The recent long weekend (May 1) saw the Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) process nearly 27 000 passengers a day – a sure sign that the Mother City’s growing tourism numbers are a major gain for the economy.

This is according to the City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth and Tourism, James Vos, who told Tourism Update that although Cape Town’s tourism numbers haven’t quite reached the pre-pandemic levels yet, the sector was a major contributor to the city’s GDP.

“Given that the sector contributes 2%% to 3.5% to the local economy and sustains up to 5% of jobs in the city – not to mention those working in affiliate industries – we must do all we can to support tourism,” he said.

Vos noted that there were ongoing signs of tourism recovery in Cape Town, with the March occupancy rates reaching 66.6% - up from an average of 39.8% recorded for March 2021.

The average room rate for March was R1 972 (€106) – up from the R991 (€53) rate in 2021.

“And last year, despite the ongoing pandemic and lockdowns, tourism contributed R5.8 billion (€311m) to the city,” highlighted Vos. 

Data for Cape Town International Airport (April) shows a recovery rate of 75% for domestic passenger volumes (compared with 2019 figures) and 76% for international numbers (compared with 2019).