WESTERN Cape premier Ebrahim Rasool has announced plans to build four new hotels at the V&A Waterfront, a project estimated at R1,5bn. “We are pleased that at least four new hotels are being planned in response to our growth in tourism and in anticipation of the 2010 World Cup,” says Waterfront ceo Derrick van der Merwe. This despite Fifa stating that Cape Town is currently the only city in South Africa to have enough beds to accommodate the 2010 crowds. Nils Heckscher, chairman of Fedhasa Cape says that it is possible that more supply will increase demand, “however anyone building additional capacity based purely on the 2010 World Cup is taking a risk”. Two of the hotels will be three-star hotels, and Heckscher says that for example, the Chinese market who often prefer to travel in groups would be right to fill this capacity. Sue Lewitton (suel@nowmedia.co.za)
