September is local tourism month in Cape Town

"In our industry it is imperative that locals have easy and affordable access to all of the Cape's tourism experiences. Not only is this important for businesses, particularly during the winter months when tourism to Cape Town takes a slight dip, but it is also important for locals to experience these offerings first hand so that they may better understand and have pride in where they come from, and then share their love of this city with the rest of the world," says CEO of Cape Town Tourism, Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold.

"Through our I?Cape Town Facebook page and the growing conversation on Twitter, we have proven that Capetonians are the biggest lovers and best ambassadors of their own city. This is their month to celebrate our iconic gems and to discover the unexpected in their city by venturing beyond their own back yards," she says.

Abundance of events

Besides Cape Town regulars such as the many craft and food markets dotted around Town, live music gigs, comedy evenings, theatre productions and supper clubs, there is an abundance of events and happenings taking place in Cape Town this September.

• SANParks is offering free entry in to most of their national parks from 10 - 14 September, with the exception of Boulders Beach in Simon's Town.
  
• Creative Week Cape Town, a crowd sourced festival of creative events takes place alongside the annual Loerie Awards from 15 - 23 September.
  
• The Open Book Festival takes place from 20 - 24 September.
  
• Iziko Museums are offerings free entry into most of their establishments from 19 - 25 September, in order to celebrate Heritage Day on 24 September (excluding the Castle of Good Hope and Planetarium, which offers free entry on 24 September).
  
• The Cape Town Marathon takes place on 23 September and Vindaba 2012, a showcase of SA wines and wine tourism offerings is open to the public on 27 September at a cost of R50 per person in celebration of World Tourism Day.

Cape Town Tourism is also running a #LoveCapeTown photo competition. Entries have already closed, but the portal opened on Wednesday, 5 September for public voting and will close again at on Wednesday, 26 September 2012. The winner of the #LoveCapeTown photographic competition will walk away with R10 000 in cash.

For a comprehensive events listing during September, go to www.capetown.travel/events.