The meeting was addressed by the portfolio councillor for tourism Deputy Mayor Daniel Maritz and Municipal Manager Trevor Botha and attended by a number of George Tourism members.
"There is room for growth and expansion and George Municipality needs to work in partnership with the tourism stakeholders to make a bigger impact in the Eden Region and will take on the role of facilitator. We know there are challenges, but we are willing to work with all to make a success of tourism in George," says Botha.
He says a second tourism meeting will be held shortly to continue the discussions in order to foster and build on the working relationship with the George Tourism stakeholders. A Tourism Indaba will be held in George in September, which is also Tourism Month, and it is hoped that this will lead to concrete decisions being taken regarding the strategy of George Tourism.
At the meeting Maritz stressed the importance of the ongoing support and involvement of the George Tourism stakeholders and indicated that George Municipality is aware of past problems. "Let's start from a clean slate and get our foundation right," he said.
All stakeholders i.e. guesthouses, hotels and activities are requested to update their details with the George Tourism office on 044 801 9299/9295 or via e-mail: membership@george.org.za to ensure that further communications and invitations from the municipality are received. The meeting dates and times will be e-mailed to registered members and posted to the municipal website www.george.org.za.
Municipal Manager Trevor Botha (fourth from right) together with Claudine Carelse (orange pants), the acting manager for George Tourism, welcomed the members of George Tourism to the meeting held on Friday 15 August.
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