The V&A Waterfront, photo courtesy slack12

South Africa has been listed as one of “The 31 Places to Go in 2010” by the New York Times for the second consecutive year.

The list – which features other global hotspots such as Istanbul, Copenhagen and Sri Lanka – provides compelling reasons for visiting the country. 

The article focuses on Cape Town – the picturesque cosmopolitan metropolis at the tip of Africa.

Highlighted are the city’s unparalleled natural beauty, hotel development and, of course, the fact that the city will play host to a number of 2010 FIFA World Cup™ fixtures.

Taking place later this year, the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ will act as a major draw card for international tourists. Thousands of soccer fans are expected to descend upon the city, which will host eight matches during the World Cup.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and a recommendation from the New York Times are bound to ensure that Cape Town will be a popular tourist destination this year. 

The stage at the CTICC where the Final Draw will take place

As the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Final Draw approaches, the world turns its attention to the Mother City. Cape Town Tourism has been following the preparations closely. The following articles have been published on our 2010 blog, our media mini-site and our industry mini-site:

Final Draw celebrities in Cape Town

Friday December 4, 2009 is the date for the Final Draw, which is a major part of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

The event will bring a star-studded list of international celebrities to the stage in Cape Town.

Read more…

Inside the CTICC for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Final Draw

Recently I attended the media briefing for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Final Draw, which is happening this Friday, December 4, 2009, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).

It never crossed my mind that any part of the World Cup would not be world class, but being in the room where the Final Draw will take place gave me goose bumps and a proud feeling for being part of such a major event for Cape Town and the world.

Read more…

Cape Town gears up for FIFA Final Draw

The countdown to the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ will soon hit the six-month mark and soccer fans all over the world are eagerly awaiting the kickoff on June 11. On December 4, the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Final Draw will take place in the Mother City where, as the FIFA website suggests, “the fates of the world’s top 32 teams will be sketched out”.

An estimated 8 000 people are expected to gather at the Cape Town International Convention Centre to witness the draw, which will reveal the match order for the anticipated sporting event.

Read more…

Cape Town ready to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Final Draw

Cape Town will host eight World Cup matches in 2010, but the city’s soccer fans need not wait till then to enjoy some FIFA action. Capetonians will be lucky enough to feel the World Cup fever on December 4.

The Final Draw, to be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on December 4, will see FIFA executives, celebrities, members of the international media and representatives of each of the 32 qualifying teams in attendance.

Read more…

City road closures for spectacular 2010 Final Draw

The first official event to launch South Africa’s hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ takes place in Cape Town on December 4 and the City of Cape Town is pulling out all the stops to demonstrate its readiness to welcome thousands of soccer fans and dignitaries.

The FIFA Final Draw, which will determine the match schedule for the 32 participating teams in next year’s soccer tournament, will be held at 19h00 on Friday, December 4 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).

Read more…

Cape Town won the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category

The City of Cape Town is pleased to announce that Cape Town has won the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category.

The award was presented to Executive Deputy Mayor Alderman Ian Neilson, on behalf of the City of Cape Town, at an awards ceremony on World Responsible Tourism Day – November 11 – at the World Travel Market in London.

“It was a great honour for me to receive this award on behalf of the people of Cape Town and its tourism industry,” said Neilson. “It means that it is not only our city’s splendid natural beauty that makes Cape Town a great tourist destination, but also the fact that we have a leading tourism and hospitality industry. Cape Town is ready to greet the world during 2010.”

Neilson went on to congratulate Cape Town Tourism, the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa, Southern Africa Tourism Services Association and the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry, as well as their members and all players in the tourism industry.

“Thank you for working together with the City to put our Responsible Tourism Charter in place,” he said. “This award is yours.”

Cape Town Tourism CEO Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold said, “Cape Town Tourism is thrilled with the news that Cape Town has won the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category. Being the first city to win in this category is an incredible achievement and testament to Cape Town’s ability to lead the way in terms of global responsible tourism. We are very proud to be part of team Cape Town and commend the City of Cape Town, our partners and the tourism industry for your commitment to this initiative.”

Executive Director of Economic, Social Development and Tourism, Mansoor Mohamed

According to Nombulelo Mkefa, Cape Town Director of Tourism, it is the City’s responsibility to create an enabling environment for responsible tourism and encourage industry to work towards a more sustainable destination.

To this end, “the City’s responsible tourism strategy is intrinsically linked to a range of other sector policies, programmes and initiatives aimed at the development of a sustainable, attractive and successful city,” Mkefa explained.

She also offered her congratulations to team Cape Town: “To my team, well done! But now the work begins. The world is watching!

“Congratulations, Cape Town!”

About the Responsible Tourism Awards

The awards were founded in 2004 by responsibletravel.com, which runs the awards in partnership with the Daily Telegraph, Geographical Magazine – the magazine of the Royal Geographical Society – and World Travel Market. Virgin Holidays became a headline sponsor of the awards in 2007 and has continued to support them since then.

The central tenet of the awards is that all types of tourism – from niche to mainstream – can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and local people. The awards recognise individuals, companies and organisations in the travel industry that are making a significant commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and are providing a positive contribution to biodiversity conservation.

About the World Travel Market

Staged annually in London, this global event for the travel industry is a four-day, business-to-business event presenting a diverse range of destinations and industry sectors to UK and international travel professionals. It is where global travel trade representatives meet, network, negotiate and conduct business under one roof.

The World Travel Market, the world’s biggest travel trade show, turned 30 this year. Basically, the market is about countries (and sometimes really big cities, like New York), selling themselves and their tourism experiences to travel companies and the media (particularly on the first day of the four-day fair) from around the world.

The World Travel Market is held in a massive exhibition centre called ExCeL, near Canary Wharf in London, and thousands upon thousands of people attend it.

Countries go to great trouble to market their wares – massive screens showcasing azure beaches, palaces and cathedrals (depending on the country) are the order of the day. These are sometimes supplemented with people dressed in traditional costume, local fauna and sometimes even food and wine.

South Africa Tourism, occupying the prime position in the Africa section, did South Africa especially proud this year. A large welcome desk was backed by a screen showcasing our wonders, from wildlife to the Blyde River Canyon, and 2010 mascot Zakumi did the rounds, kissing and hugging people.

Football was a special theme in the South Africa section this year, with the 2010 FIFA World Cup coming up in South Africa next year. For example, staff at Cape Town Tourism gave away T-shirts, memory sticks with trade information about Cape Town on them, whistles, soccer badges and pens. (The Cape Town stall was particularly popular, by the way, with interested people coming up to the desk to make meeting times and get information all day long.)

At the entrance to the World Travel Market, there was a team of people teaching the diski dance. I tried my hand (legs) at it and walked away with a vuvuzela and 2010 soccer ball – both of which I dished out to delighted English friends last night.

Despite all the glitz and excitement, it was also quite a sobering experience. Yes, 2010 will be a massive event and will pull South Africa arguably more media coverage than any other event in our history, but at the same time, the world moves on, and 2010 is not as important in many other people’s eyes as it might seem in ours. London’s 2012 Olympics is around the corner, there are Commonwealth Games coming up later in 2010…

It was also sobering to see how much money other countries spend on their international marketing. Greece and Portugal’s stands alone were about the size of the African section. Egypt has put a lot of money into its destination marketing, with beautiful advertisements all over London’s Underground and large banners and billboards throughout World Travel Market.

The international tourism market is an incredibly competitive one, and we can’t be complacent about our beautiful country and what we offer tourists for a single minute.

Photo courtesy Tara Turkington

Cape Town Tourism is showing the world what we’re made of at this year’s World Travel Market (WTM) in London until November 12, 2009.

The World Travel Market is a business-to-business event where international travel industry members can meet, communicate and do business.

Cape Town Tourism’s attendance at this year’s market is an opportunity to reinforce the message that Cape Town is ready to welcome the world for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Travel operators and media will hear that there is enough accommodation and that the hospitality industry has not out-priced itself.

Cape Town Tourism is working with Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU) to ensure that Cape Town and its surrounding regions are fully represented to the trade. Cape Town Tourism is focusing on marketing Cape Town as a host city, whilst CTRU will be driving home its “Beyond 90 Minutes” campaign, which promotes an extended stay in the Western Cape after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Photo courtesy Tara Turkington

Cape Town Tourism CEO Mariëtte du-Toit Helmbold comments: “This is an important event and especially this year as the trade is interested in how we are going to deal with the 2010 FIFA World Cup. We know we are ready and we need to inspire the international market with the same confidence.”

Cape Town is also a proud nominee for this year’s Virgin Holiday’s Responsible Tourism Awards in the category Responsible Destination. The awards have 13 categories and the City of Cape Town is the only municipality nominated in its category. The award ceremony will be held at WTM on November 11, 2009, which is also Responsible Tourism Day.

Says Du Toit-Helmbold, “Cape Town Tourism, the City of Cape Town and other affiliates have accelerated the adoption and creation of programmes that reduce the tourism industry’s impact on the environment. Key to the success of these campaigns is the coaching that Cape Town Tourism has given its members (and the broader tourism industry) on how to integrate responsible tourism into the day-to-day running of their businesses. For Cape Town to be recognised on this global platform means that we are effecting awareness and change.”

Jean-Paul de la Fuente, director of the Swiss-registered New7Wonders Foundation, photo courtesy Splash PR

Jean-Paul de la Fuente, director of the Swiss-registered New7Wonders Foundation, visited South Africa this past week for a site inspection of Table Mountain and to meet potential sponsors and stakeholders of the Table Mountain election campaign.

Table Mountain is in a race against 27 other famous natural wonders to be named one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature in July 2011. Cape Town’s iconic mountain was shortlisted after a public vote and now needs global support to receive enough public votes to win a place in the final seven.

According to De la Fuente, Table Mountain needs to win the world’s vote to make the final cut.

“Every single vote is important, but it is not enough to rely only on South Africans to vote Table Mountain to the top. Table Mountain also needs to engage with the globe,” said De la Fuente. “Table Mountain supporters need to realise that its competitors include the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Grand Canyon in the USA, the Amazon in South America and Yushan in Chinese Taipei.

“Everyone loves Table Mountain because it is an environmental beacon, but it was also a symbol of hope for the forced residents of Robben Island during apartheid. That message needs to be communicated to the globe so that they are reminded of the historic significance of Table Mountain when they choose their list of seven sites online.”

The New7Wonders Foundation is expecting more than a billion votes to be cast in what will be the world’s largest democratic election. Cast your vote at www.votefortablemountain.com.

The V&A Waterfront

Africa has bucked global trends by being the only world region to have international tourist arrivals increase by 4% during the first eight months of the year. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation’s World Tourism Barometer, Africa is the only world region that held its own and recorded growth during the recent economic crisis.

On the local front, Statistics South Africa released encouraging figures for the month of August, reporting that South Africa’s international arrivals were up 6,5% from the same month last year. Contributors to the positive statistics included increases in visitors coming from Italy (up 17,8%) and India (up 14,4%).

“Tourism around the world has taken a big hit because of the recession and, whilst our local industry has not escaped without injury, we have pushed through and numbers are gradually rising,” says Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold, CEO of Cape Town Tourism. “It is important to respond to new markets and trends in these times and apply an innovative approach to marketing with the emphasis on the customer’s unique needs and changing travel patterns.”

During August this year, Statistics South Africa found steady increases in the number of visitors to South Africa from European countries (30 000 from the UK, nearly 15 000 from Germany and 10 000 from France and the Netherlands).

Overall, 27 574 visitors arrived in Cape Town in August. There was a decline in visitors from the US, Canada and Australia, but US media and online interest in Cape Town accounts for ever-increasing shares of international coverage and traffic.

“Curiosity about South Africa, specifically Cape Town, has piqued because we are hosting the FIFA Final Draw on December 4 and, of course, because of the 2010 FIFA World Cup,” says Du Toit-Helmbold.

A spike in interest and 2010 FIFA World Cup bookings is expected after the FIFA Final Draw match fixtures are announced.

The World Travel Market (WTM) – the world’s biggest travel show – opened in London today. Now in its 30th year, the WTM is, according to its website, “a unique opportunity for the whole global travel trade to meet, network, negotiate and conduct business under one roof”.

Alan Winde, minister of finance, economic development and tourism in the Western Cape, visited the Cape Town stand at the WTM.

“It’s great to be at the World Travel Market in London,” he said. “This platform is where we are going to be setting up Cape Town and the Western Cape as the tourism destination for the world in the next 10 years.”

After many months of planning and construction, the new departure terminal at the Cape Town International Airport opened on Saturday (November 7, 2009). 

As the 2010 FIFA World Cup draws closer and the upgrade to the airport surges ahead, the airport authorities have handled the demands of keeping air traffic, passengers and cargo moving while revamping the buildings and introducing new, world-class systems. For the last few months the new systems and processes have been put through their paces by airport staff, airlines, retailers and other businesses that operate at the airport in preparation for opening day.

Travellers to Cape Town can now start enjoying the benefits of all the dust, sweat and toil. The international departure terminal, costing R1,6-billion, has some impressive features designed to ease the flow of people, vehicles and baggage.

To smooth the transition from old to new, Cape Town International Airport has produced information booklets which will be handed out to help people find their way around. The terminal has a 200m-long departure hall,with 120 check-in counters and 20 self-service kiosks, a new drop-off zone, centralised security checkpoint, five new air-bridges, a viewing deck and 30 shops and restaurants.

Also coming in the next few months are a R394-million parkade with 4 000 parking bays, extra aircraft bays, more air-bridges, a bigger car hire area, a public transport plaza and an upgrade of the road system in the airport grounds.

The old terminal will eventually be given a new lease of life when it is converted into the air-side portion of the new terminal.  Meanwhile, the arrival terminals for domestic and international flights will have to wait until next year for their makeovers.

St James Beach

The City of Cape Town is delighted to be shortlisted for the Responsible Destination Award at this year’s prestigious Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards, to be held at the World Travel Market in London. The awards will be presented to the winners at a ceremony on World Responsible Tourism Day on November 11.

Founded by responsibletravel.com in 2004, the awards recognise individuals, companies and organisations in the travel industry that are making a significant commitment to the cultures and economies of local communities and contributing positively to biodiversity conservation.

The central tenet of the awards is that all types of tourism – from niche to mainstream – can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and local people.

The awards cover 13 categories applicable to destinations and the tourism industry in the achievement of responsible tourism.

Harold Goodwin, chair of the judges’ panel and professor of responsible tourism management at Leeds Metropolitan University in the UK, says that more than 140 entries were submitted to the panel of adjudicators this year.

According to Goodwin, the willingness of organisations and businesses to take responsibility for their actions and to improve their destinations as tourism venues is impressive.

Cape Town Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato and tourism industry leaders adopted Cape Town’s Responsible Tourism Charter on September 28, 2009. The City has positioned responsible tourism as a key policy principle of its Tourism Development Framework and a Responsible Tourism Policy and Action Plan has been developed.

As part of the drive towards becoming a responsible destination, a code of conduct for visitors to the destination is available. The City has also established community tourism forums in disadvantaged areas to raise awareness of tourism and to manage cultural and heritage resources.

“At a conference on sustainable tourism in destinations held in Cape Town in 2002, the ratified Cape Town Declaration provided the basis for the world definition of responsible tourism,” says Alderman Felicity Purchase, Mayoral Committee member for Economic, Social Development and Tourism.

“Since then, the City has invested some R15-million in the development of tourism infrastructure in previously disadvantaged areas. Over the past two years, we have supported 200 tourism businesses.”

According to Mansoor Mohamed, the City’s Executive Director for Economic, Social Development and Tourism, “responsible tourism makes sound economic sense. A significant and growing number of tourists are looking for a ‘different’ travel experience and a higher quality product. They want to get closer to the people of the country they visit and experience its natural and cultural heritage. They wish to do so, however, with a good conscience and in the knowledge that they are doing so in a responsible way and without having any adverse effect on the countries that they visit and the destinations they frequent.

“Cape Town has recently won major international tourism awards, including Africa’s Leading Destination Award two years in a row, and this can, to some extent, be attributed to the efforts already made in making Cape Town a leading responsible tourism destination.”

The City of Cape Town’s Tourism Director, Nombulelo Mkefa, says being shortlisted for the award is an honour – and that it will motivate the City to further improve its responsible tourism approach.

“Our next priority is to assist and create awareness of responsible tourism practice in City departments, to facilitate the implementation of responsible tourism practices in tourism businesses, and to promote awareness of tourism among our residents, visitors and stakeholders,” says Mkefa.