26/08/2026
A very important conversation for the future of South African tourism. 🇿🇦
At Winelands Tourism Partners, we believe the real measure of tourism growth is not only the number of visitors we attract, but how much value reaches the communities, entrepreneurs and small businesses that make our destinations unique.
Villages, townships and small towns should not be an afterthought in our tourism economy. They must be part of the itinerary, part of the value chain and part of the investment conversation.
We need to move beyond once-off projects and towards long-term partnerships that provide market access, business development, mentorship, digital visibility, product development and meaningful participation in tourism supply chains.
The Winelands has an opportunity to demonstrate what inclusive destination development can look like – connecting established tourism products with emerging entrepreneurs, community experiences, cultural assets and lesser-known destinations.
Tourism must not simply bring visitors to a destination. It must create opportunities for the people who live there.
The next chapter of tourism should be about moving from promotion to participation, from visibility to viability, and from destinations that visitors pass through to communities they actively experience.
South Africa’s tourism story is often told through its global icons: Table Mountain, the Kruger National Park, the Garden Route and the Winelands. …
