Durban ready for bumper Easter weekend as Queen Mary 2 docks
The hospitality and tourism industry says it's buzzing as it gears up for Easter weekend.
The Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa says about 75% of main resort hotels have been booked in Durban for the long weekend.
"I am anticipating a lot of them are going to be sitting at 100 percent. There are hardly any gaps when you start phoning around. Those who do have gaps, I am sure in the next two to three days they will be filled up," says East Coast chairman Brett Tungay.
Tungay says most tourists are hoping to have fun on the city's beaches, which have been cleared of high e-coli levels since December.
"It is a major factor, the ecology of Durban tourism it's a coastal destination people want to go to the beach irrespective if they swim or not they want to walk and get their toes wet. It's quite obvious when you look at the figures as soon as the beaches are open, occupancies go up."
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Meanwhile, eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda welcomed the arrival of the longest passenger ship in the world, the Queen Mary 2, to the city.
The ship docked at Durban's old harbour on Monday carrying 950 crew members and 2 000 passengers who will be touring the province.
Kaunda says the arrival of the ship couldn't have come at a better time.
"The arrival of the Queen Mary 2 demonstrates that the tourism industry in Durban is now bouncing back. This ocassion also marks the beginning of the Easter holidays and therefore we want to assure you that Durban is ready to host thousands of visitors who have already started to descend onto our shores."
