Europeans drive tourism figures
Namibia's tourism industry experienced a significant increase in both regional and international visitors in August this year.It was especially European tourists who drove this increase with their international arrivals rising from 66.33% in July 2024 to 70.28% in August.
According to Simonis Storm's report on hospitality statistics for August, this upward trend highlights Namibia's growing appeal as a leisure destination for European travellers, highlighting the importance of tailored marketing strategies aimed at this key demographic.
The report further pointed out that the continued popularity of holiday and leisure travel offers numerous opportunities for further development in infrastructure to improve visitor experiences and maintain the positive momentum.
As a significant proportion of Namibia's top tourists must meet new visa requirements from next year, the report highlights the importance of both the hospitality industry and the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism to facilitate processes and deliver exceptional services to drive sustainable growth ensure.
"With the festive season approaching, we expect an increase in domestic and SADC visitors, especially in the northern and coastal regions which are popular holiday destinations," reads the report, which further points out that this could positively impact the economic impact of the hospitality sector. contribute.
Although the South African rand has strengthened by almost 7% against the US dollar and 5% against the euro this year, potentially making visits to Namibia more expensive for international tourists, the report believes that a growing trend has been observed in the sector. to target wealthier tourists.
"The luxury lodges and exclusive experiences have positioned Namibia as a premium destination."
This shift in focus suggests that while currency movements may affect some segments of the market, demand for luxury tourism is likely to remain strong, the report said.
Domestic travel
Domestic travel experienced a noticeable increase with Namibian visitors making up 14.91% of the total occupancy figure in August this year, compared to 16.39% the previous month.
However, South African tourist numbers almost halved from 6.30% in July to 3.69% in August 2024.
Visitors from the rest of Africa saw an increase on a year-on-year basis with their share rising to 1.67% from 0.90% the previous year.
The national occupancy rate in the hospitality sector fell to 63% in August from 68.9% in August last year.
However, on a month-to-month basis, the sector showed an improvement of 3.28% from July to August this year.
The northern region recorded its highest occupancy rate for the year at 70.42% which can be attributed to increased wedding-related activities.
"The southern and central regions experienced declines in occupancy rates."
According to the report, the coastal regions also experienced a slight decrease on an annual basis, but experienced an increase on a month-on-month basis of 6.4% from July.
Meanwhile, leisure travel remained the dominant segment in August this year with 92.91% of total room occupancy.
"Business travel saw an increase year-on-year, contributing 6.48%, while conference-related accommodation, although still minimal, rose to 0.61% compared to the previous August."
Europe
Among the European countries, Austria, Germany and Switzerland were the top contributors and together represented 31.68% of all European visitors.
Italy showed significant growth with its market share rising sharply from 4.48% in July to 12.91% in August.
France is in third place and contributes about 9.88% to the European segment. Spanish and Portuguese visitors also grew from 3.35% in August 2023 to 3.73% in August this year.
The Benelux region (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) also showed impressive year-on-year growth with their market share increasing from 0.07% to 6.20% in August 2024.
Furthermore, Namibia also attracted visitors from the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania).