Cape Town - Well-heeled passengers on cruise liners calling at Cape Town spent far more per head than the average tourist, Sheryl Ozinsky, the chief executive of Cape Town Tourism, said yesterday.
The unicity has commissioned an exploratory study from KPMG to look at the feasibility of building an ocean liner terminal to make the city more attractive for these ships.
Ozinsky said the draft report described Cape Town as a popular port of call for cruises between South America and the Far East, or between Europe and Australia. Many passengers flew out to join a cruise for one segment of a voyage and Cape Town had the potential to become a popular place to join or leave a ship.
As a result of the September 11 attacks on the US, 39 liners had called at Cape Town between last October and April to avoid passing through the Suez Canal. Normally only 11 visit the city a year.
Ozinsky said it was hoped that this would prove a sustainable trend.
According to VAT refund figures, cruise ship passengers each spent an average of R30 000 a day, during a two-day visit. Many of them bought jewellery. This was "hugely cost effective" compared with what the average tourist spends.
Ozinsky believed the possibility of becoming a regular port of call for cruise ships was an opportunity not to be missed.
A multipurpose terminal that could also be used for exhibitions, conferences and a service point for ships going to the Antarctic could prove a worthwhile investment.
SA Port Operations was waiting to hear how many cruise ships would be calling at Cape Town in the next holiday season, said a spokesperson.