The grounding of European flights because of the Icelandic volcanic ash fallout has had a ripple effect on Cape Town’s tourism sector.
 
Cape Town Tourism ceo, Mariette du Toit-Helmbold, has asked the city’s hospitality industry to offer its most generous rates to those travellers who are stuck in the city.  “There is a lot of uncertainty and frustration but there is also an opportunity to show extraordinary hospitality by extending a helping hand to those visitors that are stranded. Many people have not budgeted for an extended stay.”
 
She says a CTT phone poll of city hotels yesterday revealed most accommodation establishments are offering discounts to stranded visitors and many are fully refunding those bookings that cannot be honoured as a result of the disruption. Accommodation providers are also assisting with planning and enabling communications with employers and loved ones, investigating insurance coverage and providing updates from airlines. She says tour operators are assisting stuck visitors with free transfers and reduced rates at hotels.
  
Du Toit-Helmbold says some hotels have experienced an upsurge in occupancy due to extended stays and also from visitors who have come down from other parts of South Africa to wait out the period until it is safe to fly again.
 
Acsa spokesperson at Cape Town International Airport, Deidre Hendricks, says airline passengers affected by the cancellations must rebook, as this will not happen automatically. “If you are scheduled to travel to the European region in the next few days, please be sure to contact the airline with which you are travelling in order to obtain up-to-date information.”
 
Du Toit-Helmbold says, the leisure travel sector is being significantly affected by the flight suspensions but the business travel sector is perhaps a more critical worry with events having to be postponed or cancelled due to inaccessibility. “It is too early to assess the financial implications of the disruption but CTT is surveying the immediate effects on its membership,” she says.