Even though it’s been more than five years since the first major Covid lockdown, the effect of the pandemic remains. One of the sectors most affected by the global lockdown was tourism and travel.

Five years after Covid, international arrivals in South Africa are much improved but not yet back to pre-Covid highs.

Arrivals in 2024 were almost 9-million, still 13% down on the highs of 2017 and 2018. Kenya, in comparison, has recovered and even exceeded pre-Covid arrivals in the time since the lockdowns, albeit off a smaller base.

The vast majority of arrivals in South Africa are from within Africa, especially SADC (Southern African Development Community) countries. In 2024, 6.6-million arrivals in SA were from SADC countries, or 74% of the total.

The majority of SADC visitors to South Africa stayed in the country for 2 to 4 days. Visitors from overseas spent an average of 8 to 14 days in the country.