Tourism in South Africa
[3] South Africa offers both domestic and international tourists a wide variety of options, among others the picturesque natural landscape and game reserves, diverse cultural heritage and highly regarded wines.
According to Statistics South Africa's latest Tourism and Migration Survey, almost 3,5 million travellers passed through the country's ports of entry in August 2017.
[4] The top five overseas countries with the largest number of tourists visiting South Africa were the US, UK, Germany, the Netherlands and France.
Among the large mammals found in the northern bushveld include lions, leopards, cheetahs, white rhinoceroses, blue wildebeest, kudus, impalas, hyenas, hippopotamuses and giraffes.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions impeding tourism and movement in the region, the killings of rhino species in South Africa have fallen by 53 percent in 2020.
These include the fossil-bearing caves forming part of the Cradle of Humankind in Gauteng, the ruins of the Kingdom of Mapungubwe in northern Limpopo, the wine routes of the Western Cape, and various historical sites in the cities of Cape Town and Johannesburg (such as Robben Island, the Castle of Good Hope and Soweto township).
Political reasons were also prevalent in the eventual failure of the bid as the committee was all-white and the motive to create a national identity seemed like a false promise to the majority black population of South Africa.
Therefore, in an attempt to enhance the tourism industry through an Olympics bid, the challenge of cohesive action posed a great threat.
[16] The 2010 FIFA World Cup is an example of a more successful route by South Africa to increase tourism and influence the nation positively.
"[15] Other examples of tourism positively benefitting South Africa; generally have an underlying theme of supporting the cohesion of the nation following years of separation based on race.
[20] An emergence of black-owned bed and breakfast establishments is a new phenomenon in the South African tourism industry that is a direct linkage to the legacy of the apartheid.
The rise in these establishments' significance is that the national government is increasingly looking to bolster black economic empowerment and the general structure of ownership of the tourism industry.
"The first decade of the post-apartheid government has witnessed a number of steps taken towards policy framework and strategic development for transformation.
Black entrepreneurs, and owners of such establishments still seek the government's help to improve in fields such as finance, training, and "access to available support networks of business information and advice.
