City readies for bumper tourism season

This week, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth, Alderman James Vos, and Cape Town Tourism (CTT) CEO, Enver Duminy, sat down with local media to highlight the metro’s initiatives to manage the influx of tourists in the coming months and how this fits into its longer-term goals for Capetonians. Read more below:

The City’s readiness goes beyond planning for travellers once they are in Cape Town and starts with putting measures in place to attract tourists. These attractions range from flights to events.

‘Tourism opens doors of opportunity on various levels, including employment, business and a chance for the world to see what Cape Town has to offer. My mission is to help create a tourism-related job in every household in Cape Town. That might sound ambitious but if you think about it, whether you’re in aviation, boat-building, hospitality, retail, design, or clean energy, tourism relates to your work because it brings clients to your door,’ said Alderman Vos.

Flights and cruises

‘Through targeted campaigns backed up with conversion, we kept Cape Town on travellers’ radars. Our work to secure more flights from key markets has resulted in new air routes from the US, Belgium and Mozambique, and new airlines – United Airlines, Air Belgium, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic (which returns to Cape Town after seven years). Between now and March 2023, we have 1,68 million two-way seats available and will hit 191 international flights per week. And I can confirm that passenger numbers have recovered to 100% of 2019 figures.

‘Turning to the seas, the 2022/23 cruise season has 75 ships on the booking schedule, and preliminary bookings for the 2023/24 season indicate 120 ship visits to Cape Town. With an estimated R100 million in total passenger spend per port visit, this is a significant segment of the tourism market for Cape Town. Alongside this, work continued on the ground to help local businesses hone their products in preparation for the influx of travellers,’ said Alderman Vos.

CTT CEO, Enver Duminy, said they are looking forward to a fantastic season ahead, with 67% of South Africans indicating that they would be travelling over the period. Of those, 92% intend on travelling locally.

‘Revealed in CTT’s latest Domestic Travel Intent report, these encouraging figures highlight South Africa’s growing appetite for travel, and an exceptionally positive outlook for the country’s tourism industry, specifically Cape Town. While there has been an increase in international travel intention (8%), the most popular domestic holiday destination remains the Western Cape (31%) ahead of the festive season,’ said Duminy.

In November, Cape Town International Airport Arrival saw a recovery rate of 74% for domestic flights and 87% for international flights – a steady bounce back since January this year, and which is forecasted to continue the upward trajectory as the holiday season approaches.

‘This year’s optimistic outlook follows CTT’s significant investment in campaigns to reposition the Mother City as the holiday destination of choice for global tourism, including our award-winning Find Your Freedom immersive travel experience. Numerous awards later, this first-of-its-kind concept has proven its worth, with the latest accolade being the Destination Industry Award at the international 2022 X. Awards. This interactive journey has highlighted the best that the Mother City has to offer to tourists and tourism bodies around the world,’ said Duminy.

Ready for summer

With the bumper season ahead, Alderman Vos said the City and partners have put processes in place to secure all aspects of destination readiness, including safety, transport, and cleanliness.

‘This includes more than 4 000 uniformed staff such as Metro Police, lifeguards, Law Enforcement, Traffic officers and firefighters who will ensure the wellbeing of those who enjoy the Mother City. In addition, the City has expanded its dedicated Tourism Safety Unit which will focus on specific areas such as Table Mountain and the CBD, while the Western Cape Government has also launched a separate tourism safety unit,’ said Alderman Vos.

CTT has a programme – Travelwise – that also aims to help ensure the safety of visitors to the city.

‘We strive to maintain our city’s reputation for world-class tourism, which requires prioritising the safety of our residents and local and foreign tourists during this holiday period. That’s why we can reassure our visitors that we have a range of security measures in place, from our partnership with the safety response app, Namola, to our highly successful TravelWise programme.

‘TravelWise Cape Town, on capetown.travel, is an official source of information to help Cape Town on its journey and has a collection of tools and resources to ensure visitors are safe when in Cape Town. On arrival, visitors are provided with the most up-to-date safety information, emergency contact numbers and safety tips while out and about in the Mother City,’ said Duminy.

Events and activities

Alderman Vos said Cape Town boasts an exciting calendar of events and activities in all corners of the metro.

‘There is the Summer Market at the Company’s Gardens next week, the Night on the Square at Green Market, and free concerts at the Waterfront. In the coming weeks and months, we can also look forward to sporting events such as the Cape Town 7’s, the Netball World Cup, and the Formula E race. There is also a fantastic line-up of business gatherings including the Mining Indaba and the Africa Green Energy Summit. These events bring delegates who stay for extended periods in the city, using our hotels or B&Bs, and visiting our attractions. They are of great value,’ said Alderman Vos.

Cape Town also has many pocket-friendly experiences for more budget-conscious travellers.

‘You can get out-and-about and explore our incredible city on a free walking tour in Cape Town’s central business district, enjoy a picnic in Green Point Urban Park, or enjoy some of the many natural beauty features in and around the metro. Cape Town Tourism has compiled a handy 50 things to do for under R50 list with more tips and ideas,’ said Alderman Vos.