LOCAL TOURISM SECTOR BRACES FOR CANCELLATIONS
Following the announcement of South Africa’s
discovery of the new Covid variant Omicron, the local tourism sector is bracing
itself for an influx of cancellations.
It’s no secret that the tourism sector
suffered major damage last year due to Covid and with the country moving back
to level 1, it seemed as if the sector would have been in for a good season
this summer.
Now it seems that they’ll be in the same
situation as last year, if not worse. That’s because the sector is expecting
not only international tourists to cancel their bookings, but also locals who
might choose to stay home in case provincial borders are closed as well.
EWN reports that local parks are hoping
South Africans will fill the void left by international tourists.
South African National Parks (SANParks)
spokesperson Ike Phaala said that their parks are safe and will remain open.
“Pronouncements by several governments to
impose travel restrictions in and out of South Africa in response to the newly
discovered Covid-19 variant, South African National Parks is bracing itself for
multiple booking amendments from residents of various countries across the
world.”
Image credit: Tourism Update