Post Covid, Curiocity Finds A New Audience

01.08.2024 - 16:16 / skift.com / Africa Tourism / Jesse ChaseLubitz

Curiocity, a travel company rooted in immersive and local experiences in South Africa, never experienced the post-Covid travel boom. Instead of a sudden and possibly short-lived boost, however, a new audience dedicated to local, community-oriented, impact tourism emerged.

“Post-pandemic, we thought there’ll be this massive pent-up demand where everyone would be itching just to travel,” said Bheki Dube, the founder and CEO of Curiocity. “Unfortunately, and maybe fortunately, that hasn’t been the case.”

Curiocity offers locally owned hotels, hostels, and travel experiences. The company has a total of eight hotel and hostel locations, with its latest opening this month on Kloof Street, a trendy area in Cape Town.

After the worst of the pandemic had passed, the company started seeing far more domestic guests. Pre-Covid, 90% of its clientele was international, and just 10% came from domestic customers. Now, it has a 50/50 split. 

“It’s a good thing,” said Bheki. “Because that means that the local market is starting to travel in their own backyard and immersing themselves in the neighborhoods they live in.”

And while many of Curiocity’s customers were from Germany, Austria, and Denmark, it now largely sees people from South Africa and Brazil. 

Part of this shift is that there are now direct flights from Brazil to Johannesburg and Cape Town, but Bheki is also seeing a surge in interest in Afro-tourism. 

Many of his guests are Black American travelers coming onto the continent to reconnect with their history. “They want to come to the motherland and immerse themselves,” he said.

Some travelers visit for the Afro fashion and music festivals. Curiocity brings them to meet local fashion designers and creators. 

“It’s beyond tourism now,” Bheki said. “It’s more about connecting with people, connecting with changemakers in South Africa.” 

In addition to these cultural tours, they are also seeing a lot of business cohorts doing their MBAs. They are coming from investment firms and banks and looking to learn about the economy of South Africa.

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To address this shift, Curiocity has adjusted its offerings. 

“We have become very intentional about