Stellenbosch amongst the top 25 most loved destinations to visit worldwide

The vibrant Winelands town ranked #23, with three other Western Cape destinations included in the list.

Picture: Supplied

It has been a difficult two years for the tourism sector globally, but especially for South Africa, after being placed on travel ban lists numerous times thanks to Covid-19 infections and variants.

Finally, however, there is light at the end of a very dark tunnel, as four Western Cape destinations have been included in the list of the Top 100 most loved destinations in the world in 2021.

Stellenbosch was listed #23 globally, following Knysna at #19, while Hermanus ranked at #41 and Cape Town at #54.

Tourism Sentiment Index (TSI), a travel data intelligence solution created by destination marketing agency Destination Think, analysed over 1.6 billion online conversations and articles about 21,330 global destinations to compile the list.

“I am pleased to learn that Stellenbosch has claimed the 23^rd spot on this prestigious list. Just as remarkable, is that the Western Cape has claimed three places in the Top 50.

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“Stellenbosch continues to be seen as a destination of choice for local and international visitors and is one of the best places worldwide to work, visit, stay and play,” said Stellenbosch mayor Gesie van Deventerin a statement.

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Jeanneret Momberg, CEO of Visit Stellenbosch, added they are overjoyed for ranking in the Top 25, and that this proves what they’ve known all along – “visitors fall in love with Stellenbosch and can’t stop talking about when they can come back!”

Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities David Maynier said that having four Western Cape towns identified in the top 100 most loved places in the world was an outstanding achievement.

“The last two years will go down in history as the most challenging years thus far for the global tourism sector, and the rankings demonstrate that Cape Town and the Western Cape is a world-class destination and a firm favourite on the global travel bucket list,” he added.