CNN Marketplace Africa to investigate growth of cruise ship tourism in SA

The upcoming CNN Marketplace Africa will investigate the growth of cruise ship tourism in South Africa - 17 cruise companies are currently servicing South Africa. Host Eleni Goikos will speak to both cruise lines and ports who are seeing the economic benefits of growth in traffic.

2 Mar 2018

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Christopher Rudolph, brand performance director at MSC Cruises, explains what the appeal of a cruise holiday in Africa is, rather than travelling by road or air: “If you want to fly to Pomene, you have to go to Johannesburg, then Vilankulos and then you have a four-hour drive… [Cruises] are one of the best, you can get great value for money. You're on a resort hotel moving to new destinations offering exciting activities.”

Moshe Motlohi, the manager at Transnet Durban Port, outlines how the port can cater to tourists and tankers, alongside the benefits they’ve found as cruise tourism has increased: “It is the port that supports the economic activity of the country… Cruise tourism is the best performing around the world and South Africa has not been left behind. We have seen tremendous growth since we started. For example, last year there has been 22% growth in that business.”

Investing in cruise tourism

This double-digit growth translates to over 200,000 tourists travelling through Durban’s port in 2016. Although this is a relatively small number when compared with the 10 million international tourists who visited South Africa, the country’s tourism board remains confident this number is only going to increase.

Sisa Ntshona, the CEO of South Africa Tourism, tells Marketplace Africa: “We want a mix of 10-15% from cruise line space, that's about one million to 1.5 million international tourists, that will make a dent. As much as we have strategies to incentivise and promote airlines to fly into South Africa now we're looking at cruise liner space to have them dock through here.”

CNN hears how MSC Cruises along with Africa Armada Consortium are spending nearly $18m on a new cruise terminal that will unlock even more economic opportunities. Motlohi explains to Giokos: “[The new terminal] will be a ground-breaking business that will connect the cruise industry with local businesses… The transport industry is benefiting people on board of these vessels. They have to eat, and now local businesses that supply milk, eggs, butter, fruit and everything… They are also beneficiaries of this.”