Thursday 23 December 2021, Day 84 of Level 1 😷
Corona Lockdown Gratitude 🙏
#grateful for a very organized work day, starting at 6h00, and working straight through until 14h00, to catch up on more work and to prepare for two meetings this afternoon, not even having time for a Bakoven walk; for fetching my post at the Vlaeberg Post Office, as Waterfront post boxes are being moved to elsewhere, the new Branch Manager Jacques whom I’ve known for years from the Continue reading →
The Western Cape has 27 Blue Flag beaches, the largest percentage of the 45 Blue Flag beaches awarded in our country in total this year. More than 4000 Blue Flag beaches have been accredited world-wide. In addition, five marinas and six whale-watching boats were accredited, and some pilot Blue Flag beaches have been announced. All the beaches in the Hessequa Municipality (Stilbaai, Witsand, Gouritzmond, and more) have achieved Blue Flag status.
The Blue Flag status of each beach is done by the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa, based on international standards for water and beach cleanliness, water and sand quality, and environmental education and management, set by the Foundation for Environmental Education. The number of Blue Flag beaches awarded locally is growing year on year since the beach accreditation system was introduced in our country 13 years ago.
The Blue Flag Beaches, and accredited marina and whale-watching boats, in the Western Cape are the following: Continue reading →
For the first time in the Western Cape a Tourism Ambassador has been appointed. Bob Skinstad, South African rugby hero and commentator, is the new Tourism Ambassador for the Overstrand, encompassing the municipal region stretching from Kleinmond-Hangklip to Gansbaai, via Hermanus and Stanford. The area is also known as the Cape Whale Coast.
The concept of a Tourism Ambassador was the idea of Wesgro CEO Nils Flaatten, who felt that Bob’s interaction with top rugby fans locally, as well as internationally would stand the Overstrand region in good stead if it was recommended by him as a holiday destination on his travels. Bob grew up in ‘Southern Rhodesia‘, but loved coming on holidays to Hermanus with his parents, and they now live in the seaside town (with his parents-in-law too), giving Bob’s endorsement even greater credibility. A Memorandum of Agreement has been signed for 12 months between Bob and the Overstrand municipality, confirming which services he will render, and how many packages of products from the area he can use for marketing purposes. He wants the region to become more Social Media savvy, and recommended ‘We Chat’ as a huge free Continue reading →
Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines
* The N1/N2 Winelands toll road project is unlikely to be implemented, despite the Supreme Court of Appeal giving the go-ahead for e-tolling, says Robin Carlisle, Western Cape Minister of Transport.
* Praise for Chef Chris Erasmus of Pierneef à La Motte‘s old-world-meets-science cooking comes from America.
* Will Kempinski Hotels’ announced expansion in Africa include South Africa, given that it has just opened two hotels in Kenya? Five more Kempinski hotels are planned for Africa. Hotel investments in Africa are likely to drive tourism to the continent.
* Africa is the India and China of ten years ago, and will see an increasing investment from international companies, including hotel groups such as Hilton, Starwood, and Marriott International Inc. growing their hotel presence on the continent, especially in Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, South Africa, Botswana, and Angola.
* A Nelson Mandela Tour has been developed to show Continue reading →