European tourists arrive by the thousands in South Africa

INTERNATIONAL ARRIVALS FLOOD INTO SOUTH AFRICA

According to latest numbers from Statistics South Africa, month-on-month overseas arrivals has increased by 16.5%, from 158 407 in September 2023 to 189 778 in October 2023.

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Of these 189 788 arrivals, European tourists were recording as increasing the most from 86 228 in September to a whopping 122 599 in October.

Tourism Update reports that October arrivals were at 76.3% of 2019 pre-pandemic levels, slightly decreasing from the 79% registered in September this year.

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MORE AND MORE ARRIVALS IN CAPE TOWN

In other South African tourism news, Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) also recorded incredible recovery numbers compared with pre-pandemic levels and a 57% increase in two-way international passengers, when compared with the same period in 2022.

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As per the monthly tourism report compiled by the Western Cape Government’s official trade, investment, and tourism promotion agency, Wesgro, the airport saw over two million international tourist arrivals, and over 5.5 million domestic two-way passengers from January to October 2023.

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“We are very excited for the upcoming summer tourism season, which is shaping up to be truly impressive, and possibly even record-breaking as we are expecting 25% more international visitors than last season, exceeding one million inbound seats for the first time ever. This is fantastic news for a sector that contributes so much in terms of economic impact and job creation in the Western Cape,” Provincial Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger said.