Market Update: How business tourism fuels Cape Town’s economy – Full Analysis

Business tourism has become a vital cog in the City of Cape Town’s economy, with the R745.1 million that it contributed directly in the past financial year contributing materially to income generation, employment, and international positioning.

This was according to Wesgro, the tourism, trade, and investment promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape, who was responding to questions from Business Report on the extent of the business tourism sector in the region, following the successful holding of the 2025 African Mining Indaba last month, which drew a record 10,500 attendees.

“Through conventions, conferences, exhibitions, and corporate incentive travel, business tourism generates substantial direct and indirect economic benefits, complements leisure tourism, and strengthens the city’s global competitiveness. Beyond direct spend, business tourism enhances international visibility, facilitates foreign investment and trade relationships, and builds long-term professional and institutional networks,” the agency said.

Business delegates also tend to extend their stays, arriving before or departing after events, which further increases overall visitor expenditure.

The most recent International Convention and Conference Association (ICCA) report found Cape Town hosted 58 international conferences in 2024, attracting an estimated 41,571 delegates.

These meetings had an average duration of 4,12 days, resulting in an estimated economic impact of about R1,1 billion, based on South African Tourism’s benchmark of R6,400 per delegate per day.

In addition, the City of Cape Town’s Events Permit Office approved 1,064 events between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2025. Of these, 15 major events generated a combined economic impact exceeding R2,5bn.

“Collectively, the approved events attracted more than 3,47 million spectators and participants across the year. An economic assessment of 25 selected events confirmed a significant positive impact, including direct and indirect economic contributions, supply-chain benefits, and enhanced destination marketing value.”

The Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) also highlighted the sector’s importance. In the 2024 financial year, the CTICC reported R400,7m in revenue and supported economic activity equivalent to an estimated R6.9bn contribution to national GDP and R6.5bn to the Western Cape economy.

Wesgro said Cape Town and the Western Cape benefit from a robust, year-round business events calendar, although demand varies by segment. A significant number of international association conferences take place in the region during low or shoulder periods, aligning with established global rotation patterns. National association conferences also tend to favour these periods due to lower costs and greater availability.

Trade and consumer exhibitions are scheduled throughout the year, with flexibility to align with sector-specific cycles.

Traditional source markets – including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France, and the USA – generally prefer Cape Town’s summer season, with peak demand from September to April.

Emerging markets such as India, Middle East, and Saudi Arabia increasingly favour the city’s cooler months, which offer a seasonal contrast to their own summer conditions. The traditional peak leisure season over summer sees a slowdown in large association congresses and corporate meetings, largely due to global holiday calendars and higher accommodation demand from leisure travellers.

Major sporting and cultural events such as the Cape Town Cycle Tour, Two Oceans Marathon, SA20, and the lay a counter-cyclical role. They activate the destination during periods when traditional business events soften, sustain occupancy, drive regional spread, and maintain international visibility. This creates a balanced events ecosystem.

Wesgro said advantages that the city brings for business events include world-class business-event infrastructure, the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) and Century City Conference Centre (CCCC) being internationally accredited, centrally located, and capable of hosting large, complex events; a dense concentration of quality hotels, venues, and professional support services; direct long-haul air connections link Cape Town to Europe, the US, the Middle East, and key African hubs; while the city’s GMT+2 time zone is well aligned with Europe and Africa and workable for parts of Asia, supporting international participation and hybrid events.

Wesgro said the city also effectively integrates business with experiential tourism, supporting incentives, networking, and informal relationship-building. Cape Town served as a natural gateway to the African continent for global organisations, investors, and professional bodies.

“Its proximity to fast-growing African markets makes it particularly attractive for trade, development, finance, health, and technology-focused conferences seeking pan-African reach.”

The agency said some 2,000 additional hotel rooms were scheduled to open in the coming years, but this was mainly in the five-star segment, which limited support for large-scale business events outside of high-end incentives and select corporate meetings.

“There is a shortage of large, flexible event spaces outside the main convention centres. Developing new business events products, especially in the region, will support business events growth,” Wesgro said.

BUSINESS REPORT