB) Berlin will be held from Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 13 March, on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds ICC. When it was first launched in 1966, the event hosted only nine exhibitors from five countries and was attended by only 250 trade visitors. ITB quickly became the world’s leading travel trade show. …