Cape Town is preparing for a record-breaking cruise season, with an estimated 23% growth in the number of cruise passengers over last year.
That’s good news for the economy of the Mother City, and indeed, that of South Africa as, according to Wesgro, every 36 passengers calling in Cape Town support one full-time job.
The season opened with the arrival of the World Odyssey, which hosts the Semester at Sea Programme. The city also recently welcomed one of the largest cruise liners, RCI’s Anthem of the Seas.
Speaking at the Cruise Cape Town season launch, Wrenelle Stander, CEO of Wesgro, said Cape Town alone would host 97 ship calls this year – the most in the cruise terminal’s history. Of these, 36 will be turnaround calls, allowing ships to refuel and restock.
David Green, CEO of the V&A Waterfront, said the Anthem of the Seas had capacity for
5 000 passengers and 1 200 crew. While the vessel did not have passengers on this visit as it was relocating between hemispheres, he said it had been an opportunity “to impress her and her crew while they were here”.
He said the city anticipated 180 000 passengers this season – up by 23% – with the ultimate goal of reaching between 250 000 and 300 000 passengers in upcoming seasons.
“It’s quite realistic to do that; the infrastructure is here,” said Green.
He said Cruise Cape Town, established to promote cruise tourism, had put in a lot of work to understand the cruise industry and where it would negatively affect congestion in the city, which would require changing mindsets and getting buy-in in the city.
“The business of tourism is the greatest possible opportunity to create jobs in South Africa in the shortest possible time.”
Cruise Cape Town, operated by Wesgro, also released its economic impact report for the previous season. It found that in 2023-24, vessels and passengers spent R1,5 billion, translating into a R1,32bn boost for the Western Cape economy, compared with R1,2 billion the previous year. This was despite the number of ship calls being lower in 2023/4 than in 2022/3.
Stander said for every 36 arriving passengers, one full-time job was supported.
The global cruise sector is growing rapidly, with an estimated 31 million passengers currently, estimated to grow to 39 million by 2027. Cruisers were also becoming younger, with the average age now sitting at around 45, said Stander.
“What our studies show is that international coastal cruises are the ones that generate the highest value,” she said.
“Cape Town’s high readiness and capacity, with its world-class port management and tourism landscape, make it ideally positioned for sustainable cruise growth,” said Dr Ivan Meyer, Western Cape Minister for Economic Development, Agriculture and Tourism.
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