Cape Town to Become the Preferred Port of Call for Cruises

On February 18th, the MS Queen Elizabeth and the MSC Musica luxury cruise liners both docked at the Cape Town harbour, bringing in over 4,000 visitors to the city. Cape Town is very quickly becoming a booming port of call for many inbound and outbound international travelers. In 2012, only 6,050 passengers arrived to the harbour on various cruise ships and in 2017, the number grew to 31,035. Cruise tourism is making a substantial contribution to the community and providing entertainment and travel opportunities for people living in South Africa.

Contributions to the Economy of Cape Town

According to the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Assets Management, Alderman James Vos, “for every 12 tourists visiting our shores, one job is created". We will continue to invest in tourism programmes and projects that drive demand and make business sense, as tourism sustains about 150,000 jobs in Cape Town. The influx of tourists visiting Cape Town through its port of call is providing jobs and stimulating the economy. On average, tourists spend R501 and R1 000 in the city each day, excluding accommodation. Therefore, an international tourist spends about R8 4000 during their time in Cape Town and R10 600 before even arriving on the shores. This money is expected to be pushed back into the city and help to create more opportunities for the locals living in the area.

The Benefits of Traveling

Not only will the locals experience a boost in their city, but they will also have the opportunity to hop on one of these cruises and travel the world. The Queen Elizabeth is no stranger to the shores of South Africa and embarks on around-the-world cruises. From Cape Town, she sails to Port Elizabeth, Mauritius, and Australia. During the long journey, guests are entertained by a pool deck, cinema, casino, spa, and sun lounges. Adults can meet other like-minded individuals in different entertaining classes and children can safely play with other cruise youngsters during the ship’s many kids activities. These amazing luxuries provide the people of Cape Town the ability to expand their cultural exploration, meet people all over the world, and simply indulge in luxury.

The Construction of a Dedicated Cruise Terminal

South Africa very recently created the dedicated cruise terminal, which is turning into a very worthwhile investment. The terminal is allowing for more ships to dock in Cape Town and increasing the number of international travelers in and out of the country. This is expected to dramatically increase over the next couple of years. Cape Town Tourism believes that the cruise tourism industry in the city will reach R220 billion sometime between now and 2027.

Cruise tourism will make a major impact on Cape Town. More money will be circulated within the city, creating more jobs and allowing more locals to travel the world. In the future, we can only expect to see more from the port of call.