South Africa’s tourism sector contributed 4.9% to GDP in 2024, up from 4.4% in 2023, while the number of people directly employed in the industry increased by 24.1%, according to an analysis from Statistics South Africa (Stats SA).

The sector directly employed 953 981 people in 2024, an increase of 185 158 from the previous year. Tourism’s share of total employment rose from 4.7% in 2023 to 5.7% in 2024.

The figures were highlighted by Stats SA following Tourism Month in September, which was observed under the theme “Growing South Africa’s Tourism Sector in the Digital Era”.

Domestic travel also increased between 2023 and 2024. According to Stats SA’s Domestic Tourism Survey, South Africans took 33.5 million day trips in 2024, compared with 32.2 million in 2023.

The number of overnight trips rose from 25.8 million to 26.2 million over the same period.

KwaZulu-Natal was the leading provincial destination for South Africans’ most recent overnight leisure trips in 2024, followed by Limpopo and the Western Cape.

The province also featured prominently among the country’s most visited attractions. The Durban North Coast recorded 93 500 visitors, the Drakensberg Mountains 74 100, and Durban South Beach 68 900.

Other popular destinations included the Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga and Limpopo, which attracted 87 000 visitors. Boulders Beach and Cape Point in the Western Cape recorded 59 900 and 59 700 visitors, respectively.

International visitor numbers also increased in several months during 2026 compared with the equivalent periods in 2025.

Overnight visitors totalled 1 133 533 in January 2026, up 11.8% from 1 013 984 in January 2025.

In August, the number increased by 7.4%, from 935 738 in 2025 to 1 005 286 in 2026. June recorded 823 365 overnight visitors in 2026, an increase of 9.8% from 750 177 a year earlier.

Same-day visitor numbers generally ranged between 200 000 and 300 000 a month during 2025 and 2026. December 2025 recorded the highest monthly total during the period, at 316 342, while August 2026 recorded 265 947.

Tourism has long been viewed as an accessible and easily exploited avenue for economic progress; it is labour intensive, and in many respects requires few pre-existing skills. South Africa offers different markets and attractions matching their demands: a favourable exchange rate, world-class facilities, stunning nature and wildlife, an intriguing history, shopping and conferencing options, and the opportunities to pursue leisure activities like golf that are difficult to access in some parts of the world.

However, its potential is undermined by the reputational damage the country suffers as a result of crime – while most visits are trouble-free, occasional harm to tourists is a severe reputational headache. An archaic visa system prevents the full exploitation of markets such as China and India, although the Department of Home Affairs is modernising its systems to address this.

South Africa is also geographically distant from some of its most lucrative markets, and must compete with other destination countries that are aggressively marketing themselves with comparative attractions. These include Australia, which attracts significant numbers of Asian tourists for “outdoor” holidays, and a growing tourist industry across Africa which is challenging South Africa’s dominance.