In the first of a series of reports showing the impact of COVID-19 on consumers, Cape Town Tourism conducted a survey which found that a lack of disposable income will have a major effect on local tourism in the short term.
Many respondents said they were struggling with the financial effects of COVID-19, with only 24% saying they had disposable income, which most planned to use on necessities such as groceries, savings and health. Only 5% are planning to spend money on leisure travel in the near future.
“What was important for us to analyse was if they had any disposable income and if they would be spending this on travel when regulations allow. This would be a critical factor to consider when we move into our tourism recovery programmes” said Enver Duminy, ceo of Cape Town Tourism.
Brett Hendricks, chairman of the board of Cape Town Tourism, said: “With the closing of many businesses over the past few months and the rate at which people are losing their jobs, purse strings are being pulled even tighter. This is concerning for us in the travel industry. Travel has always been perceived as a luxury and if our consumers are battling financially it means that travel might not be as high up on everyone’s list as before. In essence, we need to start thinking of innovative ways to still attract travellers to Cape Town, and affordability and value-for-money offerings need to be a top priority for the entire travel and tourism value chain.”
The survey was conducted from June 1-12 and received 5 485 responses.
