Flight Centre Travel Group is the first retail travel brand in South Africa to launch a documentary-style local reality show. The programme, called Hamba Nathi, will follow three 20-something, South African micro-‘influencers’ as they travel for the first time. View the trailer and watch the show on the Flight Centre YouTube channel.
A launch event for the new series was hosted on 11 September 2019 at The Capital in Sandton. Local media and influencers were invited to attend the event, hosted by Khutso Theledi of YFM.
“This is another innovative first for the Flight Centre Travel Group,” says Lance Nkwe, Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) Business Leader Emerging Markets. “The series will offer unique and authentic travel content that is essentially produced by first-time travellers. Their experiences will highlight the joys and many scenarios of travel, answer common questions, and offer expert hacks.”
The show’s three micro-influencers were carefully selected from a set of specific criteria including social media engagement, demographics and travel experience, says Nkwe. “They are creative, young professionals with a burning drive to take on the world and #MakeTravelFashionable,” he adds.
The series stars are: Lindiwe Modiselle of @haai.ku, Olerato Ramafsi of @nehrufigaroa and Oriane Vansy of @orianevansy. The three will explore South Africa together.
“Being a part of the Flight Centre web series means a lot to me because the idea of travelling was just a dream that I thought I could fulfil at a later stage in my life,” says Lindiwe Modiselle, who is 21 years old and a third-year creative brand communications student. “Now, I have been given this opportunity… I can experience my country to the fullest.”
“I will get to be part of creating fun content that will prove to people how fun travelling is, and also how travelling through Flight Centre is the best decision,” adds Oriane Vansy, a second-year drama student. “I believe the Hamba Nathi series will bring about a lot of ‘fomo’… and the show will help encourage people to travel…”
Flight Centre has partnered with South African Tourism to use the series to promote domestic travel and the hidden gems in South Africa. The first season will comprise of six episodes. Each episode will feature a different local destination.
“I don’t want to end up going to America, only to be asked ‘How is South Africa all in all and not just Jo’burg?’. I wouldn’t be able to explain it, because I haven’t been [anywhere else]… ”You’re here in America, but you’ve never explored your own country?” offers Modiselle.
Nkwe says: “There has been an explosion of growth in video on social media in recent years. Views of branded video content increased by 99% on YouTube and 258% on Facebook between 2016 and 2017. On Twitter, a video tweet is 6x more likely to be retweeted than a photo tweet. We also believe the series will localise the Flight Centre brand even further.”
The series will see the three travellers deal with all kinds of travel situations from hiring a car and how early to arrive at the airport to travel insurance and what to pack.
Olerato Ramafsi, who is in his third year of studying television production at AFDA, admits the prospect of travel can be daunting for a first-time traveller, but concludes: “I’m looking forward to seeing South Africa’s vast scenery and getting a tourist’s perspective of the motherland… I speak for those who seek to see more and understand their heritage through travelling.”
Follow the Hamba Nathi travel series here.