Soccer World Cup 2010 in South Africa – March 10 Update

It’s now under 100 days to go until the Soccer World Cup 2010 in South Africa which takes place from 11th June to 11th July 2010. The Soccer World Cup is taking place at 10 football stadiums throughout South Africa with the focus being on Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban & Cape Town.

Here’s the fourth article in our FIFA World Cup TM football Updates on how to book your soccer world cup holiday or world cup package. Soccer world cup bookings are now coming in steadily and the situation is changing on a weekly basis…

CURRENT WORLD CUP SITUATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

There has been much talk about price-gauging in the SA and overseas press. In our experience of booking World Cup accommodation we have seen a variable picture. Many hotels in Cape Town, Durban etc. have set World Cup prices which are either High Season prices (usually charged for our summer months from November to April) or up to 20% higher.  However other hotels have not increased prices at all, and this is typically the case outside the major soccer stadium cities as well.

However the situation is somewhat different in the Johannesburg/Pretoria area where so many games are being played. There has been more consistent demand and, in particular, some modest guesthouses have been guilty of drastic price increases.

But, assuming that you are moving around the country, this is countered by better prices elsewhere. So yes, accommodation for the Soccer World Cup is not going to be dirt cheap but it’s not going to be ‘break the bank’ either.

TIP: In Johannesburg, it’s worth spending extra on a better hotel as they have not increased prices so much, (as a % of normal winter rates), and so you may only be paying a tiny bit more than for a 3 star hotel or guesthouse. We are seeing this day in and day out!

Flights
International flight prices to South Africa remain high however domestic flights within South Africa have come down in price. We are booking the smaller airlines as their prices are very reasonable. But there are some routes which only SAA is servicing and these flights tend to be very expensive. (Supply and Demand unfortunately). Our advice to you is to use a specialist tour operator (what a surprise!) who knows all the local airlines and if you have any matches in the smaller or more remote soccer stadiums such as Bloemfontein or Polokwane then be prepared to drive if you don’t want to pay a high price for a flight. In many cases the flights on or around match days are already sold out anyway.

Soccer World Cup Hotels and Accommodation
The situation changes on a weekly basis now. Match has released some accommodation back into the market place and so it is now getting easier for us to book good, well located accommodation for you. If you are interested in getting the cheapest price then you can try to hold out for a last minute discount but if you want a well-located hotel with good facilities, then NOW is the time to book. 

Some of our favourite hotels are already fully booked for the whole period and others have availability for some dates and not others. But the situation is changing rapidly.

Transport
The limiting factor for the Soccer World Cup in South Africa will be transport. We currently have access to rental cars and are able to book transfers and tours around the matches. But it’s starting to get difficult – very difficult - around Johannesburg. We recommend using a mix of car rental (for touring flexibility) and perhaps airport transfers and match transfers. We have our own vehicles in Cape Town so we are able to confirm tours and transfers but we are already fully booked for much of the time.

Packages versus Tailormade World Cup Holidays
We have sold some packages via Air Emirates but the vast majority of our clients are coming to us for what we do best which is selling tailormade holidays. We can sell either option.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IN MARCH TO APRIL 2010?

If you have purchased tickets online:

If you want to have the cheapest World Cup holiday that you can, then try your luck online. Some hotel prices may come down in price but these are likely to be the ones that were chancing their luck in the first place! 

If you want a good World Cup holiday, the next few weeks will be the right time to firm everything up. Naturally we recommend that you use a travel company such as Cedarberg African Travel.  We’ll be able to get you some good hotels, decent rental car, or airport transfers and tours, and the overall soccer world cup experience will be a good one – assuming your team doesn’t get kicked out too soon of course.

You can stay some of the time in the football match cities to see your chosen games and in between we will arrange sightseeing, perhaps enjoying a safari or heading up to Victoria Falls or Botswana. Thus if you want to combine football / soccer with some general touring of South Africa, use a specialist tailormade company like Cedarberg …

Contact Us  if you have any requests…

If you have NOT yet purchased your tickets for the World Cup:

Refer to our earlier world cup updates for your choices:

1) Go online at www.fifa.com and see whether you can get the match tickets that you want. Then you need try to arrange accommodation, transfers and flights in South Africa, preferably through a South Africa specialist travel company. See above…

2) If the tickets that you want are NOT available, then you can purchase a FIFA World CupTM package.  The advantage of booking a world cup package through a tour operator like us is that we can then book any add-on packages that you might want, such as a safari or a trip to Victoria Falls. But please note that these packages are very expensive and so not for the faint-hearted. But it is certainly the most hassle-free…

3) Alternatively Corporates can purchase a FIFA hospitality package through us. A hospitality package allow you to buy includes tickets to a specific game and refreshments. You don’t have to supply names at timing of booking so it’s ideal for companies wanting to arrange a Soccer World Cup incentive for their key clients. Yes, these hospitality tickets are expensive but then your clients are getting great seats in the stadium. We then add on accommodation and tours/transfers around the match chosen.

Cedarberg African Travel - Football World Cup Policy

We are receiving numerous World Cup requests so we have the following World Cup policy:

1) We will check availability for you and give you a quote. If you would like us to hold space for you, we require a deposit per person as a sign of good faith. We can hold accommodation only for a few days so you will need to move fast once you start the process of booking your soccer world cup holiday. Once you are happy, we will ask for the remaining deposit.
2) We require a 50% deposit for World Cup bookings as the hotels and game lodges are asking us to put up sizeable deposits of typically 50% on your behalf.
3) Once we give you our World Cup quote, please accept it or reject it within 3 working days. Our provisional bookings are automatically cancelled after that time. (We have had a few experiences when the client has sat on the fence unable to decide what he wants, and the flight or hotel gets booked.)
4) We cannot hold domestic flights at all so we will quote on best available rates and routings. Domestic flight prices have come down dramatically and so are selling fast now. There is unlikely to be any further downwards movement.

Our Soccer World Cup commitment to you

1) We are not adding on ridiculous mark-ups. If the holiday price is more than you wish to spend, then tell us and we will look at ways to bring down the cost. BUT we cannot turn water into wine.
2) We will tell you upfront if we cannot help you, or if your requirements are unrealistic. Have a look at our FIFA World CupTM Tips below.

Cedarberg African Travel’s FIFA World Cup Tips

1) Please don’t contact ten different tour operators. Look at websites, decide on a company you like and approach them. If they say they can’t help you, then move on…

2) Please don’t expect to be able to enjoy the World Cup in South Africa on a budget. This is not going to be a cheap holiday but we’ve been selling South Africa for 15 years and all our clients love this country. You will have a great time so spend a little bit more to make sure you have a nice hotel, time to go on safari etc.

3) Please have a good idea of how much you want to spend and tell us. (Don’t keep it to yourselves and leave us guessing!) This speeds up the process as then we know what sort of hotels or guesthouses to go for.  We promise we won’t add on an extra money if you have a decent budget. We will book a nicer hotel or game lodge for you!

SUMMARY

1) If you want to come to the Soccer World Cup in South Africa, this is the time to get those tickets and start booking your accommodation, transfers and flights. It’s going to be EPIC!

2) Try to book the soccer tickets you want online and then approach a specialist tour operator such as Cedarberg African Travel to assist you. We know which hotels have availability and which airlines have the best deals etc. Try to have a decent budget and a flexible attitude.

3) If you are a corporate, we can arrange hospitality packages for you

I hope that this information is helpful and please Contact Us for bookings...

See other Soccer World Cup in South Africa articles

Sept 2009 Update
Dec 2009 Update

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