Interview with andulela CEO Monique le Roux on SAFM
South Africas tourism industry is exploding, and we believe that those involved should take responsibility for the development and preservation of the communities and environments on which the business relies. At Andulela, we consider it our duty to foster job creation, social upliftment and ecological awareness. To this end, local communities and environmental initiatives are involved in and supported by An-dulelas tours.
For Andulela Experience, responsible tourism means sharing South Africas natural and cultural riches, while contributing positively to the preservation and growth of the communities and environments we visit. Our policy is one of mutual respect: we ensure value for money and professionalism in our relationship with visitors, while always remaining cognizant of the needs of locals.
There are a few South African operators that go the extra mile, such as Andulela Travel. Andulela, which means first in Xhosa, provides guided tours and day trips that comprise of cultural tours, wildlife and conservation tours, as well as music and culinary tours. The tours generally take tourists into the heart of local life and cul-ture, often visiting homes, workplaces and social hideouts for a hands-on experience of local customs and life, facilitating insight into a new culture. It furthermore cre-ates a platform for visitor and host to meet and exchange, meaningfully and learn from each other.
In Cape Town, Jazz Safaris take tour participants to some of the greatest living jazz legends of the Mother City. During soccer tours, visitors meet township soccer play-ers and promoters and attend matches, when possible. There are furthermore gos-pel tours, drumming workshops, braiding tours, township tours, meeting locals tours, wine tours and Bo-Kaap (Malay quarter) tours on offer.
All these experiences have in common that they take the tourist away from dull, crowded, impersonal tours he or she may usually experience, towards gaining a unique insight, acquiring an authentic taste of local life as well as creating an inter-est and pride in custom and heritage.
Wildlife tours around Cape Town are hosted by conservationists and help to create awareness to overlooked flora and fauna. Sustainable development is created through job creation in local areas, thanks to responsible tourism and wildlife con-servancy. Andulela offers Safari tours, baboon tours, a tour to the meercats in the Klein Karoo, Rondevlei wetlands tours, botany tours, whale watching excursions, swimming with dolphins, diving with seals, surf lessons, rock art tours, ballooning trips, oyster catching and much more is available to tourists to get a well rounded taste of the rich wildlife and natural surroundings. Money generated helps the con-servation of the natural surrounding and animals.
The culinary tours are an exciting and new adventure available in responsible tour-ism. Every culture has its own culinary traditions, ingredients and rituals and what better way to discover these than through a tour, which takes a tourist straight into a foreign kitchen, the heart of a home, to witness the cooking up of a feast.
Culinary tours include a guided walking tour through the township, a hands-on cooking demonstration and lunch. The tour focuses on food and traditions and the cultural aspects embraced by the local culture, straight from the homes which show-case the story behind Black African cuisine.
So if you dream about an interesting holiday, one without the usual "tourist" experi-ences, and the chance to leave a location with a sound knowledge and understand-ing of the local culture, why not take part in responsible tourism? You will be help-ing with social responsibility needs as well as creating an awareness of culture and identity.
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I love this! I'll be visiting Capetown in a week and really looking forward to our cooking class.
blodyriot 1 month ago