Heritage and cultural tourism involves travelling to experience the history, traditions, physical artefacts and living customs of a particular community or society. In simple terms, it allows visitors to understand not only where a country is going, but also where it has come from. There are two important concepts in this form of tourism: heritage and culture. Heritage tourism focuses largely on places and objects associated with the past, including monuments, archaeological sites, historic buildings, museums and other sites of historical importance. Unfortunately, this form of tourism has not received the same attention in Botswana as wildlife tourism. Yet, Botswana is endowed with numerous historical places that have stories worth telling.
Take Lobatse, for example. The town has a rich history and played a significant role in the liberation history of Southern Africa. It provided refuge to prominent figures such as Nelson Mandela and Samora Machel. Sites such as the Fish Keitseng Monument, Samora Machel Museum and Mandela’s hideout provide opportunities for visitors to learn about this important history. The recently developed Lobatse Heritage Hiking Trail further combines historical attractions with the town’s scenic mountainous landscape, making Lobatse a potential destination for educational, cultural and recreational tourism. However, there is a worrying gap between having these attractions and ensuring that Batswana know about them. The author of this article was surprised when he encountered students from the Lobatse Institute of Health Sciences at the Samora Machel Museum who appeared to have limited knowledge of the historical richness of their own town.
