Indian women buy more hardcore South African adventure tourism than any other segment, driving markets there for bungee jumping, sky diving, shark diving and mountain hiking, according to South African Tourism Country Head Hanneli Slabber.

Slabbert is in India kicking off a “Learn South Africa” program starting today in the coastal state of Goa, the HinduBusinessLine reports. The program is headed to 14 other Indian cities through Aug. 4.

About 126,000 Indians visit South Africa each year from India and South Africa wants to double that number within a year, Slabbert said, according to BusinessStandard.

“The adventure tourism in South Africa is driven by Indian women,” Slabbert said.

An increasing number of Indian women travelling to South Africa with their husbands on business trips are seeking adventure activities, Slabbert said in a 2012 TimesofIndia report.

At first, adventure activities like bungee jumping, edge diving and kayaking with penguins were optional extras in spouses programs for Indians visiting South Africa on business, Slabbert said. “The initial focus was on shopping and spa therapies but we began getting a lot of inquiries from women for adventure-based activities.”

Wanting to cash in on what it identified as a trend, South African Tourism started offering activities “guaranteed to provide an adrenaline rush for women with a spirit of adventure,” the report said.

Adventure is a now major offering in the spouses program.

Nearly half of all Indians traveling to South Africa go there for meetings, conferences and exhibits that peak during the summer months, Slabbert told TimesofIndia. “The spouses program is integral to promoting tourism in the country as delegates are often busy in meetings and conferences leaving them little time for exploring places.”

In the past year, 20,000 Indian women went bungee jumping in South Africa, BusinessStandard reported today.