Euromonitor International has revealed the key trends shaping travel and tourism in Africa at the 41st Annual World Tourism Conference in Kigali, Rwanda, concluding from the new data, that international arrivals to Africa grew by 6.5 percent in 2017, to reach 18,550 million, up from 16,351 million in 2012. Key markets such as South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Mozambique, Cameroon, Mauritius and Tanzania accounted for 70 percent of international trips to the Sub-Saharan African region.
This growth can be attributed to increasing interaction between various travel industry players and digital integration, using platforms such as social media, meta-search engines and the penetration of online travel agents. Other drivers include a growing short-term rental market, luxury travel, niche tourism, Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions (MICE) and an increasing focus on domestic tourism.
“Many countries are moving away from only promoting Africa as a traditional safari destination, exploring other niche categories such as beach and medical tourism. The travel and tourism market continues to introduce products that suit different type of travellers, accounting for strong growth in major cities across Sub-Saharan Africa,” says Euromonitor Research Analyst Christy Tawii.
The agency predicts that growth in international arrivals to Sub-Saharan Africa will reach 25, 000 million trips by 2022. Arrivals to Africa are expected to see continued growth, driven by increased interest from overseas visitors due to competitive rates in comparison to other destinations with a similar offer. Aggressive brand marketing campaigns and the introduction of new and increased direct air connectivity to and from major overseas markets, is also expected to boost inbound arrivals to the region. Key economies such as South Africa and Nigeria can expect strong growth in inbound trips. Key trends in tourism include increase in number of domestic trips in Africa by 8% to reach over 40 million in 2017, although many citizens do not have a travelling culture as it is generally perceived to be non-essential. However, some key domestic tourism challenges include the perception that travel is not affordable, and that international tourists are more important than domestic tourists. Foreign visitors are perceived to have more spending power than locals and therefore travel is not affordable in the eyes of locals. Despite these trends, domestic tourism in Africa is increasingly gaining traction as focus on domestic tourism is increasing across the region, owing to increase in purchasing power which allows local citizens the opportunity to explore their countries.
Travel players are also implementing and embracing multi-channel approaches on online platforms. Airline online sales lead overall online travel sales, accounting for 67% of total value sales digital migration is transforming the tourism landscape in terms of bookings, customer service and consumer behavior. Players such as hotels, airlines and car rental companies are making use of a variety of platforms to engage consumers and increase traffic to their sites by using social media, affiliate programmes, and Meta search engines, etc