18 Jan 2018

Victoria Falls International Airport Has the Capacity to Welcome More Airlines

Victoria Falls International Airport has significant capacity to welcome more flights, and the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe is working towards a greater spread of arrival times with carriers to limit peak congestion times for passenger handling, a tourism industry leader says.

Africa Albida Tourism (AAT) chief executive Ross Kennedy said the tourism industry in Victoria Falls is working very closely with all of the public sector departments and ministries to ensure that this demand is matched by service delivery enhancements.

There was an 18.5 per cent increase in hotel occupancy in Victoria Falls in 2017 compared to 2016, with an additional 35,730 rooms sold across ten hotels, which together have 1,125 rooms available per night and measure arrivals monthly. A surge in December 2017 saw this year on year increase rise to 24 per cent for the month.

Reports from industry colleagues reflect occupancies from January to April this year compared to the same period last year, are up by 30 per cent in advance bookings, he said.

The new $150 million Victoria Falls International Airport, enabling long haul wide-bodied aircraft to land, was opened in 2016 and has since welcomed three new international airlines to the destination, while existing ones have increased capacity.

This has so far created an additional 127,000 seats into Victoria Falls per annum, Kennedy said.