SA tourism recovery lags global and regional competitors despite rising international arrivals

SOUTH Africa welcomed 5.85 million international tourists between January and July 2025, a 14% increase on the same period last year.

- SIPHELELE DLUDLA

While the figure brings the country within 1% - or just 33 000 visitors - of its 2019 pre-pandemic peak, analysts have warned that the apparent recovery masks deeper structural challenges that demand immediate attention.

According to the BDO South Africa's Tourism Trends Report released on Wednesday, global tourism returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2024, growing more than 12%.

Lee-Anne Bac, advisory partner for tourism at BDO South Africa, said South Africa's recovery has been far slower, with arrivals expanding just 5.1% in 2024, leaving the country 13% behind its 2019 performance.

"More troubling still, we've ceded ground to our African competitors. Kenya returned to 2019 levels in 2023, Tanzania exceeded them in 2022 with 18% growth in 2024, and Morocco, now Africa's leading destination with 17.4 million arrivals in 2024, achieved 20% growth,“ Bac said.