World Cup bonanza for Northern Cape

If there is one part of South Africa largely untouched by World Cup hype, it is the remote Northern Cape - but its soccer-free status has brought its own generous rewards.

Unsung destinations like Upington and Augrabies are looking forward to a domestic tourism bonanza as hundreds, possibly thousands, of South Africans, who have no interest in vuvuzelas, trek to the peaceful solitude of the Kalahari this month and next.

"We have a lot of people coming from Cape Town and Joburg," said Sakkie Spangenberg, who runs a resort on the Orange River in Upington. "It's people who don't want to be there during the World Cup."

Spangenberg said winter was usually the quiet season, but not this year. "People have booked for two or three weeks at a time. It's the soccer, and the extended school holidays."

He said South African exiles from the Fifa extravaganza were also flocking to resorts in Botswana and Namibia.

Hanneli Bester of the Augrabies Falls Lodge said: "Lots of people have postponed their holidays so they can take them now (in June)," she said. "They don't want to be in the cities."

The Northern Cape is geographically the biggest of South Africa's provinces, but is not hosting any World Cup matches. Only Kimberley, the province's capital, is directly involved, thanks to having been chosen by Uruguay as its base camp.

Jan van Vuuren, president of the Northern Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said some Kimberley families who preferred rugby to soccer were taking holidays in the Kalahari, but most of the town was excited to be hosting the Uruguayans, who flew in yesterday.

Uruguayan flags flew from lampposts in the one-time diamond capital and cleaning crews tidied the verges of main roads. Potholes in the decaying central business district have recently been fixed.

Van Vuuren said a few dozen Latin American media personnel had booked into Kimberley hotels, but few, if any, fans were coming - the average Uruguayan football supporter could not afford airfares and accommodation.

He said many South Africans involved in the tourist trade in Kimberley hoped Uruguay would proceed to the second round of the tournament - even if it was at the expense of Ba-fana Bafana, who are in the same group.

"It would mean they would stay here an extra week, and bring in an extra week of revenue," Van Vuuren said.

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