Turmoil on the coast: Tourism industry tossed about by beach closures

With lawsuits pending and the regulations for the tourism industry changing yet again, hospitality stakeholders along the coast are feeling pummeled by the uncertainly of a Covid-19 festive season.

This week, President Cyril Ramphsoa announced sweeping beach closures during the peak holiday period, a move that is being opposed in court but has still left the coastal tourism industry shaken.

Rosemary Anderson, the chairperson of the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (FEDHASA), spoke about mixed responses from their members and whether they had seen cancellations in the wake of Ramaphosa’s announcement.

“Following the amendments to level 1 regulations announced at the weekend, there was some immediate impact to FEDHASA members in terms of cancellations or inquiries to postpone bookings, especially for those who are based along the Garden Route and Eastern Cape coastline,” said Anderson.

“While many report that guests have taken the decision to travel regardless of the beach bans in these areas, establishments in other areas like KwaZulu-Natal are reporting very good occupancies over the festive season.”

This was echoed by the N3 Toll Concession’s Thania Dhoogra this week, who said they had been experiencing peak traffic volumes that were comparable with previous years.

Anderson noted: “After an extremely challenging year for accommodation establishments, from B&Bs and guesthouses to large hotels, the festive season would provide a much-needed cash injection after months of limited-to-no trading as a result of the Covid-19 lockdown.”

Meanwhile, Minister of Cooperative Governance Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has amended regulations published on Tuesday, which will now see certain establishments operating at full capacity.

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According to the amended regulations, as from 17 December, hotels, lodges, bed and breakfasts, timeshare facilities, resorts and guest houses are now allowed to operate at full capacity of the available rooms for accommodation, with patrons observing a distance of at least 1.5 metres from each other when in common spaces.

Anderson said, though, that the trading environment remained challenging “due to the fluidity of the situation and international guests remaining somewhat reticent to travel due to outbreaks in their home country”.

Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, said while they could not yet quantify it, they had experienced a lot of cancellations in the wake of the president’s address on Monday.

“Visitors go to the beach to put their feet in the water and perhaps swim – of course, the closure of beaches will have a devastating impact on tourism,” said Tshivhengwa.

“We want people to spend money in the value chain of tourism [while] following protocols, of course. The cancellations take us back.”

Tshivhengwa suggested that local councils along the coast should be empowered to decide whether their beaches should be open or not.

“We will see the impact of this decision next year when people will not build more houses or boutique hotels along the coast,” said Tshivhengwa. “We need to be clear that this will have an impact.”

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