South Africa recorded 22.095 million foreign travellers in 2024, alongside 33.476 million domestic day trips and 26.222 million domestic overnight trips. Stats SA’s 2024 tourism data shows a market led by regional road travel, holiday visits, and substantial domestic spending.
Contents
- International travel volume
- How visitors entered and left
- Purpose, seasonality, and visitor type
- Length of stay and regional markets
- Domestic tourism activity
- Domestic tourism spending
- Domestic traveler profiles and transport
International travel volume
Stats SA Tourism 2024 recorded 11.729 million foreign traveller arrivals in South Africa. The same source recorded 9.903 million foreign traveller departures and 463,133 foreign traveller transits. These are separate movement measures: an arrival is not automatically an overnight tourist, and a transit is not necessarily a visit to a destination.
South African residents also generated substantial border movement during 2024. Stats SA recorded 4.344 million resident arrivals, 4.360 million resident departures, and 604,440 resident transits. These figures describe movements of South African residents rather than inbound tourism demand.
The foreign-traveller total included 8.919 million foreign tourists. Stats SA reported that tourist arrivals increased 5.1% from 2023 to 2024, while 2024 tourist arrivals remained 12.8% below the 2019 level. The comparison with 2019 is a historical benchmark, not a forecast of future arrivals.
| 2024 international movement measure | Volume |
|---|---|
| Foreign travellers | 22.095 million |
| Foreign traveller arrivals | 11.729 million |
| Foreign traveller departures | 9.903 million |
| Foreign traveller transits | 463,133 |
| Foreign tourists | 8.919 million |
The difference between the foreign-arrival count and the foreign-tourist count reflects the importance of separating all border arrivals from visitors classified as tourists. Stats SA also recorded 2,503,360 foreign arrivals as same-day visitors and 8,919,370 as overnight tourists in 2024.
How visitors entered and left
Road travel was the leading access mode for foreign arrivals in 2024. Stats SA Tourism 2024 recorded 73.9% of foreign arrivals by road, 25.5% by air, and 0.6% by sea. For foreign departures, 66.9% were by road, 32.2% by air, and 0.9% by sea.
| Foreign movement | Air | Road | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrivals | 25.5% | 73.9% | 0.6% |
| Departures | 32.2% | 66.9% | 0.9% |
The road-arrival pattern was distributed across several neighboring countries. Among foreign arrivals by road, 25.3% came via Mozambique, 24.7% via Zimbabwe, and 20.3% via Lesotho. Botswana accounted for 12.0%, Eswatini for 12.9%, and Namibia for 4.7% of foreign road arrivals.
Air arrivals were concentrated at three airports. OR Tambo International Airport handled 66.0% of foreign air arrivals in 2024. Cape Town International Airport handled 32.7%, while King Shaka International Airport handled 1.1%. These airport shares describe the distribution of foreign air arrivals, not all foreign arrivals across every transport mode.
Purpose, seasonality, and visitor type
Holiday travel dominated the stated purpose of foreign arrivals in 2024. Stats SA reported that 94.8% came for holidays. Business travel accounted for 2.2%, work for 1.6%, and study for 0.3%.
Same-day visits had an even stronger holiday orientation: 99.2% of same-day visitors came for a holiday. Road transport accounted for 90.8% of same-day visitors. Stats SA recorded an average of 208,613 same-day visitors per month during 2024.
Tourist arrivals varied across the year. January recorded 971,846 tourist arrivals, the highest monthly figure listed in the 2024 data. December recorded 920,147, while June recorded 641,284. These monthly values show a wide seasonal pattern within the year; they should not be treated as a projection for another year.
Non-visitors were also measured separately. January recorded 36,621 non-visitors, the annual high in the supplied 2024 figures. October recorded 20,888, the annual low. This distinction matters because border statistics include categories beyond holidaymakers and overnight tourists.
Length of stay and regional markets
Among tourists who came to and left South Africa in 2024, the average duration was 65 days. The regional averages varied considerably. Overseas tourists averaged 14 days in South Africa, SADC tourists averaged 32 days, and other African tourists averaged 19 days. These are averages for the groups identified by Stats SA, not a typical stay for every individual visitor.
The same measure recorded 1.813 million overseas tourists who came and left in 2024. SADC tourists who came and left totaled 3.304 million, while other African tourists in this measure totaled 133,205.
| Tourist market | Tourists who came and left | Average duration |
|---|---|---|
| Overseas | 1.813 million | 14 days |
| SADC | 3.304 million | 32 days |
| Other African | 133,205 | 19 days |
The figures indicate different patterns by market: the SADC group had the highest reported average duration, while the overseas group had the largest average duration gap relative to that regional figure. The table reports the supplied Stats SA measures without converting them into an estimated total number of nights.
Domestic tourism activity
International arrivals are only one part of South Africa’s tourism market. The Stats SA Domestic Tourism Survey 2024 recorded 33.476 million domestic day trips and 26.222 million domestic overnight trips.
Domestic activity also changed by month. December recorded 3.550 million domestic day trips, followed by May with 3.250 million and August with 3.076 million. For domestic overnight trips, June recorded 2.688 million, December recorded 2.580 million, and March recorded 2.401 million.
| Domestic measure | 2024 volume |
|---|---|
| Day trips | 33.476 million |
| Overnight trips | 26.222 million |
| Day trips in December | 3.550 million |
| Overnight trips in June | 2.688 million |
Domestic day-trip participation also differed across population groups. Day trips by Black African residents totaled 14.454 million in 2024. Coloured residents accounted for 3.240 million day trips, while White residents accounted for 4.537 million.
The survey recorded several demographic characteristics for day-trippers. Travelers aged 35–44 accounted for 23.7% of domestic day trips. Female travelers accounted for 52.6%, and never-married travelers accounted for 44.9%. Travelers with Grade 12 or Standard 10 accounted for 29.2%.
Domestic tourism spending
Domestic tourism expenditure totaled R60.593 billion in 2024 according to the Stats SA Domestic Tourism Survey 2024. Day trips accounted for R22.239 billion, while overnight trips accounted for R38.354 billion.
Transport was the largest listed domestic spending category at R18.483 billion. Shopping totaled R18.418 billion, and food and beverage spending totaled R11.748 billion. Accommodation spending totaled R6.020 billion, while recreation spending totaled R2.776 billion.
| Domestic spending category | 2024 expenditure |
|---|---|
| Total domestic tourism | R60.593 billion |
| Day trips | R22.239 billion |
| Overnight trips | R38.354 billion |
| Transport | R18.483 billion |
| Shopping | R18.418 billion |
| Food and beverage | R11.748 billion |
| Accommodation | R6.020 billion |
| Recreation | R2.776 billion |
These categories describe reported expenditure in rand. The figures should be read as survey measures for 2024, and the category values should not be added again to the total without knowing whether the published categories are intended to be exhaustive and mutually exclusive.
Domestic traveler profiles and transport
Cars and taxis were important transport modes for domestic overnight trips. The survey recorded 9.650 million overnight trips by car and 4.980 million by taxi. Air travel accounted for 652,000 overnight trips.
The transport figures provide a different view from international border data. International foreign arrivals were dominated by road travel, while domestic overnight trips were recorded across car, taxi, and air categories. Each statistic uses its own survey population and travel definition.
Taken together, the 2024 figures show a tourism market with several distinct layers: 11.729 million foreign traveller arrivals, 8.919 million foreign tourists, 33.476 million domestic day trips, and 26.222 million domestic overnight trips. Stats SA’s international tourism and domestic tourism measures should be kept separate when evaluating South Africa’s travel demand, visitor behavior, and tourism expenditure.