AIR Austral has recently
launched a new Air Austral
Vanilla Island Pass, which is
available to all passengers
travelling from SA to Réunion
on Air Austral only. However,
the new pass has led to some
confusion in the trade, as it
seems to be the same as the
existing Indian Ocean Pass.
Lenél Vining, Air Austral
manager for SA, says there
is little difference. The
Indian Ocean Pass has been
available for some time to
travellers in possession of
an Air Austral, Air Seychelles
or Air Mauritius ticket from
SA to Réunion, Seychelles or
Mauritius. The Vanilla Islands
Pass is a new initiative and
is only available to long- and
medium-haul Air Austral ticket
holders.
The discounts and terms
and conditions for the passes,
however, do differ. The Indian
Ocean Pass fares range from
€45 or R653 (SEZ-PRI) to
€217 or R3 149 (RUN-YVA). To
qualify for the fares, travellers
must purchase a minimum
of three different sectors,
choosing from 15 routes within
the Indian Ocean: Comoros,
Madagascar, Maldives,
Mayotte, Mauritius, Réunion,
Rodrigues and Seychelles. The
pass is valid for two months.
The Vanilla Island Pass
offers reductions of between
35% and 55% on regular
fares but travellers need to
purchase a minimum of four
different sectors, something
that could be a major obstacle
for the new pass. Angela
Uys, Thompsons Holidays’
product and contracting
executive for Réunion, says
some South African travellers
would be interested in
combining at least two of the
islands in a cost-effective
way, especially Mauritius and
Réunion or Réunion and the
Seychelles, as Réunion offers
a very different, active holiday
experience compared with the
Seychelles and Mauritius. “I’m
not sure SA travellers would
necessarily combine three
islands in one holiday.”
Despite low fares, the
majority of South Africans are
unlikely to take advantage
of this new pass, agrees Dr
Marlene Martin, owner of Sun
and Sandals Tours. “Most
people don't see much of a
difference between one island
and another, not enough to
warrant airport transfers and
moving from one island to
another.” She says most Indian
Ocean packages from South
Africa are only seven days,
which doesn’t make island
hopping an interesting option.
Chantelle Browne, product
manager of Holiday Tours,
says South Africans will only
explore other islands if the
combination doesn’t increase
the total cost of the holiday
by too much. “Mauritius is
still the most affordable of the
Indian Ocean Islands and this
is a contributing factor to the
tendency to book Mauritius
only,” she adds.
