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South African travel by numbers

Cape Town – In 2014 South Africans are planning on going big with travel, a TripAdvisor survey revealed.

The world’s largest travel site recently conducted their TripBarometer survey to assess how travellers spend their money and it’s the first year that the survey includes South African findings.  

With South Africa increasingly regarded as a top travel destination, appearing on ‘dream destination’ lists for travellers from Austria, Germany, France, Switzerland and India, TripAdvisor recently launched a local domain in South Africa.  

This biannual study, conducted on behalf of TripAdvisor by independent research firm Ipsos, highlights country, regional and global travel trends, according to more than 61 000 traveller and hoteliers around the world, with 849 respondents from South Africa.  

So, to give you a quick overview of what South Africans’ travel spending will look like this year, here’s a little breakdown by numbers:

34 163.68 – The amount of Rands South African travellers will be spending on travel this year, which is quite an increase from R26 207.73 in 2013.

52 – The percentage of South African respondents who are planning an international trip in 2014. It’s up 35% from 2013.  

77 – The percentage of travellers worldwide, which are planning an international trip. Which means, South Africa is slightly behind the global average.  

90 – the percentage of global travellers who are planning on travelling domestically.  

93 – the percentage of South African respondents who will be taking a domestic trip this year. Up from 85% in 2013

30 – the percentage South African respondents are planning to up their travel budgets this year… which, by the way, is the biggest increase in budget worldwide, followed by Indonesians, Australians and Malaysians.  

42 – the percentage of South African respondents who said they are spending more on travel this year, because they saved up for it.

84 – The percentage of hoteliers who reported feeling confident about their profitability in 2014.  

3 – out of 4 South African hoteliers are planning to increase room rates in 2014, which is a lot higher than the global average of 52%.

Despite relatively low optimism in the economy (only 11% of South African respondents are spending more on travel because they feel more confident about the economy), travellers are not willing to give up their holidays, with many opting to hunt for bargains and make sacrifices in other areas of their lives in order to protect their travel spend.  

On the hunt for a bargain  

The tendency to do more research in order to find the best bargain is strong amongst travellers.  The majority (91%) say their choice of holiday is determined by the availability of a good deal or special offer, and in South Africa that number rises to 97%.  

Currency fluctuations have an impact on travel plans for just under half of global TripBarometer respondents (44%), but in South Africa, 79% of respondents state that currency fluctuations are impacting their travel plans.  Despite this, those affected are still planning to travel. Of those South African travellers that say currency fluctuation will impact them, 46% will research more to find the best price.  

“Exploration is back on the agenda in 2014, with more travellers planning international trips this year,” said Marc Charron, President, TripAdvisor for Business.  

“TripBarometer offers up insights into the needs and behaviours of consumers in today’s rapidly changing travel marketplace, providing valuable insights for hospitality businesses looking to attract new audiences. Travellers are upping their budgets but they are looking for bargains, expecting their accommodation of choice to deliver on value. Special offers, complimentary amenities and exceptional service are all going to be important factors in swaying potential guests.”   

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