20% electricity increases hitting your pocket?

With the second consecutive year of major price increases for electricity, many hotels, bed and breakfasts and restaurants are feeling the pinch. Even tourists are traveling less as the increases tuck into household budgets, undercutting the average households expendable cash. BUT did you know that offsetting that 20% increase is a rather easy and simple thing to do?
Here are our top 5 tips for saving energy and saving costs in the tourism industry:

1) Hot water, geysers are one of the biggest energy consumers in any household or accommodation  establishment. Does it not strike you as unusual that we heat our water and the when we want to shower or bath, we add cold water to cool it down again? If the hot water in your home or establishment is too hot to hold you hand under without scalding, then you could probably do with turning the thermostat down by 10 degrees or so. The average household geyser is set between 70 and 80 degrees Celsius where anything between 50 and 65 degrees is more than adequate. Also ensure that your geyser is insulated with a geyser blanket, can't afford a geyser blanket, then any cheap run of the mill blanket will do the job almost just was well!

2) Stoves, if you change from an electric to gas stove (especially if you run a restaurant or bed and breakfast where the stove is used a lot) you will repay your cost on the changeover within a year on electricity savings. Electric stoves are energy hungry appliances, use them sparingly.

3) DON'T wash you laundry with hot water. A cold water wash is just as effective and will save you hundreds if not thousands of rands per year! What about our "whites" we hear you say? The whites don't clean properly in cold water. Simply add a detergent such as "vanish" or similar stain remover to your normal washing powder for getting whites sparkling clean in a cold wash.

4) Simple - turn off lights if you are not using them. A single down-lighter left on for a couple of hours a day will cost you almost a hundred rand per year, considering that average household has several of these running at the same time, you do the maths and save. It's all about being aware, those small amounts add up. And if you have still not changed your bulbs over to CFL's or LED's you are wasting thousands of rands a year unnecessarily.

5) Finally, be aware, learn, educate your children, educate your guests and be on the look out for wastage. If we all see wasted electricity as wasted money, then we will be able to save that much easier.

If you implement these five tips, we guarantee you that your electricity bill will be less than it was last year! For more energy saving tips, carbon calculators, resources and ideas click here

Greening & Resource Efficiency in Tourism Roadshow

A national roadshow encouraging more sustainable business practices in the tourism industry made its stop in uThungulu this month. The series of workshops across the country, hosted by the Department of Environmental affairs (DEA),  Department of Tourism (NDT), Department of Water Affairs (DWA)  and ESKOM are aiming at bringing "Green Issues" to the forefront of the tourism industry.

South Africa is rich in natural and cultural resources and tourism is dependent on these assets for its continued existence. The White Paper on Responsible Tourism requires the sector to promote  responsible tourism practices with a view to maximize economic, social and environmental benefits and  minimize costs to destination and as well as to improve local economies.

Participants at the roadshow were afforded an opportunity to learn more about resource saving measures and those who comply with the energy saving requirements will be incentivized. The focus of the roadshows will be on the Green Economy, Waste Management in Tourism, Water Conservation and Demand Management, Energy Efficiency in Tourism, Universal Accessibility and Climate Change.

Godfrey Nyakulalini, from DEA stressed that this is one of the many steps that government is following in ensuring that the "Green Tourism" legacy started during the 2010 FIFA World Cup continue to reap benefits for our country. Tourism is one of the worlds biggest contributors to Climate Change and for this reason National Tourism Plan for Climate change was developed. The action plan has four key outcomes:
1) Improve understanding of the vulnerability of the tourism industry in order to adapt to climate change
2) Reduce tourism related Greenhouse Gas emissions
3) Develop a fully informed tourism industry through consistent and effective industry outreach
4) Develop a nationally consistent, inclusive and cooperative approach to implementation"

but, added Godfrey, "It will take a fundamental change in society and the way society views environmental issues for this to be a success."

To read more on this initiative, click here

Ongoye Forest; The perfect family getaway on your doorstop

The Ongoye forest birders lodge has recently been re-opened following major refurbishments. The self catering lodge is situated just inland of Mtunzini boasts a six sleeper self catering unit set on a hilltop overlooking Ongoye Forest. The initiative is a joint project between a wide range of stakeholders including The Zululand Birding Route, Mzimela Tribal Authority, Uthungulu District Municipality, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, The SAPPI WWF Tree Routes Partnership, Foskor Ltd and Umalazi Municipality. The camp offers comfortable accommodation for birders, mountain bikers, hikers, rock climbers and other clients that wish to enjoy the forest, with proceeds going back to the Mzimela Community Trust.

The area is undoubtedly one of the province's most precious biodiversity areas with several endemic species found only in this forest.  This project is intended to make a positive difference to the long-term conservation of this asset, and to directly involve the forests neighboring communities and the Mzimela Tribal Authority in the area's management. Camp services such as guiding, cleaning, and providing alien species braai wood are provided by local community members and we are always seeking ways to increase this involvement.

The Ongoye forest lies about 150km north of Durban, between Mtunzini, Eshowe and Empangeni. It is a large remnant patch of pristine coastal forest, 3903 ha in extent and lies along a ridge of hills overlooking the Indian Ocean. This beautiful forest is interspersed with patches of rolling grasslands between granite outcrops.
Ongoye is one of the few forests that has its own endemic mammal, the Ongoye Red Squirrel. Ongoye Forest is the only place to see Woodwards' Barbet in Southern Africa. Samango Monkeys, Baboon, Mongooses, Thick-tailed Bushbaby and the secretive Blue Duiker can also be seen. The Zululand dwarf chameleon, a localised KwaZulu Natal endemic, is abundant at Ongoye and the Forest Green Butterfly Euryphene achlys is unique to this forest.
For more information on the lodge or to book an ultimate weekend of peace and quiet please click here for more information.

Get the latest uThungulu Tourism E-Newsletter

Click here to download a copy of the July / August 2010 edition or Click here for the May June 2010 edition.

Zululand Heritage Route (Route 66) Stakeholder Survey

The Zululand Heritage Route (Route 66) is an exciting community tourism development project of uThungulu and Zululand District Municipalities in partnership with Tourism KZN. ETC-Africa have been recruited as consultants to drive the project forward and provide direction in terms of marketing, product development, community development and SMME development along the route.

In order to better understand the current perceptions (or lack thereof) of the route and tourism in Zululand we have compiled a short questionnaire. If you are interested in tourism in Zululand or visited before or even have a business in the area, please consider taking 10 minutes to complete our survey by clicking the following link: http://www.kwiksurveys.com/online-survey.php?surveyID=KCMMKI_c6bf881c

Name the new uThungulu Newsletter and Win

If you are reading this, then you have probably seen our first E-Newsletter for 2010. Come up with a "winning name" for the uThungulu E-Newsletter and you could win a 1 night stay for 2 people on a Saturday night at the Ridge Guesthouse in Richards Bay.

The Ridge is in a prime position overlooking the harbour and treats guests to the best spot to enjoy a sundowner in Richards Bay. The Ridge also has a full al a carte restaurant, pub and swimming pool.

Visit www.jackscorner.co.za for more information on The Ridge.

All you need to do is leave your e-mail address and idea for the name in the comment box below. Closing date is 15 March 2010.

What would you do for tourism with R100 000?

Each month we plan on introducing a new tourism topic for our online discussion. This is intended to breed new ideas, open communication channels and develop a stronger tourism network in the district.

This month’s discussion is about tourism development and growth. Often it’s the small things that can make the biggest difference! This month we would like to hear from you – “What would you do if you had R100 000 to spend on tourism development, marketing or a specific project that would make a lasting impact on tourism development and or growth in the region?”

Please feel free to post your comments and ideas below (just click comment)