Cape Town International Airport transforms rapidly WORK on the R1,2bn expansion of Cape Town International Airport is progressing rapidly and will result in its complete transformation to accommodate 15m passengers a year by 2010. Consistent double-digit growth over the past few years saw passenger numbers pass the 8m mark in January this year, up 18% from January 2007. The city’s top three overseas source markets are the UK, Germany and the USA. Some 504 000 visitors hail from the UK annually, of whom 70% fly directly into Cape Town. About 250 000 visitors arrive annually from Germany with a relatively even split between direct and indirect travel. The US contributes about 150 000 visitors a year. Meanwhile, the airport says prospects are good for more direct flights from the Middle East and the USA. Current construction work at the airport will result in a new central terminal building with an upper departures level and a lower arrivals level. The new terminal will allow for the processing of both international and domestic passengers through a common check-in and security screening area. The five-storey building will be equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, including an automated baggage sorting system. Nearing completion is an elevated roadway above the current drop-off roadway in front of the terminals. The upper level will serve as a drop-off area for departing passengers and the bottom road will be a pick-up point for arriving passengers. A public transport plaza in front of the central terminal will cater for tour operators’ coaches, kombis, minibus taxis and maxi taxis. On the airside, there will be additional aircraft parking stands and air bridges. Cape Point gets a face-lift CAPE Point Nature Reserve is getting an R9m face-lift of its roads, car park and bulk services infrastructure, Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) announced. Work began at the end of June and is scheduled for completion by early December. The park will remain open throughout the period and although disruptions are expected, visitors will continue to have access to all facilities. TMNP said Cape Point received more than one million visitors each year and numbers were expected to swell by a further 12% annually. This placed great pressure on its infrastructure, particularly the supply of drinking water, road surfaces and ablution facilities. For this reason, TMNP was constructing a reservoir underneath the parking area and was installing three fire hydrants to boost the park’s fire-fighting capacity and supply of drinking water. A sewage treatment plant is also being built and ablution facilities are being extended to reduce the strain on existing septic tanks. Other services and pipelines are being upgraded. The car park’s surface will be repaved. The main road will be resurfaced, but will remain open because all work would be done at night when the park is closed. Road signs and personnel will redirect traffic when needed. The practical implication for tour operators is that there will be fewer parking spaces for buses during the construction period and some buses will have to park further away along the road.  The footpath to the lighthouse would not be affected, TMNP said. Themed dinners from the Arabella THE Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa now offers four new themed dinners at different venues: a vintner dinner at Blaauklippen wine estate near Stellenbosch; a seafood experience on the beach at nearby Kleinmond; an African bush barbecue; and a Cape-Dutch/medieval dinner in a barn.  The property recently appointed a dedicated events manager to help incentive organisers tailor-make events. It is situated about an hour’s drive from Cape Town in the Kogelberg biosphere reserve and nature-based activities include a championship golf course, hiking, quad-biking, horse riding, water-rafting, whale watching, shark-cage diving, game viewing and bird watching. The Arabella Spa was recently refurbished and offers new treatments and products. Another property in the Arabella Starwood portfolio, the Westin Grand Cape Town Arabella Quays, is closing its spa between July 28 and September 3 for refurbishments and will relaunch with new treatments and products on September 4, says hotel manager, Rob Kucera.