Northern Cape Business 2018-19 edition

OVERVIEW
ties in the sector for SMMEs, youth and women and was an opportunity
for government, NGOs and the Northern Cape Tourism Authority to
interact with community members. The imbizo followed a hospitality
youth programme graduation ceremony.
A partnership between the Northern Cape Department of Economic
Development and Tourism (DEDAT) and Open Africa has created employment
for nearly 1 000 people, the majority of whom are black
and female. Open Africa is a social enterprise which works with local
communities to open up tourism routes. A long-term collaboration
with the South African National Parks has seen facilities at many of the
province’s parks improved, and the development of six tourism routes.
The National Department of Tourism worked together with DEDAT
and the Kai Garib Municipality to build a campsite at Keimoes on the
Orange River. There are six national parks and five provincial reserves
in the province, each showing off distinct features.
The Northern Cape Tourism Authority (NCTA) is the official marketing
agency for the Northern Cape. Culture, nature and adventure are the
three big themes that future visitors are promised.
Hotels
Country Hotels has invested heavily in the province. Demand for beds has
risen because of concerted campaigns by the tourist authority and on the
back of investment inflows in the mining and renewable energy sectors.
Spanish and Chinese engineers are now a common sight in Northern
Cape towns, to such an extent that local supermarkets are stocking
spices such as saffron for fragrant paellas.
R40-million has been invested by Country Hotels in the new Kathu
Inn and R50-million will see the Springbok Inn become a smart 100-
room hotel with a further 250 beds available in a backpackers lodge
and 25 sites available at an associated campsite. The Orange River
Rafting Lodge has an obvious purpose while the Namastat Lodge and
Caravan Park caters to travellers on the N7. What used to be known
as the Hantam Hotel in Calvinia is now the refurbished Calvinia Hotel
and Tankwa Lodge offering 25 air-conditioned rooms and easy access
to flower-spotting and the Tankwa Karoo National Park.
The riverside town of Upington has a large number of guesthouses
and bed-and-breakfast establishments, together with a
90-room Protea Hotel by Marriott. The Protea Hotel by Marriott
Kimberley has 117 rooms and three suites and is located right next
to the Big Hole. Also near the capital city’s biggest attraction is the
historic Kimberley Club Boutique Hotel.
Tsogo Sun has two properties in Kimberley: a 135-room Garden
Court and a 64-room budget hotel, SUN1. The Flamingo Casino is
run by Sun International and offers gaming tables, slot machines
and conference facilities.
Conferences and events
The NCTA has increasingly
been focusing on adventure
sports and the organisation
and promotion of events,
including festivals.
The opening of the
2 500-seater Mittah Seperepere
Convention Centre was a boost
to the Northern Cape events and
conferences industry. It is located
near the Big Hole in the centre
of Kimberley. The Convention
Centre makes it much easier to
sell the provincial capital as a
meetings, incentives, conference
and events (MICE) destination.
The Northern Cape has its fair
share of annual festivals. AfrikaBurn
is now a regular in the Tankwa
Karoo National Park, attracting
fun-lovers determined to do their
thing off the grid. The Vleisfees
(meat festival) has been held in
Calvinia in the Hantam region
since 1990. The successful book
festival called BoekBedonnerd
celebrated its 10th anniversary
in Richmond in 2016. Shelf upon
shelf in room upon room of
books are available in the Karoo
town’s extraordinary bookshops.
Located on the N1, it holds the title
of “Booktown Richmond” (there
are about 20 “Booktowns” in the
world). Richmond also hosts the
JM Coetzee and Athol Fugard
Festival at which the South African
Independent Publishers awards
are announced. Fugard himself
was in attendance in 2015.
Upington is the venue for
the popular Kalahari Kuier (Visit)
Festival. More than 30 000 people
have been known to attend
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