Eveline de Klerk

SWAKOPMUND - Expectations are high this festive season with tourism and the hospitality industry expecting once again to capitalise on both local and international tourists. 

Local sculptors also expect to cash in on the festive season.

Although the coastal towns of Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Henties Bay have relatively been quiet, this quiet would surely be disturbed this week and especially starting this weekend as holidaymakers start to converge on the towns just before Christmas next Tuesday. 

A familiar face in Swakopmund, Johnny Simon, is one of the few that are optimistic that visitors will be coming with a joyful mood and spent some of their hard-earned cash on souvenirs. “December never disappoints us. Some years it is low and some years it surprises us beyond our expectations,” he explains. Currently, business is relatively slow with only a few international tourists buying a few items from them.
Another sculptor from Walvis Bay, Penda Hitula, says he normally moves to Swakopmund to sell his crafts. Business is usually very slow in Walvis Bay unless a passenger-liner docks at the port,” he says. 
He rather goes to Swakopmund during the festive season and holidays.  “That’s where we get clients, mostly people come to Swakopmund and when business is good, we also give discounts to our clients,” he says.