Between January and April 2023, Cape Town International Airport saw a sharp recovery in international arrivals, with UK passenger arrivals up 104% on April 2019, the Netherlands up 116%, and the US up sharply to 155%

The Western Cape's skies are not only almost 70% busier than last year, but international arrivals at Cape Town International Airport are already exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 106%.

Last year, international arrivals at the popular airport injected R24-billion into the Western Cape economy.

The provincial government's trade, investment and tourism promotion agency, Wesgro, says in a monthly tourism update that tourism figures show two-way international passenger arrivals were strongly up between January and July this year, reaching 1.6 million - an increase of 69% compared with the same period last year - according to the latest data from Airports Company South Africa.

Visitor numbers to local attractions are also up to a record level, and local travel is up sharply, with 3.8 million domestic two-way passengers passing through Cape Town International Airport in the first half of the year.

George Airport's two-way passengers reached 449,837 between January and July, a 3% year-on-year increase compared with the same period in 2022.

The Garden Route airport is about to get busier than ever, with the announcement that FlySafair will be resuming its Cape Town-George route on Friday 8 September, with three flights a week between the cities.

Between January and April, Cape...