SA needs 25 000 more guestrooms
Gcina Ntsaluba
30 July 2008
With less than 700 days to go before the 2010 Fifa World Cup kicks off, South Africa still needs about 25 000 guestrooms to cater for the influx of tourists.
South Africans who own bed and breakfast establishments, guest houses and lodges are being urged to register as 2010 accommodation service providers with MATCH, the company appointed to provide ticketing and accommodation services during the event.
"There are no financial costs to enter a contract with us," MATCH senior operations manager Mahandra Naidoo said this week.
However, establishments wishing to register with MATCH must be graded by the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa. "If they are not graded at the time of contracting, then they would have a year after signing the MATCH contract to become graded by the council," he said.
Naidoo said MATCH had set a target of 55 000 rooms nationally for 2010.
Available accommodation will be listed on Fifa's website as well as in the official accommodation brochure for the World Cup.
Fifa's website is used by football fans from around the world to plan their trips, buy tickets and book transport and accommodation. It is one of the world's most visited websites, racking up 4.2-billion page views in 2006.
Source: BuaNews
