Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Cape is ready for holiday tourism rush - by air and sea
THE tourism and hospitality sector has put plans in place in a bid to reassure holiday visitors that the province is ready for them.
Buoyed by a return of tourism after the Covid-19 pandemic, the sector had now “moved beyond recovery” to “an impressive growth”, according to Western Cape MEC for Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger.
“The tourism and hospitality sector, despite going through very difficult times, keeps bouncing back, showing such grit that pays dividends down the line for so many in the Western Cape.”
The Cape Town International Airport was expected to receive over 215 flights per week, connecting the city with over 30 international destinations.
SAA will commence a non-stop flight between Cape Town and São Paulo, Brazil, on Tuesday.
“This is a significant development as São Paulo has long been the largest unserved market for Cape Town. The inaugural flight will also mark the intercontinental return of South African Airways following an 11-year international absence,” said Wesgro CEO Wrenelle Stander.
Qatar Airways will also increase frequencies on its Doha-Cape Town route to twice daily from December 1.
Stander also said FlyNamibia would be operating a new route between Walvis Bay and Cape Town, with four flights per week from yesterday, and LAM Mozambique Airlines will also commence operations between Maputo and Cape Town with three flights per week, starting on November 15.
“The upcoming peak season, between November 2023 and March 2024, is expected to be the busiest yet, with international seat capacity set to surge by an impressive 25%, reaching over one million international inbound seats when compared to the same period in 2022/23 – a record for the project to date,“she added.
Cruise Cape Town anticipated several major ships to call at local shores, including first-time arrivals such as the Coral Geographer, Silver Spirit, Swan Hellenic Diana, Ambience, MSC Splendida, MSC Poesia, Norwegian Dawn and the Vasco da Gama.
Between November 2022 and May 2023, the Port of Cape Town welcomed 70 ship calls carrying 145 000 two-way passengers and 42 000 crew members, the biggest cruise season the terminal had seen.
Wenger said in 2022 alone, the arrival of 605 000 foreign passengers via air injected R24.3 billion into the provincial economy, supporting 10 600 jobs.
Between November 2022 and May 2023, cruise ships that sailed into the Cape Town port contributed R1.2 billion, creating approximately 1 800 local jobs
“We have moved beyond recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and have seen impressive growth in the sector in the Western Cape,” she said.
Airports in Cape Town and George recorded two-way passenger increases between January and August 2023, compared to the same period in the previous year.
Cape Town International Airport recorded more than 1.7 million passengers, exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 107% and by 64% compared to the previous year.
“It is encouraging to see continued growth in tourism and hospitality – a major job-creating sector. This bodes well for the upcoming summer peak season, and now is the time to prepare to roll out the red carpet for our visitors from all over South Africa, and indeed the world,” she added.
Despite the energy supply challenges in South Africa, the hospitality sector said season-readiness initiatives had already begun.
Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (Cape chairperson Lee-Anne Singer said: “The provincial government has convened stakeholders to develop strategies. The Joint Association of Management, Marketing and Sales will hold a readiness workshop in November. It’s encouraging to see collaborative efforts to ensure visitors have a positive experience.”