Why do tourists visit the Little Karoo?

Caroline Gelderblom

What attracts people to visit the Little Karoo – is it the well known and widely marketed attractions like the Cango Caves and Ostriches or is it the spectacular mountain passes and wide empty spaces? The region's identity as a destination and an alternative scenic route to the coast is beginning to be established through the development of Route 62, the tourist route named after the main road through the area. As a consequence, many more tourists are visiting the Little Karoo than ever before. This has resulted in an explosion in the quantity of tourism accommodation, together with a significant increase in property prices. Agriculture, traditionally the main economic activity in this arid landscape, is becoming more difficult, and tourism is consequently increasingly being seen as the key to development in the region.

In spite of this growing interest, there is very little information on the region's emerging tourism market. Most marketing and research groups this area with the Garden Route which has a very different economic and environmental character. The Little Karoo is dry and is relatively undeveloped whereas the increasingly urbanized Garden Route provides a lush coastal environment. The features attracting people to visit these areas are therefore also likely to be very different. In order to find out who is coming to the Little Karoo and what attracts them to the area we analysed 84 brochures to see which features were used in marketing the area. We then interviewed 675 tourists, 34 tourism operators and 10 regulators over the six months between December 2005 and July 2006. In order to get a broader perspective, we also placed key questions about scenery into a provincial level questionnaire, which went out to a further 700 tourists over the whole of the Western Cape.

Hot ostrich

rooiberg pass decent

We started by asking tourists an open ended question "What did you enjoy most about your visit to this region?"

The Cango Caves and Ostriches are promoted by regional marketing as being the key attractions in the area. Over 30 percent of local brochures also promote these attractions. Many first time visitors said that the Cango Caves and ostriches were important to them and that they enjoyed their experience of the caves very much. Between 8 to 14 percent of visitors felt the Cango Caves were the most enjoyable feature of their visit. They also enjoyed the less well known but increasingly popular Cango Wildlife Ranch, a animal breeding centre featuring rare Bengal tigers, crocodiles and cheetahs. Tourists visiting the Afrikaans Language festival, the Klein Karoo Kunstefees, indicated that the Cango Caves were the key feature that would attract them to the area other than the "fees itself". The Kunstefees represents a significant economic stimulus to the area. Our research indicates that the people attending this festival are not typical of those coming to the area during the rest of the year, with a high percentage of Kunstefees visitors preferring to stay in cities rather than the countryside while on holiday. The typical visitor to the Little Karoo outside the Kunstefees prefers rural accommodation.

Natural scenery is the feature enjoyed most by Little Karoo tourists

For the intrepid tourists, who visit the Little Karoo in the quiet periods outside the Kunstefees, by far the most important feature is attractive scenery. Well over 25 percent of tourists indicate that the feature they enjoy most about the region is the scenery. Many tourists indicated that it was specifically the natural beauty which attracted them. When we investigated which aspects of scenery were important, over 75 percent of tourists interviewed in the Little Karoo indicated that they preferred mountains. The best way to enjoy the mountains in this region is to explore the variety of scenic drives through the regions spectacular mountain passes, the most famous of which is the Swartberg Pass leading into the remote but beautiful "Die Hel". There are many others which include the stunning Seweweeks Poort and the remote and rugged Rooiberg Pass. Even the tarred access roads linking the N2 and N1 with the scenic Route 62 lead one through some beautiful historic passes.

Ladismith plain

4 x 4

Getting away from it all

In both local and provincial surveys on scenery preferences, small towns were significantly more popular than big cities. This appears to indicate that tourists are not coming here to see large scale, city based tourism developments. Agricultural landscapes were consistently the least popular type of scenery. The region's most valuable attraction is thus its beautiful natural scenery. We therefore need to ask ourselves whether we are adequately protecting and promoting this unique asset? A significant number of people indicated that it was the lack of development and the unspoilt nature of the area that attracted them "the wild nature", "the nothingness (die niks)".

The peace and tranquillity of the Little Karoo is
especially important for repeat visitors.

It is however mentioned less frequently than one would expect in local brochures and also does not feature very prominently in regional advertising. The "sound of silence (die klank en geluide van stilte)" was the best part of the karoo experience for many (13-19%) of the visitors we spoke to.

The genuine hospitality was also important in drawing visitors back again and again. The rural hospitality and real people are recognized by many service providers as one of the key assets of the region. If one explores the mountains and the seemingly endless empty spaces one finds the most amazing people in isolated farmhouses and tiny villages, many of whom have been in the area for seven or eight generations. Their roots go deep and they take genuine pleasure in sharing the unique beauty of their "Kannaland" with visitors.

Foreign visitors in particular wanted to be able to get out and walk to really experience the area and there are doubtless opportunities to facilitate this. Hunting and golf were the least popular activities for Little Karoo visitors.

Gravel Roads: Are they an asset or a liability?

There is a great deal of debate as to the impact of gravel roads on visitors. During my discussions with service providers 40 percent viewed the gravel as positive and 21 percent viewed it as a deterrent to visitors. I then approached the visitors to see what they really felt about the issue. Over 50 percent of visitors to the Little Karoo outside the Kunstefees period viewed gravel roads as being part of the attraction of the area and only 10 percent indicated that they would be put off by having to travel on gravel. The percentage which was deterred by gravel increased to 20 percent during the Kunstefees. Nevertheless, even during this period when the Little Karoo is invaded by thousands of city slickers, 20 percent of visitors still viewed the gravel roads as attractive. In short, those who are put off by gravel never outnumber those who are attracted by the gravel and the adventure and lack of development it represents. This is reflected by the popularity of the area with 4x4 enthusiasts as well as motor bikers and mountain bikers who relish the regions rugged roads. The mountain bikers take it to the extreme in the world famous Cape Epic mountain biking tour.

Which aspects of the natural environment are important to visitors?

The majority of visitors felt that being in an undeveloped, natural landscape was an important part of their holiday experience. Birds were mentioned in over 20 percent of the local brochures. Tourists visiting rural areas indicated that bird watching was important to them, supporting their frequent use in local advertising. An increasingly popular way to see the smaller wildlife is to join the "meerkat man" who has habituated a group of meerkat or suricates allowing tourists to sit in their midst.

Hidden Jewels

Used as remedy for teething thing

Bosrivier

The majority of visitors interviewed at the Oudtshoorn tourist hotspots indicated that big game and smaller wildlife were important to them and were neutral about birdwatching, plants, unique and threatened species and seeing a large variety of species. This presents a substantial challenge for the conservation of the areas many unique, rare and threatened and often cryptic plants. It is not well known that the Little Karoo forms part of the Succulent Karoo which is the most diverse arid area in the world and that there are many plants only found in this region. Although 17 percent of brochures mentioned the succulent vegetation of the region, less than half of this number indicated that there are a high number of species, or that some species are rare. Only one brochure mentioned the international recognition given to the Swartberg as a World Heritage Site. The fact that there are unusual plants restricted to this area was also only mentioned in one local brochure. This implies that these unique natural features are not currently viewed as a potential tourist attraction and our experience is that there is consequently very poor knowledge of their existence. Tourists are therefore very unlikely to experience them and they remain hidden jewels in a beautiful landscape. Just over 20 percent of tourists interviewed indicated that they were interested in seeing rare plants, so the real challenge is how to help those that are interested in these unique plants explore the unique floral riches of this region.

Sunshine is promoted by regional advertising, but tourists' response to climate is varied

Fewer than five percent of visitors indicated that what they liked most about the area was the sunshine. In the summer holidays "weather" was ranked as a very positive experience for the majority of visitors; in the winter holidays visitors were a bit less positive; and during the Kunstefees, which is held in autumn, many were negative as it was both very cold and very hot. Indeed, some Kunstefees visitors even said it was the reason they would not return. The local brochures seem to respond to this variance in that fewer than 10 percent mention the climate as an attraction. Thus although the area may provide a sunny escape for those trapped in coastal rain along the Garden Route, the response of visitors to the climate of the area is mixed.

In contrast, visitors' experience of the regions natural beauty is consistently positive. It is this scenery, together with the peace and genuine hospitality, which attracts repeat visitors. Those who travel through quickly stopping for one or two nights, enjoy the "Oudtshoorn highlights" including the ostriches and caves, but the visitors who take the time to go slowly, and look carefully, are rewarded with discoveries of hidden gems of rare plants and real people.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank all the people who made time to take part in this research, particularly those such as the LTO officers Hettie Weymar and Cyril Clark who helped to drive it. The support of the local private sector, particularly the Cango Caves and Waterberg Spa, was invaluable. I really appreciate the input and energy of Adam Weltz who helped design the research and the student interviewers who chased down hundreds of tourists. I would also like to thank my colleagues Susan Botha, Jan Vlok, Richard Cowling, Erica Swanepoel, Anna Spenceley, Inge Kotze and Patrick O'Farrell for their support and input.