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the main whale watching season. All but one of the interviews was conducted in person. Though relatively costly, this method allows for what is widely recognised as the most accurate collection of interview data. Furthermore, visiting each area facilitated the identification of related stakeholders, particularly non-permitted operators, and direct observation of infrastructure and conditions specific to each area. This allowed the researchers to develop the best possible assessment of the characteristics of each permitted area. Supplementary material, such as pamphlets and maps was also collected from the operators as well as from general tourism outlets. Concurrent with each of these site visits, an additional 29 non-permitted individuals were interviewed during this study. The majority of these were identified during investigation and research in the field and relied on information provided by permit holders, local tourism authorities and non-permitted operators themselves. Other sources of information including launch-site controllers, NSRI volunteers and tourism associations were used to add value and where necessary substantiate claims made during interviews. The majority of these were identified opportunistically by other stakeholders. The degree of animosity between many non-permitted and potential operators and permit holders also provided the opportunity for a certain amount of triangulation regarding some of the perceptions of different interviewees. Box 2.1. Outline of the permit-holder survey instrument Part One • Description of the nature of the business and how whale watching fits in • Years of operation • Boat capacity • Use of the licensed boat for whale watching versus other activities (%sea days & % income) • Seasonality of activities (graph), and seasonality of demand (description) • Typical trip, duration and area used • Maximum possible trips per day, days per year • Estimated actual days per year, and trips per day • Demand relative to supply of trips • Average occupancy on trips • Changes over time • Envisaged future trends • Opinion on optimal boat size • Value added by offering whale watching and by having a permit • Existence and names of other operators in the area • Their impact on the business – negative and/or positive • Main constraints to growth of the whale watching aspect of the business • How could management by MCM be improved Part Two • Tour prices and discounts • Breakdown of tourists by origin • Operating costs per trip • Details of boat and other capital employed in the business • Staffing and salaries • Overhead costs As noted above, the period for research and site visits occurred outside of the recognised boat-based whale watching season. As a result it was not possible to interview actual clients in order to assess the patterns of spending by whale watchers. Estimates of overall turnover related to the industry, in terms of multiplier effects and their larger economic contribution to the SA economy, were thus made on the basis of related regional and international studies. 3
2.5 Assessment of industry potential A contact database of relevant stakeholders in the tourism sector was developed from various sources, including information from tourist information offices on the internet, printed materials such as pamphlets and personal referrals by other contacts. In total 28 tourism offices and were contacted during this survey (Appendix 1). Tourist offices were organised into three main levels ranging from provincial to regional and finally, where possible, local information offices. This spread allowed a relatively complete picture of the tourism demand in these areas to be developed. Information was collected in face-to-face or telephonic interviews with these relevant contacts and covered information on the level of existing demand and trends in demand for marine tours, including boat-based whale watching. Contacts were also asked as to their opinion on the number of operators which were feasible based on the current demand for boat-based whale watching. These results were used to categorise each whale watching area according to the existing demand for boat-based whale watching. The quality of the whale resource and other tourism attractions were also considered important to take into consideration in assessing the potential of the industry. Whale experts Dr Ken Findlay (Cetus Projects) and Dr Peter Best (Iziko Museums of Cape Town) were consulted in this regard, and asked to describe and rate different areas of the coast in terms of the probability of encountering different types of whales and the quality of whale viewing, based on available data. 2.6 Capacity building Capacity building formed an important thrust of this study. Two previously disadvantaged postgraduate students from the University of Cape Town’s School of Economics, Mr Zyd Mzamo and Ms Leigh Lakay were engaged to provide assistance on aspects of the project. In addition, an MSc student, Mr. Simon Elwen, based at the Mammal Research Institute/Iziko Museum’s Whale Unit, assisted Dr Peter Best in the assessment of the resource quality and sightings frequency for whale species in the permitted areas. 4
Page 3: BOAT-BASED WHALE WATCHING IN SOUTH
Page 6 and 7: owners, who felt that a smaller, fa
Page 8 and 9: TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION..
Page 10 and 11: 1. INTRODUCTION The whale watching
Page 14 and 15: 3. WHALE WATCHING: AN INTERNATIONAL
Page 16 and 17: location. Most cetaceans spend the
Page 18 and 19: 3.2 South Africa in perspective Boa
Page 20 and 21: Table 3.3 excludes countries where
Page 22 and 23: west coast up to February or March
Page 24 and 25: The designated areas also include a
Page 26 and 27: 5. PERMIT-HOLDER CHARACTERISTICS, S
Page 28 and 29: The majority of permitted operators
Page 30 and 31: Two very large boats excluded, a ty
Page 32 and 33: November. This is probably due to a
Page 34 and 35: holder, with a total of just over 3
Page 36 and 37: Based on rack rates and the estimat
Page 38 and 39: 5.12 What determines success Based
Page 40 and 41: impact along the Garden Route, anot
Page 42 and 43: 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20
Page 44 and 45: 6.2 Western Cape The Western Cape P
Page 46 and 47: Equipment and infrastructure The fu
Page 48 and 49: around 30 to 35 passengers were per
Page 50 and 51: advertising material which offered
Page 52 and 53: generally variable in their length,
Page 54 and 55: Non-permitted activity One dedicate
Page 56 and 57: Equipment, trip characteristics and
Page 58 and 59: 6.4 KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal cur
Page 60 and 61: visitors can be accommodated before
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Run on its way past Durban. Trips w
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Operators in Area 25 also offered d
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6.5 Summary of legal and illegal ac
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7. FUTURE POTENTIAL OF THE INDUSTRY
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Overall demand is heavily influence
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The most important enabling criteri
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The Cape Metro area is a major tour
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focused on harbour trips and until
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Wetland Park, Pondoland, the Greate
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8.3 The permit system, conditions a
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Monitoring will also be vital for e
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15. Data collected by operators and
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Woods-Ballard, A.J., Parsons, E.C.M
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11. APPENDIX 2. SUMMARY OF COMMERCI
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used for whale watching must be acc
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Both the National and state governm
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effort to be controlled through res
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not is broached several times each
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11.5 South America 11.5.1 Ecuador T
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The Dominican Republic has strict c
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12. APPENDIX 3: NOTIFICATION OF PER
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4. Applicants must be willing to si
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SIMONSTOWN AREA Cape Point Lighthou
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PLETTENBERG BAY AREA The Western Bo
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(iii) the extent to which the appli
Page 112 and 113:
Table I. Rating of the whale resour
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