Coast KZN

Back
14 Jan 2020

KZN South Coast rides the tourism wave

Mphathi Nxumalo (Daily News: IOL) Picture: With the festive season officially coming to an end as schools open on Wednesday, Ugu South Coast Tourism revealed that tourism in the area is on the up. Picture: Doctor Ngcobo/Africa News Agency(ANA)

Durban – With the festive season officially coming to an end as schools open on Wednesday, Ugu South Coast Tourism revealed that tourism in the area is on the up. Phelisa Mangcu, chief executive of Ugu South Coast Tourism said the highlight for the organisation was how they experienced a rise in domestic tourists.  Ugu South Coast Tourism looks after the promotion of the South Coast around the country and also ensures the development of the industry in the area.

“I can say that the December 2019 season was comparatively much better than the previous year. According to a quick survey that we did, occupancy in accommodation facilities was on average sitting at 80 percent. Shopping centres also saw increases in the number of shoppers that visited during the season,” she said

Water shortages were still a problem they were experiencing, she said.  Over the past few years, the Daily News has written on numerous occasions about water challenges facing Ugu District Municipality. These problems have led to water tankers being deployed in the area. Some of the reasons for the water shortages include ageing infrastructure. There were also water price hikes of 22 percent.  The increase was however welcomed by residents who hoped that there would be improved service delivery in the area.

It has also been reported that Ugu South Coast had launched an app called, Explore KZN South Coast, that would put the areas attractions at the tip of one’s fingers and available on Google Play and iStore.