Cruise Ship docking for Cape Town

Is Cape Town missing out on substantial tourism revenue by not providing world class cruise line docking facilities? In the wake of a successful World Cup, Cape Town has cemented itself as a popular tourist destination, with more satisfied tourists than a Bangkok massage parlour. So why then is the city refusing to realise its potential as cruise ship destination? The V&A Waterfront is a world renowned tourist destination attached to an international working harbour there is no good reason not to have acceptable docking facilities for cruise liners.

As increasing global oil prices force airlines to raise the ticket prices ocean liners are becoming an increasingly popular form of overseas holidays. Where it was once the domain of the retired and the boring it is now a realistic choice for those with their own hips and an energetic love life. The popularity of taking a cruise derives largely from the fact that it is a true all in one package. You have your accommodation, food and entertainment all taken care of while still enjoying the thrill of international travel.

The figures speak for themselves, the cruise ship industry has been increasing steadily over the last five years while the number of people travelling by air has been on the decline. Yet still the city spends money on a new airport and chooses to conveniently ignore the blatant lack of docking facilities. This is not to say that the new Cape Town International airport was unnecessary, but merely that you can't invest in one and pretend the other doesn't exist, or rather if you do, you do so at your own peril. There is a massive untapped resource quite literally floating around in the ocean.

So now the city fathers decide to sit up and start listening, as soon as money and lost revenue is mentioned. It's not so much a complete lack of facilities it is the disgustingly inadequate facilities that exist for visiting tourists. Many comments are made about the drive that visitors do when approaching Cape Town from the airport on the N2. This however is a positively gleaming first impression compared to that which greets most visitors disembarking from a cruise ship at the V&A Waterfront.

South Africa currently only captures 0.5% of the global cruise ship market, a staggeringly low figure when one considers the share of overseas tourists that South Africa attracts on a regular basis. Estimates from 2008 claim that an average cruise ship with 2000 passengers and a crew of 600 would result in daily spending of over two million rand. This type of revenue cannot be ignored. Complaints from tourists visiting Cape Town on a cruise ship are not uncommon. The V&A Waterfront is well known for its' stylish venues and world class facilities unfortunately this is not the first impression that those disembarking from visiting cruise ships are met with. They disembark, obviously, in the working harbour, however very little has been done to make the "arrival hall" at all welcoming.

This is something that needs to be addressed if Cape Town is to take advantage of the growing cruise line industry. There is talk in the city's corridors of power about developing the forseshore to create a more cutting edge cruise ship facility. These are talks though thathave been going on for sometime now.