The bleeding tourism sector has been dealt another blow with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) putting South Africa back on a Level 4 risk level, which advises against travel to the country.
South Africa was among 61 countries moved from Level 4 to Level 3 on June 9.
Yet, many are taking the decision in their stride, with owner of East Cape Tours, Colin Dilland, noting that it was “not the end of the world” as SA was simply back to where it was before.
MD of Cape Xtreme Adventure Tours and Cape to Addo Safaris, Barry O’Donoghue, agreed. “While this move is obviously a step backwards, it does not ban travel to South Africa from the US. All 210 of the group of US students we had travelling in Cape Town and the Garden Route recently actually travelled while we were still at Level 4.”
He pointed out that most of the group had been vaccinated but the PCR tests and the protocols practised had given them all peace of mind, highlighting that the success of the US vaccination roll-out would encourage more travel from the US.
“It should be noted that many US travellers are vaccinated and the Delta variant now prevalent in South Africa is also widely spread in the US.
“What we need to highlight now are the world-class protocols we have in place to safely host visitors,” O’Donoghue said.
Onne Vegter, MD of Wild Wings Safaris, echoed this, and said most of the enquiries he had had to date were from the US and most of the tourists he had hosted since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic were from the States.
He said a recent group of US tourists he hosted recently had also commented on the stringent enforcement and compliance of these protocols by all travel suppliers.
“One woman told me she felt safer in South Africa than she did in the US because we had such strict protocols ensuring her safety.”
Dilland added that he had clients returning to the US tonight (July 7), noting that while there had been a problem with a false positive test, it had been sorted. “This emphasises the importance of booking with an agent on the ground.”
SA’s vaccination roll-out needs to be escalated
“The US is a key travel and trade market and this advisory reaffirms the urgency with which we need to speed up the vaccine roll-out. The sooner we reach herd immunity, the sooner we can open up the country and welcome back travellers who are so important for our economy,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management for the City of Cape Town, James Vos.
“As such, it is heartening to hear that African countries will be receiving another 15 million doses in the coming days.”
CEO of the Tourism Business Council South Africa (TBCSA), Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, said the CDC’s decision was disappointing, but added that it was understandable, given that the world, along with South Africa, was dealing with a third wave.
“Our vaccination levels are still low in SA and this needs to be addressed,” he added.
Responding to concerns that United Airlines (which started daily flights between New York and Johannesburg last month) and Delta Air Lines (which starts flights from Atlanta in August) would revise or cancel their schedules following the revised risk level, Tshivhengwa said he did not foresee this happening.
“The demand is there and United introduced its flights before the Level 3 adjustment. Vaccinated travellers from the US will still come to South Africa,” he said.
Tshivhengwa added that a major point in the US market’s favour was that there was no quarantine imposed on return to the States, expressing hope that the UK and other key source markets such as Germany, would soon follow suit and abandon their quarantine requirements.
CDC advisory
The CDC advisory (click here to view) states, amongst others:
- Avoid travel to South Africa.
- If you must travel to South Africa, make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel.
The CDC also notes that all air passengers travelling to the US from South Africa – including US citizens and fully vaccinated people – need to present a negative COVID-19 test result no more than three days before travel or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 in the past three months before they board their flight.
Furthermore, they need to have a viral test three to five days after their arrival in the States.
