Unlike most previous Biennials, the 17th is being held at the height of the tourist season in an increasingly popular tourist destination.

Since the political changes in South Africa, Cape Town has experienced an unprecedented boom in visitors, and is becoming increasingly popular as a convention venue. In some respects the infrastructure is still struggling to catch up with this demand. December is also the boom month for visitors, when hotels tend to be at or near full capacity and seats on aircraft difficult to obtain.

It is for these reasons that the Society has taken the unusual step of reserving a number of hotel rooms and other accommodation in the Cape Town area for the potential use of delegates, our concern being that otherwise there might be little suitable accommodation available by the time delegates are able to register.

However these rooms cannot be held indefinitely, and from 15 August these will start to be released back to the hotels. It is therefore of the utmost importance that delegates intending to come make a hotel reservation at the time of registering, and those who register late may find it increasingly difficult to get suitable accommodation.

The same is also true of airline reservations, which should be made at the earliest opportunity to avoid inconvenience or disappointment.