CT Harbour cruise terminal receives upgrade

Whilst passenger liners are still not able to dock at the V&A Waterfront, considerable improvements have been made to E-berth in the Cape Town Harbour, according to Alan Winde, Western Cape Minister of Finance, Economic Development & Tourism.

In January this year, the Department of Home Affairs issued a directive that passenger liners docking in Cape Town should do so first at Duncan Dock and not the V&A Waterfront. This was despite continued efforts by Winde to negotiate the directive’s reversal.

“The Waterfront is one of the foremost tourist locations for both the Western Cape and SA, and we need to continue positioning it as such,” the Minister was quoted as saying in March.

Winde described the E- berth terminal as a non-tourist-friendly facility. “Tourists now have to dock amongst containers at a cold storage yard. This is no way to receive guests to our province,” he said.

MSC Operations Manager in Cape Town, Rob McEwan, said the rubble has since been removed, and the area is now very spacious. “We look forward to making use of the passenger terminal currently under construction at E-berth, which we understand should be ready in February."

With the announcement of the upgrade, the minister said: “While we have not yet been able to return to docking at the Waterfront, the facilities within the port have been significantly improved.” 

  In 2011, 19 visiting cruise liners brought approximately 11 144 passengers and 6342 crew members to the Western Cape, sustaining a significant number of jobs in the tourism industry.

On November 20, the first major international cruise liner of the season - the MSC Opera - docked at E-berth at Cape Town Harbour carrying 1284 passengers from the Mediterranean and Namibia.