A new flight route can open the door to a destination, but getting visitors through that door is only the beginning. As the Western Cape looks to grow international tourism, the real opportunity lies in what happens next, how visitors move through the province, where they stay, what they experience and how widely their spending is distributed.
Wesgro CEO Wrenelle Stander. (Image supplied)
1. Turn connectivity into a journey
The arrival of a LATAM aircraft from São Paulo at Cape Town International in July marked the launch of the first direct service by a South American carrier to Cape Town. But the route was years in the making, requiring collaboration between the airline, airport, Western Cape and tourism industry.
For me, the route illustrates an important point: connectivity is an enabler of tourism growth, rather than the end goal.
The question is what happens once visitors arrive.
Cape Town is already a powerful international drawcard, but it can also act as a gateway to the Cape Winelands, Overberg, West Coast and Garden Route, alongside township and community tourism experiences.
Making those connections easier to discover, plan and book could encourage visitors to travel further into the province.
2. Focus on how visitors travel, not just how many arrive
Visitor numbers are an important measure of tourism performance, but we should also consider how long people stay, what they spend and where that spending goes.
Our research has examined 30 destinations and looked more closely at six: Chile, Kenya, Singapore, New Zealand, Melbourne and Valencia.
One lesson emerging from this research is the importance of creating reasons for visitors to extend their trips and explore beyond the main tourism hubs.
New Zealand, for example, has placed greater emphasis on visitor spend and length of stay rather than treating arrivals as the primary measure of success.
For the Western Cape, that could mean shifting the focus from simply attracting more visitors to creating journeys that generate greater economic value across the province.
3. Build connected experiences
Successful destinations are increasingly moving beyond individual attractions and creating networks of experiences that encourage visitors to stay longer and travel further.
Chile offers one example, with Santiago strengthened as a long-haul gateway while destinations beyond the capital are connected into a wider tourism circuit.
A similar approach could help the Western Cape turn Cape Town into a starting point rather than simply a final destination.
A visitor arriving from São Paulo, Mumbai or Shanghai should be able to see how a few days in Cape Town can flow naturally into wine, food, nature, heritage or community experiences elsewhere, without having to build the entire itinerary from scratch.
4. Make tourism a team sport
Tourism growth cannot be delivered by one organisation or marketing campaign.
It requires coordination between government, the private sector, municipalities, transport providers, attractions, accommodation businesses and communities.
Our research is therefore looking beyond demand and destination marketing to the infrastructure, mobility networks, digital capabilities and tourism products needed to support future growth.
Kenya, for example, has diversified its wildlife offering while using Nairobi’s strength in business events to attract visitors beyond traditional safari seasons.
For the Western Cape, similar coordination could help smooth seasonal demand while creating more opportunities for businesses and communities to participate in the tourism economy.
5. Design growth that benefits more people
The research points towards a broader definition of tourism success, one that considers not only visitor numbers, but the quality and distribution of growth.
Mice tourism, major events and business travel can help reduce seasonality, while authentic community experiences can bring more local businesses into the tourism value chain.
There is also significant potential in markets such as China, India, the Middle East and Brazil. But converting that potential into actual arrivals will depend on factors including air connectivity, visa access and stronger institutional coordination.
Under a medium-growth scenario supported by targeted interventions, the Western Cape could attract more than 700,000 additional international visitors by 2035. A high-growth scenario could see that figure exceed one million.
What happens after the arrival?
The next phase of our research will examine whether the Western Cape has the infrastructure, mobility, digital capabilities and tourism products needed to accommodate this potential growth while keeping it inclusive and sustainable.
The LATAM route provides a useful starting point. It demonstrates what can happen when different parts of the tourism ecosystem work towards the same goal.
But the bigger challenge is ensuring that a new flight, a new visitor or a new market translates into something broader, longer stays, greater visitor spending, more connected destinations and more opportunities for businesses and communities.
Getting people here is only the beginning.
