CHAPTER 4 | Supply Analysis | Garden Route District Mero infographic here Introduction The Garden Route District is one of the most beautiful, diverse and awe- inspiring parts of South Africa. Stretching from Witsand to Plettenberg Bay, right around to Oudtshoorn as well as Calitzdorp and Ladismith on the world- renowned Route 62, this is a place where adventure lies around every corner. The Garden Route District consists of seven municipalities. Kannaland, Hessequa, Oudsthoorn, Mossel Bay, George, Knysna and Bitou. Kannaland and Oudsthoorn municipalities form what is often called the Klein Karoo. It is the area past the forested slopes of the Outeniqua Mountains. Although a drier area, it is one of the most diverse parts of the Western Cape. In the southwest, one will find the Langeberg Mountains and the Swartberg Mountains in the north separate it from the Central Karoo District. The world- famous Route 62 transverses across the Klein Karoo. 1 Destination Positioning The Garden Route District suffers from fragmentation in terms of how the various local tourism organisations promote each town outwardly, both domestically and internationally. Although a plethora of attractions and experiences in itself is not a bad thing, the current approach feels like each area is competing against the other, and not growing the whole tourism offering through a more coordinated approach. 2 A review of over 300 000 online conversations worldwide (January - December 2017) for Knysna showed that most discussions were about beaches and shorelines, nature photography, restaurants and festivals and events. However, growth opportunities in terms of what people showed a high level of sentiment are motorsports, wildlife viewing and fishing. Attractions and Experiences Tourism Attractions Audit A study was conducted on 17 tourist attractions in the Garden Route District to gain a better understanding of the current product offering and to help identify possible opportunities to help grow arrivals to the district. 3 Adult Child Type of Annual Admission Admission % % Opening Closed Dwell time Full Part Clean Attraction Visitors Fee Fee % Adult % Child domestic international times days (hrs) time time Featherbed Bay Eco 08h30 - Experience Nature n/a R499 R116 n/a n/a n/a n/a 17h30 0 3 n/a n/a R720 - 08H00 - Ocean Odyssey Nature, Animal 10 656 R910 760 91% 19% 19% 81% 17h00 0 2 n/a n/a Garden Route National Park, 08H00 - day viistors nature 414 996 R59 - R235 R30 -R118 n/a n/a 48% 52% 17h00 0 n/a n/a n/a 08h00 - *120 staff across Birds of Eden Nature Animal 170 000 R260 R130 50% 50% 50% 50% 17h00 0 1 hr 15 min all 3 sites 08h00 - Monkeyland Nature Animal 200 000 R260 R130 50% 50% 50% 50% 17h00 0 1 hr 15 min 09h00 - Tinikwa Nature Animal 150 000 R260 R130 50% 50% 50% 50% 16h00 0 2 08h00 - Robberg Peninsula Nature 21 189 R50 R30 85% 15% 99% 1% 18h00 0 2 n/a n/a 09h00 - RedBerry Farm Farm Park n/a free, pay for activities n/a n/a n/a n/a 16h00 1 n/a n/a n/a 09h00 - Radical Raptors Nature animal 8 500 R160 R120 60% 40% 50% 50% 17h00 0 1 4 0 Klein Karoo 08h30 - Cango Wildlife Ranch Animal Based 100 000 R180 R135 70% 30% 60% 40% 17h00 0 2 85 42 09h00- Cango Caves Heritage 252 328 R150 R100 35% 65% 16h00 0 2 36 3 09h00 - CP Nel Museum Heritage 6 880 R25 R5 n/a n/a 64% 36% 17h00 1.5 40 min 12 0 08h30 - Safari Ostrich Farm Animal Based n/a R146 R73 n/a n/a n/a n/a 17h15 0 1 n/a n/a 08h00 - Cango Ostrich Farm Animal Based n/a R120 R65 n/a n/a n/a n/a 17h15 0 45 min n/a n/a 08h00 - 1 hr - 2 Chandelier Game & Ostrich Animal Based n/a R50 - R500 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 17h15 0 hours n/a n/a 08h00 - Highgate Ostrich Show Farm Animal Based n/a R187 R121 n/a n/a n/a n/a 17h15 0 n/a n/a 4 R190 - 08h00 - Buffelsdrif animal Based 40 000 R385-R920 R460 85% 15% 30% 70% 18h00 0 4 20 1 09h00- Zipline Cango activity n/a R330 R330 n/a n/a n/a n/a 16h30 0 45 min 14 4 Note: Not all sites were able to provide visitor data • The Cango Caves provides a benchmark for most attractions in the region in terms of visitor numbers and attracts over 250 000 visitors per annum. • The Garden Route National Park, which has several entry points, attracts over 400 000 day visitors per annum. • Many attractions in the district see over 100 000 predominately domestic tourists and provide child-friendly activities. • Admission fees for popular attractions are all over R150. • SANParks is the only attraction in the region with a dual pricing strategy. Conservation fees per day (adult) are R59 for South African citizens and R235 for international visitors. SADEC rates are also available. • The region offers a wide range of outdoor activities, animal encounters and child-friendly experiences. • All major sites are open seven days a week. • Attractions have the right mix of local and international visitors with the majority being reliant on domestic travellers. 5 • Attractions offer an excellent range of dwell time, allowing visitors the opportunity to enjoy than one attraction a day. Audit Segmentation 6 Audit Segmentation Q1: High-quality/low visitor numbers: Attractions in this quadrant need to explore why their visitor numbers are small. Investment in marketing and awareness of the attraction is required. • Robberg Peninsula • Ocean Odyssey Whale Watching • Red Berry Farm • Radical Raptors Q2: High-quality experience/ high visitor numbers Attractions in this quadrant are often flagship or iconic attractions and act as drawcards for the region. 7 Attractions in this quadrant need to ensure they manage capacity issues. Poor capacity management will adversely affect the visitor experience and over time, result in visitor expectations not being met, thus altering the destination brand. • Buffesldrif Game Lodge • Ostrich Show Farms - Oudtshoorn • Birds of Eden • Monkeyland Primate Sanctuary • Tenikwa Wildlife • Featherbed Co Q3: Low-quality experience/low visitor numbers Attractions in this quadrant need to ask themselves whether they wish to be in the attractions industry or remain a hyper-niche experience. If the former, they need to invest in the visitor experience scientifically. If the latter, they need to ensure their experience remains a good quality niche product. 8 • CP Nel Museum • Heritage walk through Oudsthoorn Q4: Low-quality experience/high visitor numbers Attractions in this quadrant need to invest in the visitor experience. The relatively high visitor numbers despite poor experience often mask the real demand for the experience. Investment into the experience results in increased visitor numbers, thereby contributing to the bottom line. • Cango Caves • Cango Wildlife Ranch and Conservation Centre Opportunities and Gaps | Finding the Sweet Spot Include the infographic here 9 Sweet Spot 1: Connecting neighbours through scenic drives The Gap The relatively unknown scenic Swartberg Circle Route that links the Central Karoo to the Klein Karoo. Opportunity The Swartberg Circle route has the opportunity to become known as one of the great scenic drives in the world. As South Africa's oldest pass, coupled with its status as a national monument and historical points of interest, this 23.8km offers a traveller a never-ending set of inspiring views. And it is a quick win, as there is no infrastructure requirement. (refer to Sweet Spot 3 | Central Karoo Supply Analysis for detailed information regarding the route) Taking scenic drives is the second most popular activity (MERO, 2019) by visitors to the district. Considering this, the Swartberg Circle Route can become a major drawcard. The route itself requires no infrastructure investment - but there is a requirement for the investment in the marketing of it. 10 Theme: Maximising revenue at the Cango Caves The Gap The Cango Caves are a major attraction in the district, but the maximising of ticket yield is not happening. Opportunity The Cango Caves is an iconic natural attraction for the Garden Route District attracting over 250 000 visitors per annum. 65% of these visitors are international. But it can attract more. Through the revitalising of the visitor experience and visitor journey, the Cango Caves has the opportunity to attract more visitors at a higher yield. However, it is crucial to protect the caves from the negative impact increased visitors numbers will have. Human respiration generates elevated levels of CO2, which can negatively impact the cave geology. Visitors needs must be carefully balanced with environmental concerns to protect the cave system for future generations. 11 The first opportunity is to implement a Visitor Experience Analysis project. The project will look at methods to optimise dwell time, ticket yield, secondary spend and other income streams. The second opportunity would be to research and implement ways to maximise income while managing capacity constraints. These could include: 1. Dynamic pricing to shift demand into off-peak times and maximise yield in high demand times. 2. The average visitor spends two hours on-site, of which one hour is on the cave tour. The additional hour on-site offers a unique and valuable opportunity to create secondary spend. 3. Admissions tickets are the most important income drivers for the site. An online ticketing system allows a visitor to pre-purchase a ticket, preserving pocket power and allowing for dynamic pricing. Ticket sales are the most important portal for this attraction, and the ticketing system needs to be world-class for the site to yield best results.