People in the northern part of the country are outraged when they hear Cape people walking around as if the province is God’s gift to tourism.
True, they have amazing mountains, beautiful beaches (although accompanied by sea temperatures that would freeze anything from a brass monkey) and, of course, they have unlimited wine.
But they don’t have what we do – proper bushveld and the Big Five (note to Cape Town people: dassie is not wildlife).
Also read: SA Tourism sponsorship saga: SAT wants to race Formula 1
The Kruger National Park and the adjacent private reserves, as well as Madikwe and Pilanesberg, we believe, will ensure that foreigners who want to experience the Real Africa will not miss our area. But… not so fast.
As we report in our Travel supplement today, Cape Town has just completed a marketing deal with Victoria Falls. Now, the prospect is that foreigners will fly there, experience wildlife in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia or Botswana and fly directly to Cape Town from Victoria Falls International Airport.
The country’s wildlife experience is as good as it has to offer… so foreign tourists may exclude northern South Africa from their itinerary.
Also read: SA Tourism Board tries to hunt Tottenham deal whistleblower
In addition, there is the fact that the place considered to be the real capital of SA, Johannesburg, is hardly a pleasant place for foreigners to visit our country.
It’s a vibey place to be sure, but it’s also a dirty, crowded city where it’s not always possible and crime is constant, a malign presence.
All this adds up to a possible existential threat to high-end tourism, which generates mega-amounts of foreign currency – and creates thousands of jobs – in our country.
This is what SA Tourism should be doing, instead of spending R1 billion on sponsoring foreign football teams.
Also read: SA Tourism’s R1 billion marketing plan is almost as useful as erecting a giant flag