The performance of La Motte Wine Estate and the Franschhoek Tourism Association in the annual Cape Winelands District Municipality Mayoral Tourism Awards,
again confirmed the Franschhoek Valley’s status as one of the Winelands’ choice tourism destinations.
La Motte’s internationally acknowledged tourism offering was awarded as Wine Tourism Destination of the Year – repeating its performance of the previous year – while the Franschhoek Valley Tourism Association won the category for Service Excellence.
“We are honoured to also receive acknowledgement from our local authorities as it is recognition of this kind that motivates us to further enhance our offering,” said La Motte CEO Hein Koegelenberg. “There is no denying the importance of tourism in the Franschhoek Valley and we deliberately focus on working together to ensure the benefit to the whole community”, continued Koegelenberg who is also the Chairman of the Franschhoek Valley Tourism Association.
Speaking at the Awards Ceremony, Mr. James Vos, MP and Shadow Minister of Tourism, emphasized the importance of tourism in the economy of the Winelands’ district: “It is without a doubt that tourism can be used as an effective tool to create jobs, provide opportunities for small businesses, to promote livelihoods for communities and bring South Africans together to share experiences.” According to Mr. Vos, tourism is the biggest income driver in the Western Cape with international tourists spending R18 billion in the province each year – providing work for almost 150 000 people across rural as well as urban areas.
The Mayoral Tourism Awards aim at celebrating the achievements of the Cape Winelands tourism industry and at showcasing and acknowledging those tourism entities, products, services and human resources that continuously surpass expectations within the Cape Winelands tourism fraternity. Presenting the awards, Executive Mayor of the Cape Winelands District Municipality, Alderman CA de Bruyn commented on the exceptional quality of the tourism offering of the Cape Winelands and congratulated nominees on the high standard of entries.
