City Lodge Hotels faced a challenge: how to make consistency compelling during South Africa’s holiday season, when 55% of travelers experience accommodation disappointment. TBWA\Hunt Lascaris provided the solution by transforming booking disasters into emergency service calls, complete with a dispatcher who offered a rescue solution.

In South Africa, December isn’t just a month—it’s called ‘Ke Dezemba’, a cultural phenomenon when the nation collectively exhales after a year of hard work. The summer holiday period transcends socioeconomic boundaries as South Africans travel across the country to reunite with family or explore new destinations. This travel surge creates a universal pain point: accommodation disappointment. With 55% of holiday bookings failing to meet expectations, the gap between online representation and reality creates frustration that crosses demographic lines. Whether it’s non-existent WiFi for young professionals or misleading “ocean views” for families, bad bookings don’t discriminate.