Increase in safety efforts 

To accommodate more than 30,000 daily visitors over the festive season, the City of Cape Town, in collaboration with Cape Town Tourism, launched its “largest ever” safety operation in November. 

This initiative, which is partly funded by a three-year investment of R860-million into the City’s Safety and Security Directorate, forms part of an allocation decided by the City’s central budget, according to mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith.

Security has been stepped up over the festive season. A police officer stands watch in the CBD, 1 August 2023 in Cape Town. (Photo by Gallo Images/ER Lombard)

Since early November, the directorate has deployed more than 4,000 uniformed enforcement and emergency personnel to combat an increase in criminal activity in the City over the festive season, Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said. 

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These personnel had been selected as part of a specialised Tourism Unit and included members of the police, South African National Parks and neighbourhood watches. 

“Aside from general crime prevention activities, the City is making a special deployment of 80 personnel for dedicated safety, patrolling tourism routes at Signal Hill, Lion’s Head, Devil’s Peak, Table Mountain trails, the Bo-Kaap, Waterfront and CBD,” Hill-Lewis added. 

V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on 2 August 2023. (Photo: Ziyanda Duba)

In the week leading up to Christmas, between 18 and 24 December, the enforcement agencies within the City made 403 arrests for a range of different offences, Smith said.

From 27 November to 24 December the Traffic Service had made 306 arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol, while law enforcement officers documented thousands of speeding violations and issued fines for various road safety infractions. 

In light of muggings within the Table Mountain National Park in the weeks leading up to the festive season, “[the City] is doing everything possible to ensure a safe and enjoyable holiday for visitors and residents alike”, said James Vos, the mayoral committee member for economic growth, in a joint statement with Cape Town Travel’s public relations and communications manager, Briony Brookes. 

Enhanced patrols, improved coordination and collaboration among those delegated within the Tourism Unit have led to a significant decrease in assaults on people using the mountain trails, Smith said. 

Further safety initiatives beyond additional “boots on the ground” for Metro Police, Law Enforcement and Traffic Services included investments into ShotSpotter acoustics detection for “police precincts with high levels of gang-related crime”, body and dash cameras, drones and CCTV monitoring “for better surveillance across communities and tourist attraction areas, as well as drone integration”. 

Paragliders set out from Signal Hill down to the trendy Sea Point neighbourhood on 5 February 2022 in Cape Town. (Photo: David Silverman/Getty Images)

Elevated activity  

Cape Town continues to rack up top tourist destination ratings globally, including being voted Greatest City on Earth in the 2023 Telegraph Travel Awards. South Africa was voted the best country to visit.

Cape Town International Airport recorded a significant increase in inbound tourism from both the US and Europe between January and April 2023. These figures have continued to grow in the festive season. 

“UK air passengers recovered to 104% of the January-to-April 2019 numbers, Germany hit 106%, the Netherlands recovered to 116%, and the US reached an incredible 155%,” according to a statement by Brookes.

This increase, which can be felt across local sectors, can be attributed to the airport’s acquisition of seven high-profile carrying services which has been key to opening new avenues for investment within the Western Cape’s tourism sector. 

This has increased ties to the US in particular after seven new routes were added to Cape Town’s international network, as well as three intercontinental carriers – Air Belgium, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic – according to the statement.

Wanderer Tours and Travels, a local tourism company, can attest to the above after noting an increase in the frequency of American tourists after the end of Covid-19. 

This marked a shift from the previously dominant European tourist presence, said Che Watson, the owner of Wanderer Tours and Travels.

However, the European market remains the largest contributor to air arrivals into Cape Town, according to a statement by Georgina Maree, spokesperson for the provincial minister of finance and economic opportunities. 

Cape Town Tourism is optimistic that the increase in tourists will positively affect the economic growth of the City of Cape Town, according to the tourism entity’s CEO, Enver Duminy, in statements shared by Brookes. 

The V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on 2 August 2023. (Photo: Ziyanda Duba)

Main attractions

Table Mountain is one of the most popular tourist destinations for South Africans and international visitors alike. This festive season, the Table Mountain Cableway is eagerly anticipating 115,000 visitors, according to Brookes. 

Another popular attraction, the Robben Island Museum, is seeing a “marked increase” in its visitors, said Dr Jonty Tshipa, the museum’s chief operations officer. 

Robben Island is a popular tourist destination. December 05. 2018. (Photo by Gallo Images / Netwerk24 / Jaco Marais)

“Taking advantage of the early sunrise and late sunset, [the museum] has increased the number of daily tours, by adding the Early Bird and Sunset tours to the festive season line-up,” he said. 

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They had noted an uptake in domestic travellers but their main market remained international.

The Cape Point Nature Reserve in the Deep South is a popular spot for holidaymakers. October 2022. Photo: Janet Heard

“Early indications are that 2023 visitor numbers will surpass that of the previous year, which brought well over 33,000 to the island in December.”

Decrease for smaller companies

Despite the influx of tourists entering Cape Town, Wanderer Tours and Travel has reported a decrease in business, according to Watson. “In my opinion I put it down to the fact that most of the market of late seems to be marketing on low-cost experiences and tours,” she said. Smaller tour operators could not compete with the larger companies offering lower rates. 

While the main tourist attractions in Cape Town never change, local cooking and township experiences are becoming increasingly popular, offering visitors a more intimate insight into the city, she added. DM