South African Travel Companies Market World Heritage Sites to Domestic Tourists
Posted by admin | article | Posted on August 22nd, 2011
Tourism plays an important role in the economy of South Africa. Much emphasis is paid to marketing South Africa as a destination for foreign tourists until recently little attention to people who are really important, domestic tourists was down. Flourishing tourist destinations such as France, Italy and Spain are growing in part because their own people spend a lot of time and money to invest in the beauty and the pleasures that their countries afford to indulge. One can hardly say that South Africa offers less in terms of the beauty and diversity, as these countries has, however, is the diversity in South Africa one of the strongest attractions. Fortunately, travel agencies and tourism have recognized the potential participation of virtually unlimited domestic tourism market and take steps to attract and encourage it in the splendor of South Africa.
According to Wikipedia there are 878 World Heritage sites listed in the world. Italy has a big lead, has 43 sites in his name, but South Africa more scattered than with his own eight World Heritage sites around the country. With so many attractions internationally recognized and respected, is a wonder that travel agents have to work so hard for South Africans to take an interest in their own country.
Before a World Heritage Site is known that it has to go several levels of approval. First, a property must be analyzed for the major cultural and natural features, it is taken to a preliminary list. Provisional list is an option that is put in an application is reduced. From the application is supported by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and the World Conservation Union, which evaluates to go on their recommendations to the World Heritage Committee. The subject committee recommended sites for a final evaluation of the 10 criteria must be given a place to meet at least one of the criteria for inclusion in the final list. The criteria include cultural features (a masterpiece of human creative genius to make an exchange of human values, bear witness to their lives or disappeared, cultural tradition, etc.) and natural properties (or superlative natural phenomena of exceptional beauty, represented milestones in the history Earth and contains important natural habitats, or examples of biodiversity conservation, etc. required).
Sites in South Africa are World Heritage Sites:
o The Cradle of Humankind, which is about 50 km from Johannesburg in the Gauteng province. It was announced as a WHS in 1999 and contains the limestone caves where fossils 2.3 million years old, named Mrs. Ples was found in 1947, and several other cave formations found important anthropological discoveries have in the past 80 years.
o Seal Iceland, the infamous island prison that the world will take place the icon Nelson Mandela, imprisoned for a number of years of apartheid in South Africa.
o Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, a mountainous desert region in the Northern Cape Province. The landscape ranges from flat sandy plains, sharp-edged volcanic rock and lush vegetation along the banks of the Orange River belong. The region is often called “Mars” as because his land is often barren and dry landscape reminded visitors saw no water on Mars. Nevertheless, he was awarded the status of World Heritage in June 2007 for its cultural artifacts and seasonal botanical beauty.
St. Lucia Wetland Park in KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg Park and KZN, Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape in Limpopo and the Vredefort Dome in the Free State and the Cape Floral Region in the round of eight Western Cape South Africa World Heritage Sites. Everyone has to inspire enough unique cultural distinction and natural beauty for tourists and jaded cynics of travelers and South Africa would do well to work with their foreign counterparts and as they travel the country and revel in the wealth that put them under so many natural shine .