Calabash Tours

General information

Calabash Tours

Nelson Mandela Bay was formerly known as Port Elizabeth, and is situated on the Garden Route. Hosting excellent Blue Flag beaches, attractive architecture and interesting British as well as Xhosa heritage, it is a ‘must see’ inclusion on any visit to South Africa. Nelson Mandela Bay offers the perfect conditions to explore and understand contemporary Black culture, with 75% of its 1.4 million residents being Xhosa speaking, proud and hospitable.

Steeped in responsible tourism and pro-poor tourism thinking, our ground breaking approach allows visitors to access, understand and appreciate the social history of the people, their day to day experiences of being black South Africans during apartheid, as well as during our emergence as a democracy. Our experiences are real, authentic, and ethical.

Calabash Tours is owned and operated by a dynamic team, who share a vision of tourism being a powerful development tool, while balancing the social needs of the poor with the desire by our visitors to have fun, to learn, and to engage with the South African people in an ethical way.

“I have been in Port Elizabeth for two weeks, and have driven around quite a lot, but today instead of merely ‘observing’ things, I ‘saw and understood’ them.” Oliver from England Feb 2014

“I would like to thank Calabash Tours for giving my family the opportunity to feel the ‘real’ South-African life!” Kris C Belgium 2013

Calabash Trust
Over the years Calabash Trust shifted its focus to work more developmentally, ensuring initiatives are more sustainable. Today this work is underpinned by an asset based approach. To date Calabash Trust has managed projects and relationships that include SAGA Charitable Trust, Breadline Africa, African Bank, Hella Automotive, Stigting Township ZA, as well as University of East Illinois, Sheffield Hallam University, Potsdam University, and Reeds College. Some projects have included skills sharing with schools and community partners, as well as physical infrastructure like sport fields, permaculture gardens, libraries and netball courts.

Calabash Trust has developed strong trust based relationships with schools in 7 township communities. Through an on-going process of reflection, evaluation and engagement, the organisation has developed a deep and nuanced understanding of the nature of social inequality in these communities and schools and the interaction between them.

Project partners are the schools themselves and the surrounding community. Due to the social demographics of the area, schools are all ‘no fee schools’ and are placed in quintile 3 by the Department of Education. This is the lowest quintile in urban areas. The average school has 600 learners, and 20 teachers, most of whom are women. The communities where schools are situated concur with the national demographics of high numbers of youth, of which up to 70% are unemployed. The majority of households from which children come are women headed households. Children impacted upon are between the ages of 6 and 14. Average household size in the community is 5 people.

Calabash Trust consists of two fulltime staff, as well as a pool of volunteers and associates. The organisation has sound financial governance practices, undertakes an annual audit, and is overseen by a board of trustees.