Although South African municipalities have issued water restrictions, the tourism and accommodation industries are operating normally.  Both Clifford Ross, CEO of City Lodge Hotel Group, and Donovan Muirhead, Chairman of the National Accommodation Association of South Africa, said their hotels and guest houses were operating normally despite the water restrictions, and that all properties had back-up water measurements in place.

[AdZone]

The Water and Sanitation Ministry has also assured the Gauteng Tourism Authority that everything is under control and that there is no need for any major concerns, says Barba Gaoganediwe, Senior Manager: Destination and Corporate Communications at GTA.

City Lodge Hotel Group had already implemented back-up measures, such as water tanks, from when disruption to water supplies had been an issue in the past. “Our hotels all use water as sparingly as possible and we do have an initiative in place where we encourage our guests to save water – by showering instead of bathing, reusing towels and using dual flush toilets,” says Ross.  

However, Ross did add that the water restrictions could become a deterrent should they continue for any length of time and if no permanent resolution to the crisis was found by the municipalities.

The National Accommodation Association of South Africa has put measures in place to recycle grey water and is advising guests that the country is experiencing water restrictions and asking them to shower instead of bathing. Muirhead is also advising other establishments to implement water management strategies as a precaution. “All taps, pipes and drains should be checked to ensure no wastage occurs.”     

Both Ross and Muirhead say visitor numbers and the visitor experience have not been affected.

Izak Smit, Kruger National Park Science Manager, agrees that the guest experience has not been negatively affected as water restrictions are permanently enforced in the park and are not something implemented now because of drought. “Tourists will not run out of water as the park has contingency plans in place, such as boreholes.”

Gaoganediwe says GTA does not anticipate any major challenges for tourism establishments in the province as hotels and lodges have, over the years, begun practising responsible tourism initiatives by installing water reticulation and water-saving facilities. 

There are back-up plans in place to ensure that tourism establishments can continue operating at the same service level and most establishments have borehole facilities and have implemented water-saving measures, adds Gaoganediwe. “Tourism establishments should continue propagating the message around conserving water to tourists as well as remind tourists that their experience in South Africa will not be dampened by these restrictions.”

Madikwe Private Game Reserve and all accommodation facilities in iSimangaliso Wetlands Park are using supplementary water systems to cope with the restrictions. 

Madikwe Hills Private Game Reserve is making use of a borehole as well as eight holding tanks that supply water from 05h00-17h00, meaning that the lodge and guest experience is not being affected by the drought, says Hannes Kruger, GM at Madikwe Hills Private Game Lodge. “These tanks are supplying us with enough water to cope but I do think that when everyone stops using the Molatedi Dam and only makes use of boreholes, then we may begin to have a problem.”

Ghost Mountain Inn, at this stage, has not been affected by water restrictions as the hotel has the necessary back-up infrastructure to ensure minimal effects on hotel operations, says MD, Craig Rutherfoord.  However, the restrictions have sparked protests in the surrounding community.

“What have had an effect though, have been restrictions in the region, which have resulted in protests, barricaded roads and limited access in certain areas.” Operationally, these protests have required Ghost Mountain Inn to reroute and in one instance even cancel a drive. Rutherfoord says the protests are starting to affect main routes, such as the N2 at Mtubatuba. “Should the communities not receive satisfactory results, I have no doubt that the protests will intensify and that tourism in the region will be increasingly affected.”

Andrew Iles, CEO at Ashtons, says the company has not been significantly affected, however, should the restrictions become more severe, Ashtons could be affected by having shuttles and transfer vehicles that are not as clean as they should be. “Our clients could also experience issues with lack of water at our comfort stops or at their final destinations.”

Iles adds that, if overall water supply at lodges and accommodation facilities is interrupted, it could result in challenging operational conditions and possibly very unhappy guests. “Dry conditions in the game reserves are generally good for wildlife sightings but, without basic comforts, the average tourist will not be overly impressed, which is not great for inbound tourism.”

Due to the severity of the drought, organisers of Slide the City events, in partnership with Huisgenoot, YOU and Drum, have postponed the country-wide water slide event. “Although every effort was made to ensure there would be no water wastage we take water conservation extremely seriously. We are all well aware of the severity of the drought and we wouldn’t want anyone to think otherwise,” said Minette Ferreira, GM of Huisgenoot, YOU and Drum.