Category Archives: world cup 2014

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 12 June

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*  Google does not only have a Google Doodle in honour of the 2014 World Cup, but it also has a YouTube video in honour of the kick-off date of the soccer tournament in Brazil today.

*   Load shedding appears to be rearing its ugly head again, with freezing conditions throughout the country this week, with snowfalls spread between the Helderberg in Somerset West to the Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal.  Last night a sms warned of load-shedding in Hermanus, Gansbaai, and Stanford, 15 minutes before it was due to commence at 20h00, but its commencement was delayed later into the evening.   The City of Cape Town has posted possible scheduled times for load-shedding, but seems confident that it will not happen any time soon.  Camps Bay is not marked as a load-shedding area, nor is the airport understandably, and the townships and residential areas to the east of the airport also appear load-shedding-free!

*   The Two Oceans Aquarium in the V&A Waterfront is adding a multi-million Rand development in the previous parking area Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 11 June

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   The visa application problems in India experienced by travelers wishing to travel to our country appear to have been dealt with, and the turn-around time now is five days.

*   Booking for the World Cup 2014 in Brazil has been very last minute, with most airline tickets bought in May.  More bookings have come from the northern Europe countries Germany, France, and the UK, while the Mediterranean countries Italy and Portugal have seen far more cautious support.

*   For the second year running the Bordeaux wine region has been hard hit by hail and strong wind, the storm over two days earlier this week damaging vineyards to such an extent that farmers want the French government to declare the devastation a ‘national catastrophe’.   About 1500 ha of vineyard have been completely destroyed by the storm.

*   The new visa application regulations for families with children travelling to our country has caused an upheaval.  New Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom is speaking to his Home Affairs counterpart Malusi Gigaba, and the introduction has been delayed. Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 7/8 June

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   Franschhoek Wine Valley has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Barossa Valley, having similar wine tourism goals and characteristics.  Both wine regions have excellent wines, top restaurants, and good accommodation.  Tourism and wine industry expertise will be shared between the regions, and programs planned include exchanges for chefs, winemakers, sommeliers, and cellar assistants.  Experience of festivals, customer service benchmarking, sustainable wine-making, and wine tourism practices will be shared. (received via media release from Smart Communications & Events)

*   A hard-hitting video from USA asks ‘How much has really changed on South Africa’s wine farms?‘ since the protests in De Doorns two years ago, critical not only of some farm owners but also of the government.

*   The FIFA World Cup, which kicks off next week, will generate $4 billion for the soccer federation, 66% up from the revenue it earned from the World Cup in South Africa in 2010.

*   Noble Hill wine estate on the outskirts of Franschhoek has brought the Japanese Hitachino Nest beer range to our country, Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 24/25 May

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   Andrew Bird, Marks & Spencer Head of Trading, which includes wines, non-food, and ambient grocery, is moving to Woolworths for a two year contract as Trading Head next month.  He helped drive Marks & Spencer to be named best retailer at the International Wine Challenge in four out of the past six years.  Bird is said to become head of the ‘wine and soft drinks teams‘ at Woolworths locally.

*   The Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) was part of a consortium that completed Terminal 3 at São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport, on time and on budget, for the 2014 soccer World Cup, reports The New Age. The project is described as one of the World Cup successes, the new terminal processing all international flights to the city. The capacity to handle an additional 12 million passengers to the 30 million handled annually has been created.   ACSA is also part of a consortium that Continue reading →