Durban sets sight on luring tourists with whale-watching experience
AS PART of the efforts to boost tourism, the ethekwini Municipality’s tourism department, Durban Tourism, has announced that it plans to make Durban a premier whale-watching destination to rival the likes of Hermanus.
Durban Tourism hosted a Whale-watching Experience and a Trade Educational workshop encouraging tour operators to see it as an activity or attraction that tourists can look forward to when visiting.
According to Soul of South Durban (Sodurba) chairperson Helga du Preez, the Bluff in Durban is an internationally certified Whale Heritage Site.
“In 2019, we were the first of two sites worldwide, awarded heritage site status alongside Harvey Bay Australia. Whale Heritage Sites aim to increase the protection and conservation of cetaceans, whales, dolphins and porpoises, and their habitats while contributing to sustainable livelihoods, local economic development, the arts, science and education,” said Du Preez.
Durban’s coastline has always been a destination where whale sightings are common, as humpback whales migrate from Antarctica at the onset of winter.
The whales migrate along the east coast of South Africa through the coastal waters of Durban and through to the warmer waters of Mozambique and Madagascar to breed and give birth, making sightings possible from June to November.
Du Preez also revealed that Durban has a history of whaling that began in 1908 when the Union Whaling Company established its Durban operation at the Bluff close to the harbour mouth.
“Between 1908 and 1975, when the whaling station closed, almost 100 000 of the marine mammals, including giant blue whales, humpbacks and sperm whales, were killed off the KZN coast,” said Du Preez.
Whales were culled for whale meat, whale oil, cosmetics, and several other items. The practice has since been abolished in South Africa, but Russia and Japan are alleged to be still practising it.
The old whaling station still lies on the Bluff, now part of a military base, a symbol of Durban’s harrowing past of whaling and how far the city has come to be a safe space.
Durban hopes that exploring its Maritime Heritage Route or the KZN Whale Coast will transform the region into a Heritage Landmark and a sustainable tourism attraction.