Dragonfly Africa

a) Dragonfly Africa wins 5th SITE CRYSTAL AWARD

At a SITE Crystal Awards luncheon held on the 14th October 2011 in Las Vegas, the Fuji Xerox Top Tier programme from Australia, operated by Dragonfly Africa, was chosen as a 2011 Worldwide SITE Crystal Award winner in the category Best Destination Based Experiential Travel Program.

SITE (Society of Incentive Travel Executives) is a global network of meeting and event professionals dedicated to delivering business results. The highest levels of workplace performance are reached by individuals and teams that are highly motivated. Motivational experiences are a powerful business tool to reward and unlock human potential to achieve corporate objectives. SITE is the only global authority connecting motivational experiences with business results and serves as the source of expertise, knowledge and personal connections that will catapult and sustain professional growth, and help build the value of extraordinary motivational experiences worldwide.

Between Dragonfly Africa and Green Route Africa, our sister company based in Cape Town, we now are the proud holders of 7 SITE Crystal Awards – considered the Oscars of the travel industry.

1995: Sphinx UK – Trip Delivery – Green Route
1996: Thermo King USA – Best Trip Delivery – Dragonfly Africa
1998: Allied Signal USA – Most Creative Use of Incentive Travel – Dragonfly Africa
2001: IBM USA – Trip Delivery – Green Route
2006: BMW North America Grand Travel Award Dinner – Most Outstanding Catered Event at an Incentive Program – Dragonfly Africa
2009: Securian Financial Group USA – Outstanding Sustainable Motivational Experience – Dragonfly Africa
2011: Fuji Xerox Australia – Best Destination based Experiential Travel Program – Dragonfly Africa

“Dragonfly Africa is very proud to be associated with the SITE organization and thanks all involved for honouring and recognising our expertise and creativity in this specialised sector of business motivation”. Rupert Jeffries, Executive Chairman

b) Dragonfly Africa’s sister hotel company, Cybele Forest Lodge and Health Spa wins 4th Diamond status at the annual Diners Club International Wine List Awards 2011

For the fourth year in a row, Cybele Forest Lodge and Health Spa had achieved Diamond status at the annual Diners Club International Wine List Awards 2011. The Diamond award is the highest accolade that a venue can achieve. This stands testament to the attention to detail your clients will receive when visiting this 5* lodge. Barbara Jeffries (Owner), Annemie Grey (General Manager) and Anja van Schalkwyk (resident sommelier and wine fundi) are the three masterminds behind our success. Anja has brought a wealth of experience to the lodge and her philosophy on wine selection is, “I like to choose small, family owned estates, that produce not just wine, but that also display their passion for wine in their products”. Congratulations to the team!

For further news on our sister company, Green Route Africa, please contact robin@greenroute.co.za for a copy of their latest newsletter.

In September this year Dragonfly Africa, South African Airways and Destination Marketing played host to 9 top incentive buyers from Australia. This was in collaboration with South African Tourism. The buyers were treated to the best Southern Africa has to offer. Our aim was to showcase what clients can expect when visiting our region and to allow them to experience first-hand the level of service excellence and creativity for which Dragonfly Africa has become known.

First stop was Cape Town, or the “Mother City”, as she is affectionately known. Guests stayed at the world class Table Bay Hotel, part of the Sun International Group. Perfectly located at the V&A Waterfront, it is the ideal incentive hotel, offering an abundance of 5* accommodation, great service and friendly smiles. Day two showcased two essential ingredients – wine and food!! A visit to the Allée Blue Wine estate for a wine tasting, and a fun filled evening where guests learned the basics of Cape Malay cooking at the Cellars Hohenort. This was very much a hands-on experience.

On day three guests enjoyed a journey to The Cape of Good Hope, Africa’s most South Easterly tip. At the private Buffels Bay beach they boarded high-speed powerboats for an adrenalin-filled activity, taking in Cape Point by sea – a novel approach away from the usual tourist route. Afterward they enjoyed a delicious, seated al-fresco lunch under a marquee tent on the beach.

Day four, and it was time to leave South Africa and the Atlantic seaboard and head north, to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Victoria Falls. Upon arriving at Livingstone Airport in Zambia, guests boarded waiting coaches and after a short transfer arrived on the banks of the Zambezi River. Here they transferred to the Royal Livingstone Hotel by private semi-jet boat. Arriving at the Royal Livingstone Hotel landing certainly evoked the spirit of the early explorers in each and every guest. The hotel, also part of the Sun International Group, has one of the best locations in Africa, right on the banks of the Zambezi River, within walking distance of the Victoria Falls and surrounded by the hotel’s family of Impala, Giraffe and Zebra! Dinner this evening was in the grounds of the hotel, under the magical Monkey Tree, with an outlook over the river.

On the second day in Livingstone the guests paid a visit to the Tujatane School, founded by Vanessa Parker, who was previously teaching as a volunteer in Livingstone. The school opened on 1 May 1996 and due to its huge success it has been growing ever since and now caters for 150 children. Vanessa donates her time to the school on a purely voluntary basis. The school provides education to the Tongabezi Lodge staff children, as well as children from the local community, in an area where educational funding and materials are scarce.

The group was so overwhelmed by the good works carried out at the school that in conjunction with Dragonfly Africa, they collectively decided to sponsor one of the students for a year. The lucky scholar is Jasper, and Beth – the General Manager had the following to say;

“Thank you so much for the lovely visit we had with you last week and the incredible gift of sponsoring a child at the school! Jasper is delighted!”

From the school it was straight onto Chobe Game Reserve in Botswana. A mere 1hr30 minutes from the Victoria Falls, Chobe Game Reserve offers a truly unique safari experience. Incorporating a land based safari to view the Big Five (Lion, Leopard. Rhino, Elephant and Buffalo), and a river based safari to view Africa’s highest concentration of African Elephants (approximately 140,000), Hippo, Crocodile, Waterbuck, Kudu and Water Buffalo.

The penultimate day in Livingstone was at a more relaxed pace, with guests enjoying a surprise helicopter flight over the Victoria Falls, also known as “The Flight of Angels”. The last evening was spent on the magnificent Livingstone Express, a lovingly restored, 5* steam train, which offers guests a superb old-world dining experience.

Sadly it was time to leave, and on the final day, guests flew back to Johannesburg for their onward flight to Australia.

A comment from one of the participants:

“My sincerest thanks to you for your non-stop effort on making this Famil Trip so successful. I genuinely enjoyed spending time with you and I’m so excited about all the knowledge I have gained from my time in South Africa and in particular in Zambia and Botswana. The itinerary was unforgettable, the experiences embedded in my brain and the emotions forever in my heart. Thank you so very much for looking after us all with such great care and enthusiasm.”

SA Airlink increase flights from Kruger to Livingstone

AIRLINK will be increasing the frequency of flights operating between Nelspruit Kruger and Livingstone, Zambia.

Initially launched in August 2009 with three flights per week, the route has started to mature and gain traction in the international market, with tour operators and their clients experiencing the benefits of a direct same day connection between these two premier leisure travel destinations.

The one additional flight, operating on Saturdays, will commence March 10, 2012 with Tuesday flights being added from August 7, 2012. The schedule will then operate Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The flights depart Nelspruit Kruger at 11h55, arriving Livingstone at 13h50 and departing Livingstone at 14h20 arriving Nelspruit Kruger at 16h45
Although the scheduled aircraft is a 37-seater Canadair Regional Jet, the airline is flexible and, subject to confirmation and yielding, it is possible to negotiate an upgrade to a larger 83-seater aircraft.

SA Express increase flights from Cape Town to Hoedspruit

SA Express has announced they will increase the number of flights between Cape Town to Hoedspruit from two to three times per week. They also plan to replace the CRJ 200, which seats 50 passengers, to an 86-seater as demand is expected to increase. Flights are on a Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Zambia’s major airports get new names
Zambia’s new president Michael Sata has renamed the country’s main airports after Zambian liberation heroes.
Livingstone’s airport’s new name is Harry Mwanga Nkumbula International Airport.
The new name of the airport in Zambia’s capital Lusaka is Kenneth Kaunda International Airport.

A private tour of Robben Island with Ahmed Kathrada

For a unique insight into South Africa’s apartheid past we can exclusively arrange a private Robben Island tour with anti-apartheid activist and former political prisoner, Ahmed Kathrada (or ‘Kathy’, as he is popularly known). On the tiny island, the soft spoken former prisoner will lead guests on a personalized tour around Robben Island and share his thoughts, feelings and memories of the prison he spent so many years of his life in.

Kathrada was one of the youngest members of the Rivonia 8 who were tried during apartheid South Africa for the freedom efforts on behalf of millions of black and colored citizens. Kathrada began fighting for
equality at the age of 12 and spent more than 26 years and 3 months in prison, 18 of which were on Robben Island with Nelson Mandela. He is also credited for writing Mandela’s manuscript “Long Walk to Freedom”.

As a pillow gift the night before the tour, we recommend a signed copy of Ahmed Kathrada’s book, which we can arrange.

Apart from flight and accommodation related costs, Mr Kathrada donates his time free of charge and instead requests a donation towards the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, which has deepening non racialism as its core objective.

Allée Bleue Estate was established in 1690 under the name “Mere Rust”. After a change in ownership to the current owners, Mr and Mrs Dauphin, the farm name was then changed to Allée Bleue – translated from French, “Avenue of Blue” which refers to the Eucalyptus-lined entrance road to the estate. The name also represents the owners’ personal life philosophy – an appreciation for the grandeur found naturally upon our Blue Planet.

The estate is located on the road to Franschhoek and a mere 50 minute road transfer from Cape Town. The venue really does offer quite a variety of options from picnics on the lawn to intimate dinners in the Bistro to state-of-the-art function venues.

The newly refurbished Allée Bleue Bistro offers an intimate setting, with a diverse selection of fine foods and Allée Bleue produced wines all under one roof. Most of the ingredients reflected in the menu are sourced directly from the farm produce.

On the estate you will find a combination of cutting-edge technology, modern art, sensitively restored 400-year old buildings and a number of contemporary, fully air-conditioned conferencing rooms that comfortably seat up to a maximum of 140 delegates. On-site catering, pre-arranged wine tasting and sweeping views of the Franschhoek mountain ranges ensure a notable experience, tailored to your conferencing needs.

Allée Bleue Wines pride themselves on quality and exceptional standards. Made for the connoisseur, their wines can be sampled in the tasting room or enjoyed whilst relaxing in the modern, contemporary Wine tasting Courtyard.

The newest arrival to the Allée Bleue family is the exquisitely designed picnic area where guests can indulge in a gourmet picnic basket.

There is a new adventure-based activity in Cape Town, the Urban Adventure Challenge. Ideally suited for groups between 15 – 120 guests, the programme explores the urban city precinct in a fun and challenging way. This can be tailor made to suit budget and time constraints. The programme last from 3 hrs to a whole day activity.

After an informal session of “getting to know each other”, the interactive staff will have the group stretching those muscles ready for the challenge ahead. The group will be divided into teams, and after a short presentation of the “rules of engagement”, the teams will head to various starting points across the city. The Urban Adventure is a question and answer, Amazing Race and point-to-point style experience. At various designated areas the group have to do select activities for bonus points. These included eating a chilli in a Bo-Kaap spiced shop, running into Green Market square and learning to play the jambe drum or bartering for flowers with the much-loved Cape Town flower sellers. After a gumboot dance behind the old Great Church (Groote Kerk), guests will be touched by the heritage and hardship of the stories told against the walls of the old Slave Lodge. The company gardens will reveal their beauty as the teams hunt for trees, watering holes and for bonus points chew down a floating donut (just to add some fun to the day). The Urban Adventure offers a rewarding, educational and “get-to-love-the-city” result. Possibly the group could conclude the day with canapés and drinks served on the balcony of the elegant Taj Presidential Suite, which is available for private cocktail events limited to 70 guests.

a) Dragonfly Africa wins 5th SITE CRYSTAL AWARD

At a SITE (Society of Incentive Travel Executives) Crystal Awards luncheon held on the 14th October 2011 in Las Vegas, the Fuji Xerox Top Tier programme from Australia, operated by Dragonfly Africa, was chosen as a 2011 Worldwide SITE Crystal Award winner in the category Best Destination Based Experiential Travel Program. Between Dragonfly Africa and Green Route Africa, our sister company based in Cape Town, we now are the proud holders of 7 SITE Crystal Awards – considered the Oscars of the travel industry.

“Dragonfly Africa is very proud to be associated with the SITE organization and thanks all involved for honouring and recognising our expertise and creativity in this specialised sector of business motivation”. Rupert Jeffries, Executive Chairman

b) What our Clients had to say

“Dear Dragonfly Team we just wanted to send you a quick note to say thank you so much for everything you did for us for our trip to Africa, your professionalism and organisation of our entire itinerary with our travel agent was faultless. Africa, its people and the places we visited exceeded our expectations. Everything went like clockwork from the time we landed in Johannesburg and were met by you right through to the last day. Both safari lodges/camps were especially awesome and being upgraded to the honeymoon rooms was an added bonus, the food in both places was beyond amazing. Victoria Falls and the Zambezi Sun were also fantastic – it was nice to have the break in between the two safari experiences. We have had some amazing holidays previously, but we can honestly say this was the best so far. We hope to be back one day to see much more of Africa.”
KM
USA

c) Dragonfly Africa’s sister hotel company, Cybele Forest Lodge and Health Spa wins 4th Diamond status at the annual Diners Club International Wine List Awards 2011

For the fourth year in a row, Cybele Forest Lodge and Health Spa had achieved Diamond status at the annual Diners Club International Wine List Awards 2011. The Diamond award is the highest accolade that a venue can achieve. This stands testament to the attention to detail your clients will receive when visiting this 5* lodge. Barbara Jeffries (Owner), Annemie Grey (General Manager) and Anja van Schalkwyk (resident sommelier and wine fundi) are the three masterminds behind our success. Anja has brought a wealth of experience to the lodge and her philosophy on wine selection is, “I like to choose small, family owned estates, that produce not just wine, but that also display their passion for wine in their products”. Congratulations to the team!

SA Airlink increase flights from Kruger to Livingstone

AIRLINK will be increasing the frequency of flights operating between Nelspruit Kruger and Livingstone, Zambia).

Initially launched in August 2009 with three flights per week, the route has started to mature and gain traction in the international market, with tour operators and their clients experiencing the benefits of a direct same day connection between these two premier leisure travel destinations.

The one additional flight, operating on Saturdays, will commence March 10, 2012 with Tuesday flights being added from August 7, 2012. The schedule will then operate Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The flights depart Nelspruit Kruger at 11h55, arriving Livingstone at 13h50 and departing Livingstone at 14h20 arriving Nelspruit Kruger at 16h45

SA Express increase flights from Cape Town to Hoedspruit

SA Express has announced they will increase the number of flights between Cape Town to Hoedspruit from two to three times per week. They also plan to replace the CRJ 200, which seats 50 passengers, to an 86-seater as demand is expected to increase. Flights are on a Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Zambia’s major airports get new names
Zambia’s new president Michael Sata has renamed the country’s main airports after Zambian liberation heroes.
Livingstone’s airport’s new name is Harry Mwanga Nkumbula International Airport.
The new name of the airport in Zambia’s capital Lusaka is Kenneth Kaunda International Airport.

Located in the heart of the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, Tanda Tula is one South Africa’s most luxurious tented bushcamps, offering guests an unforgettable game viewing experience, warm hospitality and award-winning cuisine.

Each of the 12 tents is completely private, surrounded by lush riverine bush with a deck overlooking the river bed. Their highly skilled rangers and tracker teams guarantee an incredible wildlife experience.

Access is via Hoedspruit Airport followed by a 50 minute road transfer, which in fact is the start of the safari.

The latest development at Tanda Tula is the unique overnight walking safari experience. What makes this unique is that there are very few spots in Southern Africa where you can actually sleep out, under the African skies and walk amongst the Big Five (elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo and rhino).

The Overnight Walking Safari provides an opportunity for nature lovers and adventure seekers to experience the beautiful African wildlife on foot and up close, and to sleep under the stars, exactly as the early explorers did. This experience is ideal for guests who love to hike, enjoy bird watching, flora and fauna and game tracking on foot.

Every safari expedition is led by a highly qualified ranger and tracker team. Guests will kick-start the day with an early-morning outdoor shower, steaming hot coffee and homemade biscuits, before venturing out on a game walk. The group walks for between ten and twelve kilometers per day, tracking wildlife and bird watching and stopping to take in the magnificent scenery and biodiversity of the reserve.

After a day spent exploring the great outdoors, guests return to the secluded Machaton Hide located high up on a platform on the banks of the Machaton River and overlooking a popular watering hole. Here, guests will be treated to a hearty dinner cooked over a fire in the traditional ‘bush kitchen’ style. The Hide is rustic yet fully equipped with all the necessary creature comforts of camp beds, linen, mosquito nets, oil lanterns, bush showers and ablutions. Memories are made and stories are shared around the campfire before guests retire with nothing but a mosquito net between them, the wilderness and the big night sky.

An intimate group of a maximum of four people per walking safari can be accommodated, making the experience ideal for families, friends and couples travelling together.

The Dragonfly Travel department is increasingly getting requests for “aparthotels”. An Apartment Hotel (also Aparthotel and Apart-hotel) is a serviced apartment complex that uses a hotel-style booking system. It is similar to renting an apartment, but with no fixed contracts and occupants can ‘check-out’ whenever they wish. Usually they are kitted out with all amenities of a self catering unit. This allows guests to stay in desirable locations with far more flexibility and at affordable rates.

This is a fairly new form of accommodation in South Africa, but, that is not to say there is a lack of choice or quality. In Cape Town particularly clients have a multitude of options. The trick is to ensure that these are booked through a reputable operator. We recommend two collections namely African Elite Properties and Icon Villas, both who offer a wide variety of accommodation styles – from 4* up to deluxe 5*, are well organised and are well priced.

African Elite’s properties are located in Cape Town at the V&A Waterfront, overlooking the working harbor and also in the quaint De Waterkant Village, just a few minutes walk from the city centre but surrounded by fabulous shopping and restaurants. They now also have properties in Bakoven, Clifton and Camps Bay, all a short drive from the city centre and waterfront area.

Icon Villas are slightly different in that majority of their properties are private homes more than apartments. They also have properties in Clifton, Fresnaye and Llandudno, en-route to Hout Bay, and a mere 15 minutes drive from the city. Some of their properties to rent are actually owned by the rich and famous. Over high season minimum stays are required.