{"id":97644,"date":"2026-04-23T13:58:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T13:58:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success"},"modified":"2026-04-23T14:03:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T14:03:08","slug":"critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success","title":{"rendered":"Critical South African Employer Victim of Its Own Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>South Africa\u2019s tourism sector is attracting more visitors than ever, but signs of strain on the industry are beginning to show.<\/p>\n

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently revealed that a record 10.5 million tourists visited South Africa in 2025, surpassing the country\u2019s pre-pandemic high of 10.22 million.<\/p>\n

The tourism industry, which reportedly accounts for as much as 9% of the country\u2019s GDP, currently employs around 1.8 million people.<\/p>\n

While the president labelled this a positive sign for the industry\u2019s future growth, some experts say early signs of stress are appearing in the country\u2019s tourist hotspots.<\/p>\n

North-West University Tourism Management Professor Elmarie Slabbert explained how overtourism can negatively impact a country\u2019s residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn many cases, infrastructure cannot deal with masses of tourists at a specific time, and it is the residents who feel the pressure,\u201d Slabbert said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFood prices increase, moving in one\u2019s own residential and retail areas is challenging, and to some extent, one does not feel welcome in one\u2019s own city or town.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is already evident in some of the country\u2019s most popular destinations. Seaside cities such as Durban and Cape Town experience heightened road and beach congestion during summer.<\/p>\n

When the infrastructure cannot keep up with this, other problems can arise, such as water shortages, waste accumulation, and increased littering.<\/p>\n

The country\u2019s wildlife areas, such as the Kruger National Park, often experience road congestion during peak season, which can erode infrastructure and make the game-viewing experience too crowded.<\/p>\n

Slabbert said these early warning signs should not be ignored, otherwise the country could face an overtourism crisis akin to those seen in countries like Spain and Italy.<\/p>\n

Venice, which receives an estimated 25 million to 30 million visitors a year, introduced a fee in 2024 for day-trip visitors to the city during periods of high traffic.<\/p>\n

Residents of Barcelona, meanwhile, have protested against what they see as a degradation in their quality of life as a result of overtourism in the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs popular tourism destinations such as Barcelona and Venice struggle to manage overtourism, tourist numbers in South Africa are growing steadily,\u201d Slabbert said.<\/p>\n

\u201cTourism is an economic driver in South Africa, and although we want to grow tourist numbers, it should not happen at the expense of our natural resources and our people.\u201d<\/p>\n

South Africa\u2019s tourism not in crisis yet<\/b><\/p>\n

North-West University Tourism Management Professor Elmarie Slabbert<\/p>\n

Despite the growing pressure on South Africa\u2019s tourism industry from these early pressures, many experts emphasise that the country has not yet reached a tipping point.<\/p>\n

In an interview with 702, Nox Cape Town founder Richard Marshall stressed this point, specifically regarding the city and the opportunities tourism brings to it.<\/p>\n

Marshall, a member of the Southern Africa Short-Term Rental Association, cautioned against a negative view of the influx of tourists.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to be so careful, because what we have in South Africa and in Cape Town is really an unemployment crisis and not an overtourism crisis,\u201d Marshall said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you compare us to other destinations typically associated with overtourism, what Cape Town is experiencing is an order of magnitude or two less than what they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marshall said South Africa\u2019s job market benefits greatly from higher tourism. It is estimated that one new job is created for every 10 to 13 visitors to the country.<\/p>\n

While he conceded that certain areas of Cape Town faced increased pressure from tourists, such as Camps Bay and Clifton, Marshall said this is not a city-wide issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cBarcelona is a city of 1.5 million people that gets 15 million tourists per year,\u201d Marshall said. \u201cAmsterdam is similar, and Venice is far worse. They get 20 million tourists for a city with 300,000 residents.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCape Town gets 2.5 million tourists per year in a city of close to 5 million people. Really, we\u2019re not suffering from an overtourism issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Slabbert also said South Africa has not reached a crisis point yet, she said better management and diversification of the tourism sector are needed to prevent the country from reaching that point.<\/p>\n

Practical strategies she suggests include daily visitor limits for areas such as national parks, and marketing strategies which attract more visitors during non-peak seasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough not currently a major problem in South Africa, tourists should be managed to ensure they not only visit the hot spots but also venture into rural areas where many tourism gems can be found,\u201d Slabbert said.<\/p>\n

\u201cA continuous focus on the same destinations, such as Cape Town, will attract more people to this area, but marketing organisations need to diversify tourism experiences and create more hype about other areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. South Africa\u2019s tourism sector is attracting more visitors than ever, but signs of strain on the industry are beginning to show. President Cyril Ramaphosa recently revealed that a record 10.5 million tourists visited South Africa in 2025, surpassing the country\u2019s pre-pandemic high of 10.22 million. The tourism industry, which reportedly accounts for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":97643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,5],"tags":[275],"class_list":["post-97644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","category-economy","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nCritical South African Employer Victim of Its Own Success - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"South Africa\u2019s tourism sector is attracting more visitors than ever, but signs of strain on the industry are beginning t ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Critical South African Employer Victim of Its Own Success\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Africa\u2019s tourism sector is attracting more visitors than ever, but signs of strain on the industry are beginning t ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-23T13:58:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-23T14:03:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776940300.722596.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Critical South African Employer Victim of Its Own Success\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-23T13:58:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-23T14:03:08+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\"},\"wordCount\":780,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776940300.722596.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\",\"economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/critical-south-african-employer-victim-of-its-own-success\",\"name\":\"Critical South African Employer Victim of Its Own Success - 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