Following two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism figures in Cape Town are picking up.
Cape Town Tourism reports that they’ve seen a recovery rate by April 2022, compared to April 2019 of 74% for international arrivals and 76% for domestic arrivals.
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Cape Town Tourism CEO, Enver Duminy, said in April this year, the domestic recovery numbers increased by 4%, alongside a 12% jump in international arrivals. “The numbers are looking extremely positive, and we hope to keep the momentum going, even with the inevitable impact of winter.”
IOL reported that campaigns such as ‘Find Your Freedom’ were designed to attract young people with ‘revenge travel’ in mind.
Duminy stated that:”Revenge travel refers to people ‘rebelling’ against the lockdowns of the last few years, and consciously choosing to explore more. We expect to see a surge of people coming to Cape Town this year, as the industry opens, and people feel safe to set forth and travel with purpose.”
Before the days of COVID-19, the tourism industry in Cape Town contributed between 2% and 3.5% to the economy and sustained up to 5% of all jobs in the city as per fin24.
The city’s tourism body estimated that despite the challenges, the tourism sector contributed more than R5 billion to Cape Town’s economy in 2021.
Duminy said they are committed to moving from tourism recovery to a chapter of tourism readiness.
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Picture: Cape Town ETC