11 minute read
COVER STORY
Rovos Rail and Hayward’s Grand Safari Company – Luxury Tented Camp – deliver an unforgettable incentive
An insurance company challenged Uwin Iwin to develop and facilitate a one-of-a-kind local travel incentive that would be worthy of rewarding their top sales staff after two years of cancelling international travel incentive programmes, due to the global travel restrictions enforced due to Covid-19, Uwin Iwin, partnered with Walthers as the local DMC to meet the challenge of creating an unforgettable incentive.
By Leslee Beck – Incentive Management Company, Uwin Iwin.
Client
An insurance company.
Objective
To provide the client with a local incentive trip that matched the standards of all previous international incentive trips. Due to the global travel restrictions enforced because of Covid-19, the client requested that Uwin Iwin develop and facilitate a one-of-a-kind local travel incentive that would be worthy of rewarding their top sales staff after two years of cancelling international travel incentive programmes. Uwin Iwin (together with Walthers as the local DMC), were challenged to find and produce various concepts that would work within the Covid restrictions, that would maintain safety protocols and in no way compromise the standard and quality that the client and their achievers were accustomed to.
Incentive type
Travel Incentive within the financial sector for one of South Africa’s top financial institutions. The incentive campaign is subject to the achievement of specific production norms; and the competition runs over a 12-month cycle. Staff of various levels in the organisation attend — from the chief executive officer to level 1 consultants.
Duration
The incentive trip itself was from a Sunday to a Sunday, eight days in total. We divided the entire group into three smaller groups, travelling back-to-back and minimising the numbers per group, to be aligned with Covid-19 protocols. Due to the previous international cancellations, we only had four months to produce an alternative solution and commence with the planning of this incentive trip.
Number of participants
Of the 186 participants who qualified and received special invitations, 141 attended this event.
Solution
To combine two top South African legendary hospitality outfits, Rovos Rail and Hayward’s Grand Safari Company for a bespoke incentive trip that has never been achieved before.
This incredible journey would commence aboard the world’s most luxurious train and guests would be transported through the hinterland of southern Africa towards an unknown grand safari tented camp in the heart of iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal. This offered a unique safari experience in that it combined travel from Nelspruit, through Swaziland into northern KZN, with its inland estuaries and lakes, as well as a marine reserve along the Indian Ocean and arriving in the world’s biggest Wetland Reserve in a safari tented camp fit for royalty.
This combination offered an incentive trip that no individual participant could replicate for themselves or their families. The site that Hayward’s offered was awe-inspiring to say the least, with breathtaking views over Lake St Lucia, surrounded by untouched coastal forest and dunes teeming with fauna and flora.
The location chosen has never been open to any other public in the history of the park, ensuring that the participants were the first to experience overnighting in this magnificent, pristine wilderness area.
In fact, this insurance company occasion was the first and only time a park permit has ever been issued for overnighting at this location.
Results
A highly successful incentive event, maintaining the overall objective of the client to thank their staff and sustain and/ or increase the drive and motivation in their workforce. Achieving a once-in-alifetime incentive trip and personally pushing the boundaries for what Uwin Iwin could achieve as a company… is setting us apart from the rest!
Contact details
Uwin Iwin David Sand Tel. +27 (0)82 553 7795 Email: david@uwiniwin.co.za
Insurance company incentive pulls a Sho’t Left and amazes participants
By Daryl Keywood – Destination Management Company, Walthers DMC.
The client brief Following the Covid-19-related cancellation of the client’s planned international incentive trip to Russia, the client tasked Uwin Iwin to create a unique incentive travel programme, within South Africa, for the 186 incentive qualifiers.
The challenge
The client has ‘seen and done’ almost everything in South Africa, and, with many of the qualifiers being repeat winners over many years, designing a ‘never-been-done-before’ incentive itinerary with only a four-month lead time, created a significant challenge.
The solution
Uwin Iwin partnered with local DMC Walthers to brainstorm a solution and selected a private Rovos Rail train charter combined with Hayward’s Grand Safari Company, a five-star-rated luxury mobile tented safari experience that would: a) Ensure a sufficient WOW factor to exceed the high expectations of the much anticipated but cancelled trip to Russia. b) Provide a unique, untouched location.
Whichever area was chosen needed to be located within a reasonable road transfer from a railway station or siding. Many discussions were held with Peter Hayward before deciding on his offer of considering the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, World Heritage Site in Northern KZN. The initial planned access to this unique location was via Durban on the luxury Rovos Rail, with the winners divided into three back-to-back groups, with the elite achievers enjoying a return journey resulting in four legs on Rovos Rail.
Roadblocks
The challenge with a programme that has never been achieved before is exactly that; one begins from scratch with a site inspection during which many obstacles were encountered and overcome. The first hurdle was the railway infrastructure between Durban and the St Lucia area which, due to maintenance delays and limited times as to when a charter train could utilise the track, was deemed unsuitable.
Covid-19 restrictions caused a postponement in original dates which meant the event was moved into the highest rainfall month of the year. Various social eruptions along the way led to a detour of the train.
Another major roadblock was that recent legislation required the park authorities to conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment on the preferred location prior to Hayward’s Luxury Safaris erecting the luxurious camp. A combination of budget constraints and Covid-related delays meant that this could not be done within the time frame available, and so, with only four weeks to arrival, a second site inspection of all potential locations within iSimangaliso Park was conducted. After viewing several options, a unique location on the shoreline of Lake St Lucia was selected as ideal.
The solution
To fly the attendees to and from the embarkation point in Nelspruit, to travel on Rovos Rail through scenic Swaziland to Hluhluwe. This cross-border route meant that in camp, PCR tests were required to be conducted on all those returning by train through Swaziland, which, considering the remote location and the rush for the results, created interesting challenges.
The event itself
More than a few participants voiced concerns regarding how a ‘luxury glamping experience’ could meet the expectations of a well-travelled group familiar with the finest hotels in some of the world’s most interesting locations. Their concerns were dispelled and expectations exceeded, both on Rovos Rail and upon arrival at the Hayward’s Grand Safari Camp. To say that the location positioned on the edge overlooking Lake St Lucia was breathtaking is an understatement. The programme included safari drives, guided bush walks, a beach day with masseurs on hand, bush picnics and themed dinners with local entertainment as well as a formal awards dinner under canvas. The elite group of top achievers also experienced an estuary boat cruise and a spectacular helicopter flight over the park, from the camp itself, as well as a return journey on Rovos Rail. Guests departed with memories of a truly ‘once in a lifetime trip’ that they never would have expected to experience in their home country. The post-event guest satisfaction survey of the Hayward’s Grand Safari camp scored an average of 97 per cent rating from the participants.
Looking back
The glorious safari camp is gone and all evidence that this event ever took place is slowly vanishing as the grass recovers on the footpaths around the exclusive site. A condition of the permit was that the site be left as it was found, all waste removed, and the area left as pristine as it has been for decades. It is a testament to all involved that this was achieved. We left only our footprints and even those have disappeared with the summer rains.
Contact details
Walthers DMC Daryl Keywood Tel. +27 (0)82 904 4967 Email: daryl@walthers.co.za
Delivering the dream
By Peter Hayward chief executive officer of Hayward’s Grand Safari Company.
The built-in time constraints to negotiate a site within a World Heritage site was no easy task.
Taking on a group that were focused on an international trip to Russia and now having to ‘stay local’ was clearly a challenge. Providing a solution that the majority of delegates would never be able to personally replicate became a core focus of this grand safari event.
A world first option became an event of comparable magnitude to anything offered internationally.
Hayward’s have a 30-year track record of setting up big group safari camps in remote wilderness regions, each with its own set of logistical challenges, to ensure absolute minimal impact on the ground and an eco-friendly award-winning guest experience. This site was no different and logistics were carefully thought through to meet the park authority standards set.
Hayward’s ensured rain plans were firmly in place and provided all of the on-theground hospitality services required to meet the group’s expectations once in the wetland reserve.
• Each group experienced an arrival bush picnic in a remote location in the park.
• Themed dinners each night with the main dining tent fully turned into its own presentation of historic trade routes of Africa with accompanying artists entertaining the group.
• Dinners were elaborately presented in sumptuous splendour, accompanied by wine pairing presented by the wine maker and a Cape wine master to enhance the experience.
• Excursions to the beach to enjoy a private beach picnic and our beach safari spa to enjoy foot, neck and back massages went down a treat to the sparkling ocean backdrop.
• Famous explorer Kingsley Holgate was a guest speaker for the elite group, presenting insights into his African experiences and rhino projects he was doing with local communities.
• Helicopter permits were negotiated with park authority, making this one of the first groups to ever attain such permission in the reserve.
• Private estuary boat cruise to experience the unique birdlife, hippo pods and crocodiles in their natural habitat.
• Our big five walking guide teams ensured guest safety whilst exploring the untouched forest around camp with incredible bird and butterfly sightings and curious breeding herds of elephant on the outskirts.
• Our medical team were ever-present to ensure quick response to any potential issues and keep Covid protocols firmly in place.
• Our team of game drive guides, specialising in the wetland reserve, enjoyed presenting the park to these delegates and partners in an exclusive environment, with no other operators or public to be seen, on these daily excursions. This is unique in African game reserves.
• Our well-trained and coordinated butlers and silver service waiters always ensured the comfort of their guests. Each 32m2 bedroom tent was lavishly appointed, complete with Persian carpets, en-suite toilet and hot shower facilities. Wake up calls were automatic as the birdsongs from the forest ensured a gentle reentry into the day’s new explorations planned.
“Clear communication towards a finite goal and an agreement on the purpose of the event and what its deliverables must be, gets the teams coordinated and focused. Hayward’s Grand Safari Company has been delighted with the role the primary agent (David Sand from Uwin Iwin) has played in ensuring their client’s specific needs for this safari event were clearly communicated to us.
The ground support and transport coordination of getting the guests through to our remote location was brilliantly delivered by Walthers DMC to ensure guest experience on the ground was maximised. Walthers played a vital role in ensuring the guests’ journey en-route to Hayward’s was adventurous and exciting, setting the scene for our top-end delivery awaiting the guests in camp.
This partnership created a perfect and well-coordinated delivery that superseded all guest expectations and resulted in an event that not only met the client’s expectations but, I believe, set a new standard for the southern African adventure travel industry.”
Contact details
Website: www.haywardsafaris.com
Email: info@haywardsafaris.com
Tel: +27 (0)83 600 4453 / 0861 732 583
