Tourism contributed more than R6-billion to the gross domestic product of iLembe in 2023.

During the year some 798 000 people visited our coastline and contributed towards an industry that supports 13 000 jobs across the district.

This was revealed as part of a year-long study by the Urban-Econ Development Economists, which was commissioned by Enterprise iLembe to obtain detailed local statistics.

“The study enables us to determine the behaviour of tourists when they visit the district, including accommodation preferences, activity and spending patterns,” said Enterprise iLembe CEO, Linda Mncube.

“It is not always possible to get accurate data for local destinations from national surveys.”

Just over three-quarters of tourists were from other parts of South Africa, while 23% were foreign – a significant increase on the 9% foreign tourist number the year prior.

Foreign visitors were drawn mainly from Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and America, while overnight visits also proved popular for travellers from Eswatini, Botswana, Zambia and Lesotho.

Combined, tourists in the area directly spent R4.7-billion.

“This is a clear indication of the importance of tourism to the economy of the region, especially during a period when economic growth in the country has been particularly subdued,” said Mncube.

In December alone, almost 120 000 day and overnight visitors made a trip to the North Coast, a 9% increase on 2022.

“We are well aware that visitors value our area’s beautiful beaches and see the North Coast primarily as a coastal destination,” said iLembe Mayor, Thobani Shandu.

“We have leveraged off this and aim to encourage people who come here for leisure purposes to also visit some of the region’s other, perhaps lesser-known attractions so that there is a geographic spread of tourism across the district.”

According to the study, the majority of visitors rated iLembe as an excellent or good tourism destination, while over 99% said they felt they got good value for money.

“The rate of 59% occupancy indicates a healthy level of demand, compared to the seasonality that one typically associates with destinations primarily valued for leisure,” said Shandu.

“It is however imperative for us to acknowledge the importance of enhancing our infrastructure and amenities to accommodate the demand.”

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