A chronic drought that could leave South Africa’s Cape Town without water within weeks is hurting visitor numbers and damaging economy officials said.
With experts predicting Cape Town will run out of water in mid-April, residents have been told to limit usage to 50 liters per person per day. (A bath holds 80 liters of water).
Hotels have asked guests not to use baths and to limit showers to two minutes or less, while some restaurants are switching to disposable cups and ditching table linen.
Around 10 million tourists visited Cape Town last year, drawn by iconic sights like Table Mountain, its long sandy beaches and clutch of nearby wine farms.
Tourism accounted for an estimated 9 percent of South Africa’s economic output last year, or 412 billion rand ($35 billion).
AFRICA DIPLOMATIC 