African Array has launched its new grading system for game lodges in South Africa which will be showcased on its new website, the ‘Game Lodge Index’.
The index will promote not only the accommodation and facilities of a game lodge as in South Africa’s traditional grading scheme but will also rate intangible factors such as wildlife experience and the quality of service.
Says Jake Hoddinott, founder of the programme, lodges will be graded using the company’s pioneered Sun & Sun Ray rating system.
The index website will give tour operators and travel agents the ideal platform to search for the safari experience that will suit their specific clients and will also include reviews of the properties given by stakeholders involved in the industry.
The system will also make it easy for travel trade to compare properties and what each could offer their clients.
Properties can list with African Array in a similar fashion to that of the traditional grading council and will be charged to be graded but, says Hoddinott, the fees are less than those paid to the star-grading council.
A first version of the website will be launched at Indaba in May but the full website will be properly launched in June.
