It’s not just inbound tour operators and DMCs feeling the teeth of the travel ban imposed on South Africa and its neighbours. Thirty-six cruise ships scheduled to dock in Cape Town over the next six months have cancelled, according to Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Tourism in Cape Town, James Vos.
Just one of the casualties of the emergence of the Omicron variant is the suite of Southern African cruises out of Cape Town by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), due to take place in December and January.
A spokesperson for NCL said: “The safety of our guests, crew and communities we visit remains our highest priority. Accordingly, we continue to closely monitor the evolving global public health environment and are ready to adapt as needed. Given the recent concerns surrounding the Omicron variant, we have made the decision to cancel the five voyages on Norwegian Jade scheduled to depart from or disembark in South Africa beginning December 3, 2021 through and including January 26, 2022. All affected guests and travel partners will be contacted directly.”
Azamara Pursuit has a group of South African itineraries out of Cape Town planned for January and February 2022. But Henuti Purshotam, Marketing and Product Contractor for Cruises International, which represents Azamara in South Africa, said that no decision had yet been taken by the cruise line on the fate of these South Africa cruises.
None of the 36 cancelled cruises relate to the popular “local” MSC South Africa East Coast cruises, whose season launches on December 6. These are going ahead as planned.
Vos was at the Port of Cape Town yesterday to welcome the TUI group’s MS Europa cruise ship. En-route from Namibia, the 230 passengers heard they would need to disembark in Cape Town, get tested for COVID-19 and fly back home.
The passenger liner, owned by the TUI group, was the first international cruise ship to dock in Cape Town since March 2020, when the national government banned cruise ships from all ports as a control measure against the spread of COVID-19.
“During my visit to monitor the entry I was informed that, due to the latest travel bans unfairly slapped on South Africa, several of the 36 other scheduled ships for the coming period until May, have cancelled,” said Vos.
Despite the disappointment of the cancellations, Vos is undeterred, saying the Mother City’s cruise market is still expected to make waves in a big way. He said, with the launch of Cruise Cape Town – a partnership between the City of Cape Town and several other entities located in Wesgro – stakeholders had focused on boosting the Mother City’s destination profile in this market, which has a projected value of R220 billion over the next five years.
“As it is, a cruise ship carrying around 2 000 passengers results in spending to the value of approximately R2 million per day,” said Vos.
He cautioned, however, that ongoing travel bans – which have proven ineffective and unnecessary – will put this tourism revenue opportunity at risk.
“With this kind of potential for huge economic benefits, both in terms of passenger and crew spend, and for maintenance of cruise ships, it is time the world reopens travel to South Africa and lets Cape Town’ set sail,” said Vos.
Cape Town will have some stiff competition on its hands for the title of “the most desirable port of call in South Africa” - MSC Cruises, in conjunction with the KZN Government is set to open a brand new cruise terminal in the Port of Durban on December 6.
