Hospitality association, FEDHASA, and the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) are optimistic about the latest tourist accommodation statistics for February.

Statistics SA’s Preliminary Tourist Accommodation stats for February show that total income for the tourist accommodation industry, measured in nominal terms (current prices), increased by 11% in February compared with February last year.

Income from accommodation increased by 10.5% year-on-year in February, the result of a 4.9% increase in the number of stay unit nights sold and a 5.3% increase in the average income per stay unit night sold.

In February, the largest contributors to the 10.5% year-on-year increase in income from accommodation were:

• Hotels (9% and contributing 6 percentage points); and
• ‘Other’ accommodation (19.7% and contributing 5.3 percentage points).

Income from accommodation increased by 11.7% in the three months ended February compared with the three months ended February 2023. The main contributors to this increase were:

•  Hotels (11.5% and contributing 7.4 percentage points); and
• ‘Other’ accommodation (18.1% and contributing 5.1 percentage points).

Seasonally adjusted income from accommodation decreased by 0.2% month-on-month in February following an increase of 1.5% month-on-month in January.

The TBCSA said the data suggested a potential for growth in South Africa’s tourism industry, driven by both international and local visitors, while Rosemary Anderson, FEDHASA National Chairperson, said the overall increase compared with February 2023 was a positive indicator of the recovering tourism sector in the country.

Deeper insight needed

Anderson said that it was vitally important to review data holistically to gain a better understanding of tourism recovery.

“While it is important to measure year-on-year recovery and growth, we still need to keep pre-pandemic numbers in mind to measure the speed of recovery and fully understand any challenges or barriers to growth.

“We are also not recovering as fast as our competitors on the continent as well as our long-haul competitors such as Australia (at last count, South Africa had 69 500 hotel rooms, compared with a major long-haul competitor, Australia, which has 304 000 hotel rooms).”

Anderson added that was crucial to note that while the data presented an optimistic outlook, it did not fully encapsulate the regional nuances across the country’s diverse landscape.

“While national figures provide a valuable overview, they can mask disparities between regions. Deeper insights into which regions are experiencing the strongest rebounds would be extremely valuable.”

Recent survey feedback received from FEDHASA members showcases mixed results across the board and glaring disparities in occupancy, especially when comparing regions such as Cape Town with Durban.

“Breaking down the data between domestic and international visitors would provide a clearer picture of where the growth is stemming from. This knowledge is crucial for tailoring marketing and development strategies,” Anderson said.

She noted that the industry’s focus must remain on ensuring that every region within southern Africa was equipped to thrive in this competitive sector by tackling challenges such as water quality, safety and security, reliable power and water supply, infrastructure, road conditions, and visa reform.

“There must also be a concentrated effort on attracting key growth source markets, which is not only the solution to tourism growth but also broader demographic growth for accommodations that are lagging in recovery. We have seen luxury and high-end accommodations rebound at a much faster rate post-pandemic, which has left us with a missing middle.

“By ensuring that every region within southern Africa is equipped to thrive in this competitive sector, we not only enhance our tourism offering but also contribute to the broader economic development of the entire region,” Anderson concluded.