South Africans do not seem to have been put off taking a holiday at the coast by a worsening economy, drought fears or the failure of many companies to pay Christmas bonuses this year. Tourism authorities say visitor numbers were higher than a year ago. In Durban, hundreds of thousands of people flocked to the city's 100km of coastline, leaving a R3-billion economic boom in their wake. And all of Cape Town's main attractions reported an increase in visitor numbers.Phillip Sithole, head of Durban Tourism, said the city had exceeded its target of 1.4 million visitors by New Year's Day, a week before the official close of the festive season.Durban's tourist numbers were even higher at some hotspots than during the Durban July race weekend, probably the city's biggest single money-spinner.Durban traditionally attracts the most domestic tourists."Hotel occupancy is up on last year to around 90% and tourist attractions such as uShaka Marine World and the Moses Mabhida Stadium have had huge numbers," said Sithole.There were more than 100,000 people on Durban's beaches on New Year's Day.KwaZulu-Natal tourism MEC Mike Mabuyakhulu said holidaymakers brought R3-billion into the city's economy.In Cape Town, there was a 43% increase in tourists visiting Robben Island in December: 47,000 compared with 31,000 in 2014. The Table Mountain cableway recorded 28% more visitors than last year.The city also benefited from hosting the Sevens Rugby Tournament and the Proteas' New Year cricket Test against England. The cricket was a particular boon for the city, with the England fans - dubbed the Barmy Army - flocking into the city.Spokesman for the V&A Waterfront Carla White said the waterfront had more than 3million visitors.A report commissioned by the Tourism Business Council of SA estimates that in 2015 the decline in foreign tourists due to changes in the immigration regulations is likely to have reached 100,000, with the loss of 9300 jobs and a net loss to the South African gross domestic product of about R4.1-billion...