Booming Tourism and B&B Business Flourish beyond expectations: US Leads the pack

Flourishing B&B's Market: Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk. Speaking at the launch of Tourism Month at the Nelson Mandela Museum in Qunu in the Eastern Cape, said South Africa was "acknowledged as one of the fastest growing destinations in the world", with a growth rate in international arrivals that "far outstrips the rest of the world."
The number of tourists visiting South Africa between January and May grew by 10% compared to the same period last year, driven by increasing numbers of visitors from Nigeria, Kenya and France, says Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk.

The Minister, added that South Africa was reaping the benefits of its new airlift strategy, approved by the Cabinet, which had resulted in increased access to the South African market for foreign air carriers. South African Airways (SAA) has expanded its presence in the United States, with travellers now offered the choice of flying to and from an additional 15 American cities. SAA is currently the only airline to offer non-stop flights from the US to South Africa, with daily departures from both Washington DC and New York.
He further on explained that there was healthy annual growth from African air markets in the first five months of the year, led by Nigeria with a 22% increase in arrivals and Kenya at just over 12%.

With hotels increased profit margins, it is not surprising that there is a growing demand for B&B since 2006. New Bread and Breakfast enterprises are opening every month to satisfy the need for the 2010 FIFA games. There is also convenience and collective price bargaining that will compete strongly with the hotel industry by B&B’s.

Upgrading and home improvements aesthetic of B&B properties is becoming a huge investments and the order of the day in attracting tourists.

South Africa is also having more success in luring visitors from the Americas, with over 140 000 arrivals from the United States, Canada and Brazil, a 5% increase over last year.

Arrivals out of Europe were up by just under 2%, driven by an 11.5% increase out
of France. However, there was a loss of over 4% in arrivals from Germany, which
Van Schalkwyk attributed to market-specific economic activity.

"The German government increased VAT (value added tax) by 3%, which has affected German travel purchase behaviour, but the economy is expected to normalise in the second half of the year."

Job creation opportunities
Nearly 8.4-million tourists visited South Africa in 2006. The tourism sector also employed over 947 000 people as of 2006, an increase of 9.6% over 2005. "The jobs and business opportunities created in tourism have special significance for economies such as ours. They help to spread opportunities beyond our major metropolitan areas to provinces like the Eastern Cape, where we are today," he said.
"They create incentives - not only to remain in rural areas, but also to develop, take pride in, and showcase local hospitality and culture."