South African Tourism’s Insights Unit has called for a strategy to target more legitimate tourists from Zimbabwe, who are choosing other destinations above South Africa for their holidays.

A new market analysis report shows that tourist visits to SA from Zimbabwe have recovered to just 55% of pre-COVID levels.

SA Tourism’s Insight Unit recommends that SA be re-introduced as a friendly destination to convince potential tourists that SA is a safe and welcoming destination, despite new immigration rules.

SA’s missing out

The Insights Unit linked the slow pace of the inbound leisure market’s recovery to fears about new immigration rules.

It also said that Zimbabwe had been slower to recover from COVID-19 patterns in general (and had experienced more business travel than other markets). “There is some uncertainty in the market over potential immigration regulations and the status of Zimbabwe asylum-seekers. When these issues are resolved, we may see growth in the VFR sector,” the report said.

According to SA Tourism, Zimbabwe contributes 22% of South Africa’s inbound travel. In 2019, South Africa recorded just shy of 2.26m visitors from Zimbabwe (although, perhaps as expected, most visits to SA were for personal and business shopping).

The Insights Unit predicts that Zimbabwe’s outbound market will recover to pre-pandemic levels (about 4.6m trips) in 2024. However, to South Africa, it said arrivals might only recover to 2019 levels by 2026.

SA Tourism said most travel from Zimbabwe was to other African states and also identified Australia as South Africa’s top competitor. On the African continent, there is also competition from Kenya, which SAT said was perceived by Zimbabweans as a safe and value-for-money destination. (The report also mentioned the Middle East, Asia, and North America as other top regions for travel out of Zimbabwe.)

The Insights Unit’s search identified January as the top travel month for Zimbabwean tourists. Arrivals also tend to peak during April (Easter), August and December.

The unit added (although South Africa must allay fears about immigration controls) that Zimbabweans were much more likely to recommend South Africa as a destination than other competitive regions. South Africa scored higher than competitors like Australia, Kenya, Thailand, and Brazil regarding awareness and likeability.

Other findings from SAT’s report include:

• 45% of travellers who crossed the border into South Africa from Zim booked their own accommodation and 56% booked their own flights;
• The majority of tourist traffic goes to Gauteng (60%), followed by Limpopo (20%) and KwaZulu Natal (12%);
• Visitors are significantly more likely to travel alone;
• They are more likely to be a repeat visitor than in SA for the first time;
• The number of visitors who book travel packages is less than 10%;
• A VFR tourist stays around 22 days, spending around R6 800;
• Visitors are mostly between the age of 35 and 50 and 40 to 60;
• The Insights Unit identified a need for family-friendly activities aimed at the Zim market, as travel is generally a family affair; and
• There is also an opportunity to provide breakaway experiences that help visitors to relax during their stay.

SA Tourism also shared that the most important information sought by Zimbabwean travellers concerned cost security and accommodation availability. They also want to know about touring opportunities.

The team maintained: “South Africa should reintroduce itself to Zimbabwe to build the culture of travel beyond shopping. Continued campaigns [are needed] that highlight South Africa’s tourism offerings in addition to health, wellness, fitness, relaxation, and culinary indulgence, in which we have a competitive advantage because of our proximity to Zimbabwe.”