about Ilanga > SINCE 1989

Margit Pilz started Ilanga Travel in South Africa after spending many years in Germany in the outbound tourism industry. Having been introduced to this beautiful country during one of the first and ground-breaking educationals to South Africa (in those days organized by a small group of very passionate and determined staff members of South African Airways in Germany, under extreme secrecy to avoid demonstrations of anti-apartheid groups) Margit fell madly in love with this  “world in one country”. 

Many regular visits where to follow her inaugural visit, which she, as a firm anti-apartheid supporter, vehemently resisted.  Those very special SAA persons must have possessed great powers of conviction, and for once managed to persuade a usually very own minded Margit to put aside for one trip only her political views and ideologies and so the seed of what many years later was to become the beginnings of Ilanga Travel was born and germinated time and time again through her own visits as well as those of all her clients who followed in her footsteps. 

We shall all know Margit’s ability to convince and no doubt, many an anti-apartheid supporter did reach our shores as a first time visitor only to return to Germany captivated by the beauty of South Africa and her people.  And so many a repeat visitor is still returning to South Africa today.  Eventually Margit’s heart felt more at home here in South Africa than in Germany and she made a very brave but the only logical decision to single handedly pack up in Essen and to make Johannesburg her new home. 

Very young and quite on her own she opened the first offices of Ilanga Travel with one and soon two staff members (the second, Diana Siccardi, then Essig, still being in our employ today).  With very limited resources but an infinite experience and splendid understanding of the demands of the German traveller Ilanga began as an Incoming Tour Operator Travel servicing with great success the FIT Market.  Ilanga Travel’s standard was set to meet the specific requirements and to address the frustrations Margit so often experienced during many years on the “other side of the desk” in Germany. Margit set about to create the Incoming Tour Operator she had always searched for as an International Buyer and to date, this goal remains to be the foundation of our existence. 

Following our success in the FIT Market, Group as well as Incentive business was soon to emanate and together with many a courageous client (and many still with us today) some ground breaking group and incentive movements were for the first time successfully and with great fun coordinated on South African soil in the early 90s. 

With this success, Ilanga grew steadily to a team of 20 hand-selected and personally trained staff members. This number remained relatively unchanged in the almost 2 decades to follow.  To date, Ilanga Travel remains to be a privately owned medium sized tour operator; small enough to guarantee personal service and large enough to offer a competitive buying power. 

Anedore Kessler joined Ilanga Travel as the third staff member on 1 April 1991. Her stay was only going to be of a short nature having to temporarily bridge a financial shortfall typical of that of a full time student. With many years of political and journalistic studies behind her, Anedore's heart and mind were set on a career in politics and journalism.  Margit’s powers of persuasion as well as the wonderful facets, destinations and products and amazing people in the tourism industry had turned the April's fools joke of 1991 into an ever lasting one. Anedore was made shareholder of Ilanga Travel in 1996 and has since taken over the reins completely in 2004 when Margit Pilz elected to retire after almost 35 years of active service in the tourism Industry.

2005 saw another big move for the Ilanga Team – from the booming economic and financial centre of Johannesburg to the fairest of all Capes. The office has successfully settled in a beautiful location in Cape Town overlooking the majestic Table Mountain – many of the original team having chosen to move their lives with the company.