Cape Town grasps increased attention from UK-based air carriers - TravelhouseUK

Dec. 10, 2012 - PRLog -- With the advent of the summers in Africa lasting between the months of December and March, UK’s air carriers anticipate higher number of passengers travelling to Cape Town.

  According to IOL Travel, both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are stepping in competition for the current increase in demand. British Airways, which has been operating daily non-stop (http://www.travelhouseuk.co.uk/flights/africa/cape_town.htm) flights to Cape Town throughout the year, has doubled its frequency to two daily flights. This will accordingly multiply the current seats under the British flag carrier to 2400 per week. Virgin Atlantic has stepped into the daily flight bracket, which was operating 3 flights on a weekly basis throughout the preceding winter season.

   The managements of both the airlines responsible for operations in Africa have stated that Cape Town’s popularity among UK’s tourist passenger base is the crucial factor behind the additional flights. The surplus in the traffic over the route for this period of the year has established a trend which has been consistently observed over time. This is one reason why (http://www.travelhouseuk.co.uk/airlines/BA-british_airway...) British Airways has ranked Cape Town among the top ten tourism destinations worldwide.

  As published by Business Report, the UK passenger market travelling to South Africa has already shown a marked progress of 5.5% this year from its head count back in 2011. The previous year’s statistics reveal that tourists from the UK numbered in excess of 420,000.

The flights are scheduled for overnight travel to provide added convenience for spending daylight hours at Cape Town. Passenger demand has also reflected upon flight timings over the past for British Airways, which has been a major operator for air routes between UK and South Africa.

South Africa has one aspect which makes holidays very economical for Europeans touring the country. Its national currency, the Rand, is weak in the international markets, thus minimizing local expenditures on accommodation, food and travel. In this manner, the tourism industry contributes a sizeable chunk for injecting extensive foreign exchange in the economy.

 Cape Town is regarded as one of the most exotic places to travel for tourism. Its topography is one major factor for its overwhelming popularity; the city is established on the feet of surrounding mountains on three of its sides, with the remaining perimeters constituting a continuous stretch of beaches. All summer-related outdoor activities become a prime highlight along with multiple facilities for adventure and entertainment.

 TravelHouseUK has accordingly observed greater number of bookings from its UK base for Africa’s main destinations. Virgin Atlantic, KLM and South African Airways accompany Middle Eastern air carriers such as Etihad Airways, Emirates and Qatar Airways for flights to Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town.