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Temporary closure of Robertson Wine Valley coincides with new initiative.
Dear Friends
It gives us great pleasure to share with you new developments in our Robertson Wine Valley Association, even as we update you on a temporary closure starting on 1 July 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to close our doors until further notice, but we will be using this time to forge ahead with current plans of integration with tourism involving all five Langeberg towns.
While the pandemic has hit wine tourism very hard, it also enables us to complete an initiative that was started over two years ago: This is to combine our Wine Valley Association’s tourism-oriented activities into a single administration with the local tourism bodies that would include Ashton, Bonnievale, McGregor, Montagu and Robertson. Our original target date was July 2020. We are aiming for the launch by mid-2021.
The new combined destination marketing office will take on most of the traditional functions of the Robertson Wine Valley, such as wine events and generic marketing, with wine continuing to be an important facet as it’s geared to be a future growth engine for the region. This collaboration is in tune with current tourism trends followed by other Western Cape wine regions as well as our international counterparts.
Wine-lovers, leisure travellers and adventure-seeking tourists are all looking for cellar experiences beyond a quick tasting. The numerous attractions in our beautiful and fruitful valley make it possible for our wine estates to fulfil this demand while building their brands.
The Wine Route Association will re-open in 2021 with future functions focus largely on wine-PR, technical support to winemakers, wine orientated initiatives to support our Wine of Origin Robertson status.
We recognise that the tourism market has been growing, evolving and demanding new developments from the wine industry. We believe these require the dynamic changes that we are implementing, a work already in process before we had to cope with ramifications of the pandemic and current lockdown.
To conclude, the Robertson Wine Valley Associations is ready to embrace this new era of tourism as we continue to offer wine enthusiasts some of the finest wine and warmest country hospitality alongside a wealth of diverse experiences across this wide, splendid and peaceful valley.
We look forward to welcoming you back as soon as it is possible.
With best wishes,
Peter de Wet
Chairman: Robertson Wine Valley Association
Inquiries: media@robertsonwinevalley.com