Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   ‘Cape Town’s most stylish hotels’ feature in the Telegraph Travel article, which focuses on more than just the Mother City’s hotels.  Given Cape Town’s status of World Design Capital 2014, Woodstock, Bree Street, and Long Street are recommended for arts, sculptures, jewellery, and crafts.  Hemelhuijs and The Pot Luck Club are recommended restaurants.  The Mount Nelson, One&Only Cape Town, Cape View, The Clarendon, and Ellerman House are recommended as accommodation establishments.

*   Six of Africa’s twelve top music festivals are hosted in South Africa, and include Oppikoppi (in Limpopo province, the largest local music festival); Up the Creek (in Swellendam); Cape Town International Jazz Festival; Splashy Fen (at Underberg); AfrikaBurn (in North Cape province); and Rocking the Daisies (in Darling).

*   National soccer team Bafana Bafana arrived in Cape Townlast weekend, in preparation for the African Nations Championship, which kicks off at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

*   James Romanow, writing in the New Mexico Leader Post, says that drinking a House of Mandela wine is a fitting tribute to the late Nelson Mandela.

*   A manual of information published by (£30 million a year budget) Visit Britain, which was targeted at accommodation establishments and tourism players in the UK to guide them in dealing with tourists from around the world, has been criticised for ‘racial stereotyping‘!   For example, the manual describes:

+   Russians as cold, impolite, spending beyond their means, with an above average height, and are heavy eaters

+   Chinese don’t like soft nor four poster beds, nor to talk about money

+   Indians change their minds regularly, like to haggle over prices, avoid paying by credit card due to the temptation they create, tend to ask personal questions without meaning to offend, and can be difficult to understand

+    French travellers are very private, do not make eye contact, nor do they smile

+   Germans are described as being aggressive, demanding, and rude, they plan ahead, are information seekers, and are obsessed with hygiene.

+   Australians are sarcastic, intolerant, and poor tippers

*   Economists are not expecting the weak Rand to strengthen in the next five years.  Whilst good for exports and tourism in principle (although we are not seeing this benefit tourism), it is harmful to the inflation rate and the growth of the economy. In the past month the Rand, Argentinian peso, and Turkish lira were the world’s three weakest currencies.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com  Twitter: @WhaleCottage