• In a bid to attract more local travellers to its parks, the South African National Parks (SANParks) has turned to 800,000 registered stokvels.
• The Stokvel & Travel Club programme will give discounts of up to 20% at selected parks and camps, between certain dates.
• Stokvels as well as travel and outdoor hiking, mountain biking, and adventure clubs that have 10 or more members can register.

In a bid to attract more local visitors to its parks, the South African National Parks (SANParks) is offering 800,000 registered stokvels – and other South African formal and informal travel groups – discounts if they help to fill up beds.

The new reward programme, which SANParks is calling the Stokvel & Travel Club programme, will give discounts of up to 20% at selected parks and camps, during selected dates. SANParks says stokvels as well as travel and outdoor hiking, mountain biking and adventure clubs, can register.

A stokvel is a group of people – that can comprise anyone from a grandmother to a millionaire – that combines savings to a central fund on a weekly, fortnightly, or monthly basis. Often the contributions are small, but by combining their savings it allows the stokvel to bulk-buy products at a much cheaper rate than a single person could.

In the absence of international travellers, the programme forms part of SANPArks’s plan to diversify its visitor base by looking into more localised, non-traditional markets.

“SANParks hopes to position itself as the primary holiday destination amongst the domestic market, raise awareness of SANParks’ brand as the leading environmental science and conservation agency in South Africa, increase the number of black visitors to the National Parks, establish a new tradition of holidaying annually at nature-based tourism facilities particularly SANParks’ destinations and to become an inclusive contributor in the tourism industry,” it said.

Whereas traditional group travel packages get discounts for commercial operations like conferences, for bookings of 10 or more units under a single bulk deposit, the new Stokvel & Travel Club will allow groups of 10 or more people to make bookings, and at an adjusted payment term. 

“Once registered the group will receive a client code that can be used whenever a booking is made. The client code will automatically qualify the group for the favourable payment terms and special discounts,” says SANParks.   

You can register your Stokvel & Travel Club and find more information visiting the SANParks website.