Tourism vs. Tradition: Bo-Kaap’s Struggle to Maintain Its Identity Amidst Growth

Published on November 27, 2025

Bo-Kaap is known for its colorful houses and streets. It is a neighborhood in Cape Town that celebrates its rich culture and is cherished for its vibrant multicultural community. It has been a living and breathing part of the culture for years, where people practice their faith, celebrate family, and keep history alive. Recently, however, the community has started feeling the impact of tourism and increased property values on their neighbourhood. They have begun voicing their concerns around the neighborhood becoming commercialised.

In the last few years, the tourism and hospitality market has rapidly changed due to the growth of short-term rental platforms. Residents have begun to observe and express their concerns regarding the growing commercialization of the neighborhood as more homes are being rented to tourists. These changes impact the ability of long-term community members to afford living in the neighborhood. Residents in the community are faced with a challenge of balancing the cultural and historical significance of their local neighborhood with the impact and value of tourism on the economy of Cape Town.

Bo-Kaap: A One-of-a-Kind Area of Cape Town

Bo-Kaap has been part of Cape Town’s rich cultural history. The colorful homes and buildings are accompanied by the Cape Malay history and the cobblestone streets. One of the Auwal Mosques – the first mosque in South Africa – is located in this neighborhood, as well as the valuable museam displaying the area’s history m ming the African and Muslim cultures.

Bo-Kaap has been a home for many in the community and their family for many years, as well as supporting the Muslim community. The are mosques and Islamic community buildings that provide the area with a sense of council and community.

Bo-Kaap has now becoming a focal point for multicultural tourists filled with vibrant streets and homes. There are now a lot of cultural and economic issues that have been brought to the area. These include issues with cultural heritage, housing and cultural.

The Effect of the Increasing Availability of Short-Term Rentals on the Property Market

In the last few years, the Bo-Kaap area is experiencing the rapid increase of short-term rentals as a result of the boom of platforms such as Airbnb, where homeowners can offer their residential properties to tourists for a few days, allowing for a more authentic and localised tourism experience in Cape Town, Leading to an increase in local property prices and affordability constraints for many owners who live in the area.

The increasing diversion of residential properties to short-term rentals is resulting in a further decline in availability of long-term residential rentals, even increasing the long-term rentals. property prices. Furthermore, cashew longstanding local residents have a more difficult time finding long-term rentals in the area as they cannot match the rental prices often paid by tourists. This further suggested displacement of local residents. long-term local residents have also expressed concerns over replacing the area’s original and authentic cultural identity as the original residents of the area are now priced out of their homes.

Rising rents and housing prices have created obstacles for locol home buyers. The attention of tourists and investors has further escalated the demand for housing and worse the affordability crisis. Consequently, long-standing residents of Bo-Kaap feel the imborrowing neighborhood is letting them down.

Tourism is one of the most important for Cape Town’s economy as it integrates into most economic activities including the hospitality, retail and transport industries. Bo-Kaap brings an unique history, culture and gorgeous views to the tourism of the city. Tourists stroll the entertaining streets, dine on the local food, and take in the historical offerings.

With the increasing number of tourists, the community must ensure their displacement does not occur. While the area has benefited economically, their imborrowing presence has damaged the historical and cultural identity of the area.Aspects of Bo–Kaap’s Cultural Identity

According to stakeholders, heritage identity in Bo-Kaap is impacted through the ongoing property developments in Bo-Kaap and the adjoining galleries and museums are experiencing. A few emergence community organizations in collaboration with some local activists and municipality community leaders have initiated some primary introductory steps to address the heritage implications of ongoing developments in the area.

These steps include community initiatives that address the expanded commercial short-term rental operations and the community’s need for social housing, and more integrated developments in the area.Less expensive sensitizing social housing are more integrated developments in the vicinity, and planned residential developments, albeit social housing in nature, have been politically advocated to center the impacted community of Bo-Kaap, and the adjoining galleries and museums.

Similarly, it is hoped that control measures have a mindset to strike a balance for educational tourism. Hence, Bo-Kaap is dependent with the economic implications of tourism.

The Future of Bo-Kaap as a Tourist Destination

The future of Bo-Kaap has potential as a tourist destination pending how the city, tourism stakeholders, and local community work together in sustaining the rapid tourism growth. While Cape Town as a whole is welcoming in tourists from all over the world, the value of the of the neighborhoods such as Bo-Kaap should not be compromised.

The discourse surrounding tourism of Bo-Kaap speaks of the importance of sustainable tourism that honors the local community and the authenticity of the cultural destination. For Bo-Kaap to have a viable future, tourism growth will need to work hand in hand with residents to ensure that everyone is able to enjoy the facilities and activities, making the heritage and culture of the location a focal point.