Fears that this would be a disappointing tourism season have turned out to be misplaced.
Cape Town International Airport reported an early start with international arrivals 14 percent higher in November than in the same month last year – obviously helped by some of the special offers available.
We seem set for a really good holiday season for the next couple of months – provided governments don’t put a damper on it by ill-advised and penal taxes on airline travel, at least some of the cost of which will be passed on to passengers.
Minister of Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk pointed out a few weeks ago that although most governments are keen on attracting high-spending tourists to boost their economies, they don’t seem to realise that airlines are a vital part of the industry and are already struggling with higher costs that have put some out of business, while having to invest in new generation aircraft that use less fuel and therefore create less pollution.
Fortunately, the opposition to the carbon tax on all arriving aircraft imposed by the European Union is growing, with China insisting its airlines must not pay it. The tax is based on the distance the aircraft have travelled, by demanding they buy carbon credits for each mile they have flown – which will hit long-haul destinations such as South Africa and Australia hardest. Other countries such as the US, India and Russia are also objecting, so with luck the EU will abandon it or, at least, modify it to make it less onerous on families travelling with children.
British Airways, Lufthansa, Emirates and Etihad are among airlines that have warned they will have to pass on the cost through higher fares. And the British Sunday Times quotes David Merlin-Jones, author of a study by think-tank Civitas, as saying that the tax could lead to more environmental pollution and not less, by causing airlines to fly longer routes to avoid EU air space.
l The situation of airlines already struggling against higher costs is brought home this month by the fact that Malaysia Airlines, which has provided flights from Cape Town to the popular destination of Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, for nearly 20 years, has withdrawn from South Africa as part of a strategy to cut costs after suffering a loss of about R3.26 billion.
We are among several destinations it has cut in order to concentrate on its most profitable routes after acquiring a fleet of new generation aircraft that uses less fuel. Other places to which it is no longer flying include Dubai and Rome.
The news has dismayed regional tourism authority Cape Town Routes Unlimited and Cape Town Tourism. Calvyn Gilfellan, chief executive of Routes Unlimited, hopes to persuade SAA – which also flies to Buenos Aires but only from Johannesburg – to stop in Cape Town en route as it did many years ago. He said SAA’s decision to concentrate all its overseas flights – except those to London – in Johannesburg was made because it believes almost all business class and first class passengers travel from there… most airlines want premium class passengers rather than those in the less profitable economy class. But, he said, other airlines, such as Emirates, had found that Cape Town also had enough premium passengers to make it worthwhile to fly here.
Although it has stopped flying here, Malaysia Airlines is keeping its Johannesburg office open at least until the end of this month, either to transfer passengers with bookings for this year to other airlines or to refund fares already paid.
The airline also flew from here to its home airport in Kuala Lumpur. But the loss of this flight will not inconvenience Cape Town passengers to the same extent because Singapore Airlines fly from here. Its home airport in Singapore is only a short distance by road from Kuala Lumpur and visitors to either city often visit both.
l Most Cape Town people bound for holidays in Thailand also go there with Singapore Airlines, rather than flying to Johannesburg to travel with Thai International Airways. Thailand is a favourite holiday destination for South Africans and its national airline has issued a statement that the disastrous floods shown on TV last month have not affected either the international airport in Bangkok or any of the popular resorts.
The airline is currently running a Thailand and Asia Pacific Delight promotion ending on March 31 which enables its passengers to go on to other destinations in south-east Asia including Malaysia, Bali and Indo-China for less than the usual cost. Details are given on its website, www.thaiair.co.za - Weekend Argus