There’s no doubt that the past two years have been tough going for industries and economies, with tourism certainly coming off as one of the worst affected.
However, the City of Cape Town outlined the most recent data from Cape Town International Airport (CTIA), which shows that domestic arrivals in February recovered to 79% of the same period in 2019, up from 73% the month before. International figures for February recovered to 76% of that same month in 2019. The airport is now processing an incredible 25 000 passengers a day.
According to the City’s Mayco for Economic Growth, James Vos, this follows a positive holiday season largely thanks to domestic travellers, and these new figures show that the outlook for tourism and travel to Cape Town in the year ahead is even better.
Vos said these remarkable figures are the result of targeted and effective campaigns and strategies implemented by the City and its business partners that capture the diversity and fullness of the Mother City.
“Not only do these numbers represent a rise in travellers to Cape Town, but it also is an indication that the city has cemented connections to more key source markets. This means increased production, which means more jobs and a stronger economy,” Vos said.
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Vos went on to say that the COCT has also made fantastic strides as a cruise destination with five ships still expected to dock in the Mother City between March and May as well as a further 104 expected to make their way here between October and May next year.
“The successes in these two markets are linked to Air Access and Cruise Cape Town, both initiatives housed in Wesgro. This past financial year, I was motivated for funding towards these two programmes and I will do so again in the next budget cycles. It makes business sense that secure global connectivity for Cape Town,” Vos adds.
Meanwhile, the several airlines that have resumed services to CTIA are Emirates which flies to and from Dubai, Singapore Airlines, British Airways, which connects to Heathrow, Kenya Airways, and Turkish Airlines.
“The US’s United Airlines has also announced that it will resume direct flights between Cape Town and New York from June ahead of their initial schedule,” Vos expressed.
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Picture: Cape{town}Etc gallery
