Celebrating innovation and excellence in wine tourism throughout the most significant wine regions in the world, Wesgro extends a call for applications across the Western Cape for wine producers, wine experiences and wineries to enter into the prestigious Great Wine Capitals Best Of Wine Tourism Awards (BOWTA) 2024.
This annual international competition is designed to reward the wineries in each of the Great Wine Capitals Global Networks’ member cities for their excellence and innovation in seven different categories, including:
- Accommodation
- Wine Tourism Restaurants
- Sustainable Wine Tourism Practices
- Architecture & Landscape
- Art & Culture
- Innovative Wine Tourism Experiences
- Wine Tourism Services
The Great Wine Capitals is a network of major global cities in both the northern and southern hemispheres, which share a key economic and cultural asset: their internationally renowned wine regions.
Founded in 1999, the network has developed and introduced several projects, initiatives and programs with the objective of achieving excellence in tourism, business services and education within the global alliance of its renowned wine regions. Its aim is to encourage travel, education, and business exchanges between the prestigious wine regions of Adelaide (South Australia), Bilbao (Rioja: Spain), Bordeaux (France), Cape Town (Cape Winelands: South Africa), Hawke’s Bay (New Zealand), Lausanne (Switzerland), Mainz (Rheinhessen: Germany), Mendoza (Argentina), Porto (Portugal), San Francisco (Napa Valley: USA), Valparaìso (Casablanca Valley: Chile) and Verona (Italy).
About the Wine Tourism Ambassador Awards 2024
South Africa’s unique history demands that there should be additional awards for our region. The Wine Tourism Ambassador Awards 2024 celebrate ongoing transformation in the wine tourism industry, with the Conservation Pioneer Award proudly celebrating leaders making innovative efforts to ensure sustainability and conservation in the field, and highlights the critical role of eco- and social sustainability in wine tourism.
The Ambassador Award Categories Are
- The Wine Tourism Diversity Award
- The Authentic South African Experience Award
- Conservation Pioneer Award
The Western Cape winners will be announced on the 4th of October 2023 at one of the awarded wine estates, while the international award winners will be announced at the Great Wine Capitals Annual General Meeting and Conference in Lausanne, Switzerland on the 26th of October 2023.
Winners of the contest will be included in an annual global marketing campaign financed by Great Wine Capitals, which includes developed marketing assets, advertorials on industry-related media, social media exposure of the winners’ activities and joint marketing activations aimed at promoting the destination and the winners.
The fee for each entry is R700 + VAT, and the deadline for submissions is 21 July 2023. Please follow the link www.bestofwinetourism.co.za to access more information about the awards and complete the application form.
“This year will be the third year that the Best Of Wine Tourism Awards and Wine Tourism Ambassador Awards are combined, allowing us to tell a holistic wine tourism story. Partnering with the wine tourism industry and key stakeholders allows for the opportunity to jointly promote and position the destination as one of the leading wine regions. We are looking forward to receiving entries showcasing the authenticity, diversity, sustainability, and world-class product and services we have on offer,” commented Chief Destination Marketing Officer for Wesgro and BOWTA Ambassador, Monika Iuel.
“Our membership within the Great Wine Capitals Global Network demonstrates our commitment to showcasing our beautiful wine tourism destination to the world, and also serves as inspiration for the sustainability of wine tourism in South Africa. The Great Wine Capitals Best Of Wine Tourism Awards are the industry’s benchmark for excellence in wine tourism, and I encourage all wine producers, wine experiences and wineries in Cape Town and the Western Cape to enter into these prestigious awards,” said Wesgro CEO, Wrenelle Stander.
“The Great Wine Capitals Best Of Wine Tourism Awards is a wonderful opportunity to compete with the best the world has to offer. I am sure that we will have the opportunity to celebrate some notable Western Cape winners because we are truly blessed with so many amazing and inspiring wine tourism offerings in the province. But we can’t win if we don’t enter and so I encourage as many of those who qualify to enter these exciting awards and I look forward to the results in October,” concluded Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger.
