Air access is one of the biggest challenges facing Zimbabwean tourism products and the industry at large, according to Glenn Stutchbury, President of the Zimbabwe Council for Tourism.
Stutchbury spoke to Tourism Update in response to a report in allafrica.com that said local industry players felt transport costs for country tours were more expensive than those obtained in neighbouring countries, inhibiting Zimbabwe's efforts to lure tourists.
He said for tour operators to effectively package Zimbabwe outside the Victoria Falls the access into the other major tourist destinations in Zimbabwe needed addressing.
“This is slowly starting to be addressed but as you can appreciate introduction of flights into Hwange and Kariba, to name a couple, is an expensive business – right now the access is effectively by charter and charter is an expensive option, which makes the destination expensive.”
Stutchbury asserted that it was through confidence in a destination by major airlines that assisted in generating interest and supply and demand. “Emirates is landing in Harare seven days a week out of London and Dubai, and KLM three times a week. We have seen the announcement by Air Zimbabwe of frequency of flights to Victoria Falls going from four times a week to daily with effect from April.”
Ross Kennedy, CE of Africa Albida Tourism, echoed Stutchbury’s concerns and said the key challenge regarding transport costs around Zimbabwe related to air access and not ground transport. “Air Zimbabwe, being the only commercial option between Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls four days a week, means the usual outcome of no competition....higher fares!”
He said that until Zimbabwe’s aviation policy and open-skies policy became more open, such a situation was set to remain. “There are a number of air charter companies in Zimbabwe that fly many routes on various sizes of aircraft, but it is the nature of charter and the convenience thereof, that usually comes with a price tag,” said Kennedy.
He, however, added that the expense of a charter depended on the number of passengers etc, and on some occasions, charter could be less costly than commercial flights.
Kennedy said road transport around and across Zimbabwe to the popular tourist destinations was usually very cost effective and competitive. “Certainly, in my experience, road costs are between 15/25% less than our neighbours’.”
“Increased arrivals and more demand always equal competition and thus more operators, and hence usually economies of scale and lower prices with market forces at play,” said Kennedy.
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