A survey done by MatieMedia journalist, Jana Greyling, shows that the natural beauty and the historical buildings of Stellenbosch remain the main attractions for local and international visitors.
Stellenbosch, a town located in the Cape Winelands and famous for its historical and natural attractions, hosts large numbers of international and local visitors every year.
While walking around the center of Stellenbosch, scouting the streets for people visiting and exploring the town, it became clear that most visitors seemed to be admiring the art galleries in Church Street and photographing the historical buildings framed by giant oak trees.
The historical Burgerhuis in Stellenbosch with an oak tree branch hanging over its entrance. PHOTO: Jana Greyling
Andreas Barth, a visitor from Germany, explained that he has been coming to Stellenbosch for more than 20 years and still finds the buildings to be the main attraction.
“It’s a beautiful place and it still stays beautiful. The buildings are very nice but there are obviously a lot of changes in town, lots of renovations, lots of new places. I hope it doesn’t lose its historical look.”
Gregor Jurkowitsch, visiting from Austria, decided to travel to Stellenbosch because he wanted to start his tour of South Africa in a town rather than in a big city. What stood out for him about Stellenbosch were also the buildings but especially the trees and nature.
“It’s very nice, very friendly, very beautiful if you look down at these buildings [along Dorp Street]. It’s very green, I love trees. So tomorrow I’ll do my first wine tour and I’ll see the surroundings but the city is very nice.”
Similarly, Takami Kida from Japan, says that she experienced Stellenbosch as “beautiful, quiet and very green”. She also added that she found the oak trees “very nice” and that she especially enjoyed the nature that can be seen in Stellenbosch.
Stellenbosch was described as “cozy” by Belgian visitor Liliane Van Acken who lives in Plettenberg Bay for two months of the year. Much like Barth and Jurkowitsch she also identified the cultural landmarks as special attractions for her but afforded a special mention to the wine farms.
“The buildings and museums are kind of together so that’s a highlight for me. And of course, the wine farms because the wine is very nice.”
Visitor Liliane Van Acken in front of the Ou Kollege building in Church Street. PHOTO: Jana Greyling
During the conduction of the survey, it became clear that many of the visitors in Stellenbosch were not particularly interested in visiting the local museums and following the guided tours offered there.
Most preferred to simply walk around the town, photographing the buildings and trees as well as travelling to wine farms and surrounding towns in order to explore the area further.
The reasons for not visiting museums that were indicated by the participants in the survey varied.
Barth indicated that he was in Stellenbosch for only a day and thus did not have time to visit the museums. Similarly, Kida explained that they were under time pressure in their guided tour and had to return to Cape Town soon. Jurkowitsch simply described himself as “not much of a museum visitor” and Van Acken preferred photographing the historical buildings.