Disappointed by World Cup Bookings, South African Tourism Looks for Long-Term Gains

Disappointed by bookings for the World Cup, South Africa’s tourism industry says benefits could accrue for years from the publicity around the world’s most-watched sporting event.

“At the start, we thought that 450,000 people will come, then 375,000 and even 250,000 people,” said Thandiwe January-McLean, head of the country’s tourism board, on the sidelines of the region’s biggest industry conference, which wraps up Tuesday.

But what’s more important, she said, are the 26 billion viewers around the world who will watch the matches on television, an unrivalled opportunity for South Africa to promote itself.

“The World Cup will forever change the world’s perception of South Africa,” President Jacob Zuma said at the opening of the Tourism Indaba in Durban.

About 9.9 million tourists visited South Africa last year, and the number is expected to top 10 million this year while steadily rising over the long-term. But tourism businesses still don’t hide their disappointment at their weaker-than-expected gains from the tournament, which kicks off June 11.

High airfares for the long-haul flights to South Africa, worries about the high crime rate, and the system of hotel reservations used by FIFA’s hospitality partner Match were some of the deterrents.

Since December, hundreds of thousands of room reservations have been released by Match as bookings fell short of expectations. Match canceled 15 percent of its reservations at Sun’s hotels in South Africa, and also scaled back its bookings at hotels in neighboring countries, Anderson said.

Some operators say they’re actually seeing a decline in business during the World Cup, which has drawn most bookings toward major cities like Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.

Smaller venues that depend on domestic travelers say their bookings are down as South Africans put off holidays to avoid high prices during the tournament, or stay home to watch matches in their cities.

And the gains may only come in the months and years to come, after the world gets a look at South Africa on their televisions.