Drought behind drop in tourism
Trend set to continue amid visa woes, branded ‘elephant in room’
THE CAPE’S worst drought has hit the tourism industry hard with the latest figures showing international visitors are ditching the city despite a weaker rand.
Industry experts said the drought and brief appreciation of the rand have created a challenging environment for the Western Cape.
Judy Lain, Wesgro chief marketing officer, said January and February 2018 was the height of the drought crisis.
“We have seen a decline in bookings from key markets as well as a decline in forward bookings,” she said.
Figures from ForwardKeys 2018 indicate a downward trend, she said.
According to ForwardKeys there is an expected year on year forecast of a 7% decline for July in forward bookings.
The August year on year figure forecasts a 2% increase and in September a 1% increase. For October there is a forecast of a 2% decline year on year and a 4% decline for November.
Last week Statistics SA released its “Tourism and Migration” report reflecting a decrease in tourist arrivals to South Africa. The comparison reflects that in March 2018, there were 3 560 382 arrivals compared to 3 841 519 in April 2017.
StatsSA said just over 3.5 million people passed through ports of entry in April based on Department of Home Affairs immigration information, with foreign arrivals decreasing 6.9% to just short of 1.3 million. Departures decreased by 9.1% and transits by 4%.