Sandiso Phaliso
ROBBEN Island has seen a steep increase in the number of visitors, many of them young people, and the management says this is due to their digital campaign.
Just more than 50 000 people took the ferry to the island since December 9, compared to 31 000 people over the same period last year.
The island’s marketing manager, Nomonde Ndlangisa, said the increase was largely due to their social media campaigns on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. She said many of their visitors were young people.
The six ferries are fully booked until January 4.
“There has been a huge increase.
“We broke our own record by almost doubling last year’s numbers. We are excited,” she said.
“For the first time we have seen an enormous number of young people coming to the island. This time of the year is the most that people visit the island.”
Ndlangisa said the increased numbers were a 50/50 split between locals and international tourists.
The Robben Island management team had been focused on making sure that the ferries to the island were running smoothly and without breaking down.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation declared Robben Island a World Heritage Site in 1999.
Busi Mhlongo, who visited the island yesterday, said the trip was very emotional for her.
Her post on Facebook after her visit read: “I respect Nelson Mandela and other freedom fighters more than I did.”
Jalil Benaissa also posted on Facebook, saying the island is “a symbol of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity”.
The Table Mountain Cableway has seen a massive increase in the number of visitors since the festive season started, said spokesperson Collette van Aswegen, although she could not provide statistics.
She said summer attracts huge numbers of locals, people from other provinces and international tourists to the Table Mountain Cableway.
Van Aswegen said the visitors, mostly between the ages of 30 and 45, were from other provinces.
“Our operations depend on the weather and the weather has been great in the last weeks. So far the season has been very good.
“We are very hopeful and optimistic that this coming week will be good for all of us as people want to end the year on a high note,” said Van Aswegen.
V&A Waterfront spokesperson Carla White said visitor numbers were expected to be slightly higher than the same period in 2014, when it received 24 million visitors.
“The V&A Waterfront has long been the most visited destination in Africa and a favourite with locals – 63 percent of our visitors are local, 14 percent are from upcountry and 23 percent are international,” said White.
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