recent western-cape news from tourismupdate.co.za

The official tourism, trade and investment promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape, Wesgro, unveiled a suite of digital resources called playbooks this week. The playbooks, available on the Wesgro website, offer a comprehensive collection of digital assets under the province

The Table Mountain Aerial Cableway Company (TMACC) attracted many visitors on Monday morning, September 2, when the iconic site reopened after a seven-week maintenance period. Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said, the cableway, visited by over a million tourists every year, sold

The intent and commitment are there for South African Tourism to get it right and, by fostering even stronger collaborative ties with the industry, the abundant opportunities to grow tourism in the country can be successfully leveraged for the benefit of all. This was the key message fr

South Africas G20 presidency in 2025 presents a host of opportunities for the countrys tourism and hospitality suppliers as government needs the industrys help to showcase the best of what it has to offer. So said Minister of Tourism Patricia De Lille in her keynote speech openin

Cape Town is at the centre of the global space economy as host of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) General Assembly. This is the first time in over 100 years that the event is on African soil. The event, which began on August 6 and will end on August 15, has attracted over 1 8

Tourism Update readers are fairly evenly split over whether South Africas newly-inscribed UNESCO World Heritage Sites will boost tourism to the country. The new sites the Human Rights, Liberation and Reconciliation: Nelson Mandela Sites and The Pleistocene Occupation Sites in the Western

The 46th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee will deliberate on whether three South African sites achieve World Heritage status in New Delhi this week from July 21 to 31. South Africa has put forward three nominations. Successful nominations will be protected under the World

One of South Africas most spectacular annual natural phenomena is underway in the Namaqualand region of the Northern and Western Cape. Generally occurring from August to October, the blossoming of thousands of indigenous flower species lights up an 800-kilometre section along the Namaqualand Flo

The Bastille Day Festival, due to take place in Franschhoek this weekend, has been postponed due to storms that have battered the Western Cape all week. The festival which celebrates the French Bastille Day holiday, attracts thousands of visitors to Franschhoek each year. Ruth McCour

Severe weather, which has already caused widespread damage and disruption in the Western Cape, is anticipated to continue for the rest of the week, with several more weather warnings for the coming days. The first storm hit the province over the weekend, with a second storm making landf

Confidence in the Western Capes business meetings sector is high with Cape Town securing the top spot for meetings in Africa, increased investment and an economic impact of over R1 billion (50.8 million) in the last financial year. The recently released International Congress and Conven

This week, South African National Parks (SANParks) highlighted the efforts of the firefighters, partners, and volunteers who demonstrated bravery and resilience during the 2023/24 Western Cape Fire Season, particularly withinTable Mountain National Park (TMNP). Throughout this challengi

The Western Capes tourism sector has continued its upward trend, bringing economic and job-creating benefits to the province. The latest report on tourism in the Western Cape shows that the 53 participating attractions across the six regions of the province recorded just over 3.2 millio

After assisting more than 950 small, medium and microenterprises (SMMEs) across the Western Cape, sustaining 4 977 jobs, and contributing R85.5 million (4.1m) since 2019, the latest window of the SMME Booster Fund is now open for applications. SMMEs are the lifeblood of our economy, fue

In its 2024 results, Southern Sun has reported growth in adjusted headline earnings per share of 88% (to 56.4c per share), along with EBITDAR (earnings before interest, income, tax, depreciation, amortisation, rent, long-term incentives and exceptional items) of R1.9 billion (94.9m), a 32% increa

A female cheetah in the Mountain Zebra National Park (MZNP) outside Cradock in the Eastern Cape received a new tracking collar recently, thanks to a generous donation. The collar fitted previously was about to reach the end of its lifespan. MZNP is currently home to eight cheetahs. Of thes

The Western Cape continued to shine as a destination in high demand, with tourist arrivals to Cape Town by air recording a 16% year-on-year increase between January and March, reaching 336 268 visitors. This not only shows a significant recovery but also surpasses the 2019 figure for the s

Sense of Africa has strengthened its position on the African continent by onboarding clients across the African footprint, creating a smooth operation, curating guest experiences in each country, but never forgetting that the foundation of what it does is the rich and vast environment in which it