Cape Town and the Western Cape have achieved a record-breaking cruise tourism season, dominated by high-spend source markets including the US, Germany and the UK.
Commencing in October 2022 and wrapping up in May 2023, the past season has welcomed 145 000 cruise passengers as well as 42 000 crew members to the Cape’s shores.
In total, the 2022/2023 season welcomed 75 ships with 41 turnaround visits – this is double the number of ship calls compared with the last complete season in 2019/2020, which saw 39 ship visits with an estimated 42 000 arriving passengers.
With the Cruise Cape Town initiative – powered by trade and tourism facilitation agency, Wesgro – dedicated to developing itinerary offerings to entice more international cruise partners, the Cape Town Cruise Terminal enjoyed the arrival of five new ships to the port this season.
The port also saw three ships conduct a turnaround visit on the same day for the first time and did so successfully on five separate occasions this season.
Turnaround visits are particularly attractive to the destination, as they arrive at a port at the end of one cruise and prepare for the start of another. During the turnaround, the ship undergoes a complete cleaning and restocking process – creating an opportunity for local products to be boarded on to the ship, further contributing to the destination’s economy.
Disembarking passengers traditionally take post-cruise tours, with new passengers seizing the opportunity to explore the destination before boarding the ship.
‘Untapped potential’
“The success of the past Cape Town cruise season speaks to the untapped potential held by this lucrative tourism sector, significantly boosting visitor numbers to the destination,” commented Wesgro CEO and Official Spokesperson for Cruise Cape Town, Wrenelle Stander.
“The Cruise Cape Town initiative is conducting a comprehensive Economic Impact Study, which is expected to be finalised in the coming months. We are confident the results will demonstrate the sector's significant economic impact and job creation potential. We look forward to continuing to support the cruise industry with our partners.”
David Green, CEO of the V&A Waterfront, added: “The return of a full cruise season to the city has been a remarkable success, a testament to the hard work of all the role-players involved in Cruise Cape Town. It’s been exciting to welcome back local and international cruises, including iconic world cruises such as the Queen Mary 2, highlighting the value of our destination to the choice of global traveller experiences.
“The V&A Waterfront, as the terminal operator, continues to invest in an improved traveller experience at the terminal to surpass the regular as well as a new generation of vacationers to the city.”
Western Cape Minister for Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger, said: “The confirmation that the 2022/2023 cruise tourism season reached record highs is fantastic news and is yet another indicator that tourism is truly back in the Western Cape. Cruise tourism contributes significantly to our economy and the knock-on effect of cruise ships, not only through passenger spend but across the whole value chain, cannot be understated.”
James Vos, City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth concluded: “These figures are proof that the Mother City is becoming a major player in the cruise travel market and shows the value of the Cruise Cape Town initiative of which the City is a proud partner. Every passenger, crew member, and ship that hits our shores is a boon to our local economy and helps the City to fulfil its mission of creating a tourism-related job in every household in the metro.”
