CAPE TOWN TOURISM & TRAVEL

Featuring a wonderful melting pot of cultures, cuisines and landscapes, there’s nowhere quite like Cape Town. The Mother City a singularly beautiful metropolis crowned by the magnificent Table Mountain National Park.

It’s really not surprising that Cape Town attracts tourists from all over the world. There are few cities that provide such natural beauty, vibrant communities and, of course, ease of access to key South African tourist sites.

Cape Town tourist attractions welcome millions of visitors annually. Over the last decade, the city has also observed increasing growth (2.6%) in employment and output in its accommodation and restaurant sub-sector. Having emerged from the water crisis, the industry is once more poised for even more significant growth. The establishment of a direct flight to the US and a general increase in air access into Cape Town is also a positive development for the industry going forward.

“It has been a period of immense pressure for the tourism industry in Cape Town; the drought has changed our landscape forever. We emerge from this period more alert and aware of our vulnerability regarding sustainable tourism challenges.” Enver Duminy (CEO, Cape Town Tourism)

Business Tourism Footprint in Cape Town

The influence that the tourism industry has in terms of helping to attract talent and FDI to other industries, especially real estate, IT and business services is also substantial. This is because tourism cuts across a number of different industry classifications. These include but are not limited to transport and craft manufacturing, as well as business and community services (Project Camissa, 2019).

With this booming industry and support from the international thoroughfare, Cape Town has attracted major companies across a spectrum of clusters (including convention centres, hotels, tour operators and hospitality, travel planners, restaurants, attractions and supporting bodies).  

Business footprint in the Tourism industry in Cape Town

The Cape Town Tourism Industry’s Competitive Advantages

Information provided by the official tourism economy, trade and investment promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape (Wesgro), indicates that as far as revenue per available room was concerned on a provincial and city level, Cape Town (R1 147.31) and the Western Cape (R1 029.19) as a whole achieved the highest revenue among all provinces and top cities in 2018.

From flat-topped Table Mountain down to the blue waters of Table Bay, Cape Town is simply stunning, but the city doesn’t thrive by its looks alone. Proudly multicultural, its flourishing arts, dining, and nightlife scenes are proof of this modern metropolis’ creativity, lifestyle and innovative spirit. Here are just some of the Cape Town top attractions and reasons that the tourism sector continues to thrive here:

• The Mother City has a natural scenic appeal, in part owing to it having Table Mountain right in the middle of the CBD, one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
• The city has received numerous accolades since 2011, including being chosen as the world’s top tourist city for the seventh time in the 2019 Telegraph Awards.
• In fact, Cape Town’s tourism brand has become self-sustaining, with the metropolis regularly making it onto top ten lists globally.
• The natural attractions and wonderful climate of Cape Town contribute to the city being viewed as a destination where tourists do not have to spend a lot of money to have a good holiday.
• The city provides first-world infrastructure and business tourist amenities, including conference facilities, good connectivity and premium accommodation options.
• Cape Town has the country’s second largest airport, which makes the destination more accessible than many others in Africa. This level of accessibility makes it an obvious choice of destination.
• Cape Town’s tourism brand has become self-sustaining, with the City regularly making it onto top ten lists globally.
• Some of the best restaurants in the world are located in Cape Town, helping to establish the Mother City as a major gastronomic destination on the African continent.
• There is a strong perception that Cape Town is a safer and more enjoyable travel destination than other cities in South Africa.
• The relatively weak exchange rate also works in the favour of international tourists who would like to enjoy a summer holiday and safaris without breaking the bank to do so.
• Top attractions include the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens, Table Mountain, Cape of Good Hope, Robben Island, the Boulders Penguin Colony, Zeitz MOCAA Museum, District Six Museum, Groot Constantia, Silvermine Nature Reserve and Meerendal.

Cape Town Tourism stakeholders have, over the past year or two, truly emphasized working with all of the Western Cape’s participants, proactively marketing the destination globally to entice visitors and to spread the message that the city remains a must-visit African destination.

Whether it is through engaging with community tourism operators, new source markets or international partners, the city can certainly look forward to a future in which it will remain the go-to recreational and business tourism connector. Contact us today for detailed information!