More than a year after South Africa’s Cabinet approved the National Astro-Tourism Strategy, implementation is underway across guide training, visitor infrastructure and dark-sky initiatives. However, the flagship Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Science Tourism Visitor Centre in Carnarvon remains subject to final approvals and funding while the proposed Astro-Tourism Fund is not yet operational.
Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Blade Nzimande told Tourism Update that 33 people completed astronomy-related tourist guide training in the Western Cape and Northern Cape by the end of 2025/26 financial year.
The Carnarvon Astro-Tourism Enterprise Development Programme has also supplied six Dobsonian telescopes and supported local guides with operating procedures and marketing material. The national Night Sky Tourist Guide Training Programme is planned to extend training beyond the initial pilot areas during 2026/27.
Visitor infrastructure is also expanding. The South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) Visitor Centre and Remote Operations Centre in Cape Town, which opened on July 9 last year, attracted approximately 10 000 visitors in 2025 while 11 jobs or student assistant roles were created, according to Nzimande.
The Sutherland Visitor Centre has been refurbished to accommodate exhibitions, science communication and indigenous astronomy storytelling. The Wits Anglo American Digital Dome, operational since November 2024, recorded 71 207 visitors in 2025.
One of the strategy’s notable milestones under the pillar has been the designation of Lapalala Wilderness as South Africa’s first International Dark Sky Park on September 22, 2025.
Carnarvon project still awaits funding
Despite this progress, one of the strategy’s flagship tourism projects remains at the approvals and funding stage.
The concept of the R62 million (US$3.8 million) SKA Science Tourism Visitor Centre in Carnarvon, which was identified as a key component of the strategy, has been refined while land-use and regulatory approvals are being finalised.
Nzimande said the project was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and budget cuts while funding options, including private-sector partnerships, are still being explored.
The centre is expected to anchor the Carnarvon-Sutherland corridor identified by the strategy as a major opportunity for developing South Africa’s astro-tourism offering around facilities such as the MeerKAT and SKA telescopes and Sutherland’s Southern African Large Telescope (SALT).
Astro-Tourism Fund not yet operational
Progress has been made in establishing the Astro-Tourism Fund but it has not yet reached the point where businesses or communities can apply for support.
A fund concept note has been developed by the Department of Tourism as well as the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation and the National Research Foundation-hosted Office of Astronomy for Development.
The proposed fund will support community projects, SMMEs and visitor infrastructure through competitive applications and technical support.
However, Nzimande confirmed that the fund is not yet approved or operational and applications are not open.
How do tourists book?
One of the challenges as the sector develops is making these experiences easily accessible to travellers.
There is currently no single national booking platform for astro-tourism experiences.
Nzimande said, while private parties are developing this platform, visitors can book experiences directly through observatories, guides, lodges, attractions and local operators.
Existing bookable experiences include SAAO tours in Sutherland and Cape Town, private Sutherland night-sky experiences and Carnarvon astro guides.
