Peak festive season saw over 3.4 million people enter SA
It’s good news for the SA economy, as most tourists came from the UK, US and Germany, as well as the SADC countries.
South Africa experienced a busy December in 2024, with over 3.4 million people entering or leaving the country.
This is according to the latest Stats SA International Tourism December 2024 report, which provides a detailed breakdown of traveller movements during the month, including the purpose of their visits, countries of origin, and modes of travel.
A total of 3,437,376 travellers were recorded for December 2024. This included just over a million South African residents – expats (30.1%) and about 2,4 million foreign travellers (69.9%).
Of the foreign arrivals at our airports and terminals, 97.7% were visitors, with the majority being overnight tourists (77.5%) and the remainder just people passing through. (22.5%).
FOREIGN TOURISTS AND WHERE THEY CAME FROM
Overseas tourists accounted for 24.1% of all tourists visiting South Africa in December 2024. The largest group of overseas tourists came from the United Kingdom followed by the United States and Germany. Together, these three countries contributed 47.7% of all overseas arrivals.
The majority of tourists, however, came from Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, making up 73.8% of all tourists. Zimbabwe led the way with 192,779 tourists, followed by Mozambique and Lesotho. Combined, these three countries accounted for 69.4% of all SADC visitors.
Tourists from non-SADC African countries were a much smaller group, representing just 1.9% of all arrivals. The top contributors in this category were Kenya, Ghana, and Nigeria, which collectively made up 64.4% of tourists from other African countries.
PURPOSE OF VISITS
Holidays were the primary reason for visiting South Africa in December, with 97.9% of all tourists travelling for leisure purposes. This aligns with the festive season, which traditionally attracts tourists to the country’s scenic destinations, modern cities, and holiday hotspots.
HOW PEOPLE TRAVELLED
Road travel was the dominant mode of transport, with 65.7% of all travellers using roads to enter or leave the country. Air travel was the second-most popular option, used by 32.5% of travellers, while sea travel accounted for just 1.8%.
South African residents who returned to the country mostly used roads (48.5%), while 47.1% arrived by air and 4.4% by sea. When leaving, 52.1% used road travel, 44.4% travelled by air, and 3.6% left by sea.
The Stats SA International Tourism December 2024 report offers a comprehensive overview of travel and tourism patterns, reaffirming the importance of road networks in facilitating movement during the peak holiday season.
DID YOU TRAVEL OUT OF SA THIS PAST HOLIDAY SEASON? WHERE DID YOU GO?
Let us know by clicking on the comment tab below this article. Or emailing info@thesouthafrican.com or sending a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1.
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