eThekwini aims to double its tourism numbers this festive season compared with last year in a bid to regain the domestic market share it lost to its coastal cousin Cape Town.
Mayor Cyril Xaba said their projections indicate a forecast of more than 1.3-million visitors to flock to the city during the 2024/25 summer holidays. That is almost double the 750,000 tourists the city managed to attract last year.
“We’re confident we can achieve the target of attracting 1.3-million visitors (at a hotel occupancy rate of 65%),” said Xaba.
The city launched its summer season campaign at the Coastal Lounge Resort in Umgababa, south of Durban, on Wednesday.
The campaign, themed “the endless waves of tranquility”, is the first in a series of domestic and international promotion roadshows the city plans as it seeks to keep Durban top of mind for tourists ahead of the summer.
“In this period we shall spare no effort in promoting our local attractions such as tourism products, parks, walking trails, game reserves and the rich cultural heritage that makes us a melting pot of various cultures.”
One of the ways they will do that is to showcase the “hidden gems” in the city’s tourism industry such as the Coastal Lounge Resort, he said.
Jaya Naidoo, Fedhasa East Coast general manager, said starting the summer campaign promotion early will stand the Durban tourism industry in good stead to capitalise on the upcoming influx of visitors by driving business promotion and highlighting local attractions early enough, which will drive traffic and ultimately increase sales come the peak festive period.
Naidoo added working with Durban Tourism and being exposed to these “hidden gems” was an eye-opener for him on teamwork with other establishments, despite his many years in the industry.
“We were in a comfort zone as Fedhasa, looking only at the established markets, but there’s so much more to see. Previously people worked in a vacuum, we were territorial about what we got, and we were trying to just promote for ourselves, but without synergies we can never get there,” he said.
“Going forward we can really form a formidable partnership where we can come up with these bright ideas and see everyone being a winner.”
The city, however, has been seen to be lagging behind the City of Cape Town in terms of tourists’ preferences in the last few summer seasons. That has been put down to the effects of the April 2022 floods which caused billions of rand worth of infrastructure damage, as well as eThekwini’s slow response in its recovery efforts.
A lot of effort has been put into upgrading and repairing our infrastructure, particularly along the coastal line to prevent sewerage from polluting our beaches
— Cyril Xaba, eThekwini mayor
Sewer infrastructure, in particular, has been highlighted as the main contributing factor to the city’s slow tourism recovery pace as it has caused uncertainty around the city’s beaches, with many of them having to close because of high levels of E coli bacteria.
Xaba said the closure of beaches are mainly precautionary, rather than due to any major safety concerns.
“I have received a request from some tourism organisations saying, ‘in other countries what we are concerned about is not an issue, they leave the beaches open to their visitors,’ but we thought that we need to be pretty certain so that when we eventually open we don’t get environmentalists coming after us.”
Xaba said the city has invested billions of rand to promote the city and fix the ailing infrastructure.
“A lot of effort has been put into upgrading and repairing our infrastructure, particularly along the coastal line to prevent sewerage from polluting our beaches. This includes the upgrading of 10 wastewater treatment plants which handle 90% of sewage in the city, seven of which have been restored. We will be getting the other three online very soon.”
On crime-fighting efforts, Xaba said law enforcement agencies were conducting integrated and multidisciplinary operations. He added there was already heightened police visibility in entertainment precincts and tourists sites as well as ongoing programmes to ensure street lights and CCTV cameras are operational.
“All these measures will guarantee a safe, peaceful and memorable holiday in the city.”
Naidoo expressed optimism that the city’s target to double its tourism numbers from last year was realistic after Xaba’s assurances that the municipality is prioritising fixing the challenges plaguing the city’s tourism, mainly “beaches, bulk services and crime”.
“If all these things are addressed, which I’m confident will be done because Fedhasa and other role players are addressing it, we’re optimistic that this is an achievable target. Durban is the preferred destination both locally and internationally, the only stumbling blocks are our bulk services and the challenges we face.”
He said the reopening of the Hilton Hotel and the overall mood in the city could drive the hotel occupancy rate above 90%.
“I’m very confident after the mayor’s address ... and with the iconic Durban Hilton, a tourist establishment in its own right, reopening, it means we have the best hotels and the best beaches and I’m optimistic that we should achieve a 90% and above occupancy rate.”
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