Mud Hut Travel Blog

The purpose of this document is to create awareness around probable business travel restrictions during the Soccer World Cup to be held June - July 2010.

Although the official World Cup is 11 June - 11 July 2010, the period between March and July 2010 will be an exceptionally busy period with the pre- and post- arrangements that will have a huge impact on business travel. The grid below indicates the magnitude of the disruption to business travel over this period which includes other major events beside the FIFA World cup.

Overview of what is to be expected during the World Cup:

1. Volume of Travellers expected
The World Cup is approximately 15 times bigger than the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The media contingent that will attend is estimated at 30 000. Business travel is disrupted purely due to the volume of supporters.

All indications are that approximately 220 000 long haul visitors will attend, 180 000 visitors from Africa and an average of 150 000 local supporters. On any match day it is envisaged that 100 000 travellers will need to use a travel commodity i.e. flight or road / rail transportation.

An additional 2 000 busses have been imported (overload on road transport) to carry these supporters. It is predicted that supporters will watch their team play every 3 or 4 days. When their teams are not playing, supporters will frequent the Fan Parks or embark on tours within the city of their choice.

2. Fan Parks
Fan Parks are situated in central areas so that general public can watch all the games. Entrance to the Fan Parks is free and it is expected that these Fan Parks will attract a lot of visitors. In Germany 2006 one Fan Park attracted 500 000 spectators to watch one game. To avoid large transport infrastructure expense, training venues will also double as public viewing sites.

Fan Parks in the Western Cape
The Grand Parade; Somerset West Road;
Stellenbosch; Bellville Velodrome;
Swartklip; Atlantis;
Khayelitsha; Nomzamo Yethu (Hout Bay).

Training Facilities in the Western Cape
Newlands Rugby Ground; UCT Rugby Ground;
UWC Soccer Field; Bellville Rugby Ground;
Stellenbosch Rugby Ground; Athlone Stadium.

Fan Parks in Johannesburg (list to be updated)
Mary Fitzgerald Square in the Newton precinct;
Fan Parks in Soweto are to be expected;
Innes-Free Park in Sandton;
Walter Sisulu Square in Kliptown.

Fan Parks in Durban (list to be updated)
The Durban Beach Front has been earmarked as one of Durban’s preferred sites for one or more Fan Parks during 2010.

3. Flights
To date no airline has released any prices or strategies for the World Cup period.
On pre and post match-days flights into and out of the venue cities will be overbooked. Due to the sheer volume of travellers, huge delays can be expected.

World Cup teams will use charter aircrafts and plan to use 2nd tier airports however their supporters will use the general airports. These airports will focus on scheduled international and domestic flights.

4. Accommodation
All the major hotel brands within South Africa have contracted with MATCH at a pre-defined room rate and therefore the normal Corporate rates will not be available during this period.
According to FIFA there is an approximate shortfall of 18 000 rooms for the World Cup. This supply and demand scenario allows B&B’s / Guesthouses to offer rooms at a premium.

5. Car Rental
It is most likely that all car rental companies will go on “stop-sale” for the period of the World Cup and rental cars will be scarce.

6. Road Closures
It is indicated that there will be limited access and in some instances complete road closures in the areas surrounding the stadium and fan parks. This will make it difficult for travellers to move freely between offsite meetings.

7. Critical Date
The next critical date for the WC2010 is the 4th December 2009 when the Pool draw is completed. This draw will indicate where the teams will be based and where their supporters will be spending most of their time.

8. Fixtures
The match schedule (see attached) will be updated after the draw on the 4th December 2009. Games will be played at: 13h30, 16h00 and 20h30. Travellers need to allow for traffic congestion both at the stadium and the Fan Parks. It is advisable to allow 2hrs lead time if travelling to / from these areas.

Recommendations for travel during this period:

• Do not travel during these periods unless it is critical to travel.
• Plan your trip well in advance; changes to a ticket over this period will be extremely difficult and very expensive.
• Try to make appointments at a location that is in the opposite direction of a stadium / fan park.
• Take flights during the times of when the games are being played. Games start at 13h30.
• Allow for a minimum of 2 hours to get to the airport in Cape Town and possibly 3 hours for Johannesburg. The congestion on the roads both to and from the Airports is going to be chaotic – plan for delays.
• Parking at the airport will be virtually impossible and it is advisable to get someone to drop / collect you from the airports. Transfer companies will be busy with tourists and will also be very expensive.

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs is to issue special “event visas” for soccer fans coming to the 2010 Fifa World Cup, enabling fans to use dedicated counters at major airports around the world for pre-clearance before they arrive in the country.

South African immigration officials - who are able to speak in several languages - will be stationed at several of the busiest airports around the world, including in the UK, India, Dubai and Hong Kong, where fans will be able to go through a free pre-screening and pre-clearance process.

Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said this would be the first time that such a visa is used by a country hosting a major world event.

The immigration officials will also be equipped with hi-tech devices for scanning passports or travel documents. By electronically capturing information from the documents, officials will save time by not having to type in information.

With such improvements, the department hopes to do better than the international best practice times of interaction between the traveller and immigration official, which is between one minute and one minute and 30 seconds.

Security

The department says its immigration officials will be working with foreign governments and airline personnel to identify irregular migration patterns during the course of the event, as well as ensure that “undesirable persons”, who may be a threat national security, do not enter the country.

Home Affairs’ 2010 programme manager Morne Fourie explained that certain minimum requirements had to be met when issuing a special visa: “You need proof of purchase of your ticket for the match, you need to meet certain health requirements - like holding a yellow fever certificate, if required - and you need to have a return ticket and a valid passport.”

Quick entry, exit

Those passengers who have received pre-clearance by South African immigration officials will be able to arrive in South Africa and go straight through to baggage collection and on to customs.

Mapisa-Nqakula said that the move would enhance the department’s ability to facilitate the entry and exit process through the country’s borders, resulting in a less frustrating journey, leading to a positive impression of the country as a whole.

Well fellow sports fans… that’s just another wonderful thing to make your Wourld Cup experience a bit easier. Now you just need to get your accompanying package and you are ready to have an adventure of a lifetime!!

How about a week in Zmibabwe at the Victoria Falls followed by a three day safari in Chobe, Botswana. Prices for these or any other custom travel options on request at Mud Hut Travel.

South Africa 2010…. forward!!

Keep smiling,

Rob

Sustainable Africa
One of our clients last week told asked me what the difference between sustainable tourism and eco tourism was. The wiki entries were both a bit formal and put the practices into fairly rigid boxes.

Thus I set aside some time this week to have a look at what we at Mud Hut Travel believe and follow. This has been posted to our site, but thought it would be appropriate to put it here too.

Eco-tourism and sustainable tourism are not the same thing, but the two do sit hand in hand. Eco-tourism is focused on minimizing the impact of the travel experience whilst providing travelers with an experience in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Sustainable tourism is to ensure that the travel process is a positive experience for local people, the environment and tourists themselves. Most importantly, the whole process encourages sustainable economic growth and that any impact on the environment is sustainable and low impact. In otherwords, creating an eco-friendly experience, whilst assisting in the development of the local communities.

Africa is a magical place that has been a huge part of the Mud Hut Tribe’s lives. Our directors have spent many months living amongst and exploring the high mountains, the low lying valleys and plains, the tropical beaches and the backwaters.

Mud Hut Travel

We want everyone to experience southern Africa, but if we all went to the same beaches, stayed in the same big branded hotel, travelled the same routes, ate at the same globally owned chain and rented the same brand of car… what would southern Africa look like in 10 years time?

Hence we want to preserve the uniqueness, the custom and the diversity of the region.

Mud Hut Travel promotes owner-managed businesses aligned to sustainable tourism in all of our itineraries. This way the money directly spent by you will go into the local communities, and assist in the development of the area.

Thus when you return in ten years time, the same small owner managed lodges will be there – but they will be managed by the son’s and daughters of the previous owners; and there may be another one up the road. Where perhaps last time there was only one dive operator, there will now be three different operations along the coast - all owned by previous employees.

And this is the development we support in southern Africa. Sustainable development is not a Chinese built 2 lane highway through the bush, Italian owned air-con hotels and super fast internet connections; it’s the economic upliftment and empowerment of the communities where we spend our money and the preservation of the environments we visit.

Hope that helps with whatever you were looking for, but if you want, get in touch with me through Mud Hut or send us enquiry below.

Keep smiling,

Rob

The Lions Rugby tour has started and whilst the three tests in Durban, Jo’burg and Pretoria are what the rugby fans may be watching… there is a bigger test for football fans.

The Confederations Cup is being held in South Africa during the the same time as the Lions Rugby Tour, and the concurrent running of these tour sporting festivals will clarify any doubts about the suitability for South Africa as the FIFA World Cup venue for 2010.

Whilst the quality of the football will be superb, this tournament will be a superb test for tours and trips that have been arranged by various operators. The Lions’ itinerary is more similar to the expected World Cup fixtures and packages. Numerous venues all across the country with spare travel days between match days. Whilst there are many packaged deals to South Africa for both the Lions and Confederations Cup, Mud Hut has custom built all the travel itineraries for its football and rugby clients. Many of them have also taken the opportuinty to visit Mozambique or Botswana as an added on beach island getaway or African bush safari.

Local Supporters

The state of the stadiums has hopefully been put to rest, but there will be some tests for the stadium management and ground staff. Loftus Versfeld and Ellis Park will both hold test matches and are one of the four grounds to be used in the Confedrations Cup. Loftus host the World Champions South Africa and the Lions on 27th June, and 6 days before host the other World Champions Italy and 5 times World Cup winners Brazil. Ellis Park host the Springboks and the Lions final tour match on 4th July and the Confederations Cup Final a few days before.

All in all it will be a fascinating time in southern Africa - but with one eye on the rugby and the other eye on the football, you’re lucky that Mud Hut Travel has an eye on the travel side of things…

Keep smiling,

Rob