‘Tis The Season To Be Festive

Western Cape minister of economic development and tourism, David Maynier, encourages South Africans to play their part to stay safe, be festive and support tourism businesses this summer season.

- David Maynier

Cape Town and the Western Cape are open, and we look forward to welcoming visitors from both home and abroad to experience the best that we have to offer, especially during the upcoming summer season.

We have always been proud to showcase our province to the rest of the world, so visitors can enjoy the magic of our most beautiful regions – the Cape West Coast, Cape Overberg, Cape Town, Cape Winelands, Garden Route, Klein Karoo, and Cape Karoo.

However, after the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year it is more critical than ever that we have a good summer season so that we can rebuild our tourism and hospitality businesses, and save jobs and the economy in the Western Cape.

The tourism sector has traditionally been the backbone of the economy in our province, supporting more than 300 000 direct and indirect jobs thanks to the millions of tourists who flock to the region annually to enjoy some of the scenic and breathtaking locations that we have to offer.

Many of these jobs provide fantastic opportunities for young people and are often the first career stepping-stone for graduates entering the market either through internships, work placements or entry-level roles.

But at the height of the COVID-19 crisis, with the severe restrictions on business operations and limitations on travel, we found ourselves facing job losses of up to 50% in this sector.

And so, we immediately took action to save jobs in the tourism and hospitality sector in the Western Cape.