31 Mar 2010

How is the Soccer World Cup 2010 affecting our Holiday Accommodation market?

Everybody jumped on the bandwagon! We all wanted to make a quick buck and the easiest and most popular way to cash in – we all thought – was renting your home. There was a real fear that there will be a shortage of accommodation during the Soccer World Cup.1248390134-news3_maggy.jpg

Not just people with B&B’s and Self Catering establishments were dreaming of filling the coffers. No the average man on the street started spending money in anticipation of the big bang when half a million visitors descend on South Africa. Well, well what can I say? By now we all know that things turned out a bit different.

During 2009 450 000 visitors were expected. I have seen figures of 300 000 and less. FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valke admitted that its original estimate of 450,000 foreign visitors to the tournament is unlikely to be achieved. South Africa is far from the rest of the soccer world and the fans are not willing to or cannot spend the high airfares and excurborant accommodation rates.  Surely there are other reasons as well but let’s stick to  the price of accommodation. “We’ve been recommending to the South Africans for months now that they will be making a mistake in regarding this as a four-week opportunity to cash in on visiting football fans,” Kevin Miles of the English Football Supporters’ Federation

Was it clever to inflate the accommodation rates, in some cases double or even triple the normal peak season rate? Why not charge your guests a fair price, why rip them off? The result! No bookings!

Cabinet is concerned that the inflated prices might have a negative impact on future tourism in South Africa and Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk  commissioned a survey to look at the pricing structure in the accommodation sector ahead of the World Cup. According to Grant Thornton the overwhelming majority, 74%, of SA’s accommodation establishments are not hiking rates substantially for the Soccer World Cup.

“Substantially?”

Just because somebody in Camps Bay got R20 000 per day for his property does not mean every Tom, Dick and Simon’s-Town-Harry will get the same.  We are unfortunately not in the soccer hot spot AND we don’t even know if there will be a train running to and from Simon’s Town.

My suggestion is that we forget about the $$$ for the Soccer World Cup and concentrate on filling our holiday homes at the right price.

Enjoy the wonderful autumn weather.  

Elmarie Horak

Tel: 021 786 4028

P.S. We have started a FREE Holiday Accommodation Listing Services. It’s a nice looking site and you are welcome to add your home. Just email us.

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