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S. Africa sees spike in tourist arrivals in Jan.: minister

Xinhua, April 14, 2016 Adjust font size:

The number of tourists arriving in South Africa in January has surpassed one million, a record high for the same period since 2009, Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom said on Thursday.

The figure was up 15.4 percent on the same month last year, the minister said in his latest update on tourist arrivals.

It was a signal of a recovery from last year's decline, the minister said.

Positive growth was recorded from all regions of the country in January, with arrivals from Asia improving by a staggering 45.6 percent and overseas markets recording a total growth of 16.2 percent, compared with the same month last year, official figures show.

"This is great news for everyone involved in tourism," said Hanekom. "Operators of tourism businesses have proved their resilience during the recent lean times we faced."

The jump in arrivals during January is said to be resulted from increased bookings made in October, November and December 2015, especially from major markets in Europe, when the rand was at its weakest against the pound, euro and U.S. dollar.

Travel agents recorded a 30 to 40 percent growth in bookings during that period, according to the update.

Hanekom said there was growing confidence that the tourism sector would not only recover from the slump in 2015, but grow strongly this year.

The number of tourist arrivals in South Africa declined last year, which was mainly blamed on strict visa regulations.

The government has therefore taken steps to ease visa regulations to alleviate concerns of the tourism sector.

Analysts attribute the growth to revised rules that have made visa application process easier for travellers from key source markets like China, international tourists taking advantage of the exchange rate, and the enduring strength of South Africa as a tourist destination.

Early indications are that bookings made through travel agents and tour operators will yield continuing growth in February and March, the update says. Endit