Visit Stellenbosch, the town’s new destination marketing company, aims to package Stellenbosch beyond its recognised wine and food offering to unlock tourism potential.

“Our mission is to inspire visits, for visitors to stay longer and do more, and to visit us again all year round. We want to grow our business in tourism,” Jeanneret Momberg, GM of Visit Stellenbosch told Tourism Update.

Visit Stellenbosch launched in August and has brought Stellenbosch tourism stakeholders under one umbrella organisation. Key partners include business and leisure tourism stakeholders, accommodation providers, wine farms, restaurants, experiences, and MICE partners.

“Further, we want to ensure that the destination is more accessible for tourism trade, and we find that we need to package it in such a way that people realise that the destination is ‘beyond the half day’,” she emphasises.

Currently there is a significant number of day visitors from Cape Town and surrounding areas, but the DMC would like to convert these into overnight visitors.

Key strategies that fall under Visit Stellenbosch’s repackaged offering include a focus on business tourism.

Momberg explains its ‘living conference centre’ promotion, where Visit Stellenbosch will host conferences and meetings in central locations in Stellenbosch. Delegates will have the opportunity to stay in Stellenbosch to experience the town. Visit Stellenbosch, Wesgro and Stellenbosch University are working closely together on this strategy.

Visit Stellenbosch’s winter 2020 campaign will also be closely aligned to the repackaging of the town. “May to September is often the best time of the year to visit,” according to Visit Stellenbosch. The weather is mild, there are fewer crowds and the accommodation is on average cheaper.

“We are also embarking on a drive next year to make sure that our tour operators are well informed on what we offer, so we are planning a trade workshop in Cape Town at the end of February, where we will invite tour operators,” Momberg says.