JOHANNESBURG -.
Zimbabwe has emerged as the leading African driver of South Africa’s tourism boom in 2025, outpacing Namibia, Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania and Botswana as the region’s biggest source of new visitors. Official data show South Africa welcomed 7,634,261 international tourists between January and September 2025-1.1 million more than a year earlier-followed by a record October that pushed year-to-date arrivals to 8.56 million. (gov.za)
The surge underscores a broader shift in global travel, where intra-African mobility and road-linked markets are powering recoveries. With Africa surpassing its pre‑pandemic visitor volumes in 2024 and global tourism essentially back to 2019 levels, South Africa’s rebound is increasingly anchored in short‑haul regional flows-led by Zimbabwe’s cross‑border travelers and supported by improving air links. (unwto.org)
Zimbabwe’s lead-and why it matters
Zimbabwe has long been South Africa’s top source market on the continent, sending 2.18 million visitors in 2024 and helping Africa account for 76% of South Africa’s total arrivals that year-a pattern that has carried through 2025. In August 2025, Zimbabwe again led regional inflows alongside Mozambique and Lesotho, reflecting the dominance of land markets in the recovery. (gov.za)
For Pretoria, those numbers are not just a tourism story but a policy one. Cross‑border visitor flows sit at the intersection of immigration control, trade logistics and regional diplomacy under the Southern African Development Community and the African Continental Free Trade Area, making Zimbabwe’s role material to how South Africa manages people and goods at scale.
Two structural enablers explain the momentum. First, visa access: Zimbabwean passport holders are visa‑exempt for short visits to South Africa under the country’s visitor‑entry regulations, lowering friction compared with many other African markets. Second, the main gateway-the Beitbridge border post-has been overhauled through a public‑private upgrade that expanded capacity, digitized processing and cut waiting times, reinforcing high‑volume road travel between the two countries.
Aviation is catching up. South African and Zimbabwean carriers have restored and added frequencies on Johannesburg-Harare and Johannesburg-Bulawayo sectors, with fastjet introducing additional early‑morning services in late 2025. FlySafair’s entry on Johannesburg-Harare in late 2023 broadened options and likely supported 2025 volumes by easing day‑trip and short‑stay demand. For both governments, those additional seats translate into a larger pool of travelers subject to aviation, border and consumer‑protection rules that were tested during the pandemic and are now being recalibrated for growth.
The numbers behind a record 2025
- January-September 2025: 7,634,261 international arrivals (+1,108,222 year-on-year). (gov.za)
- October 2025: 927,426 arrivals (+32% year-on-year), one of the strongest Octobers on record. (gov.za)
- January-October 2025: 8.56 million arrivals (+1.3 million vs. the same period in 2024). (gov.za)
- Full‑year 2024 baseline: 8.92 million total arrivals; Africa contributed 76%, with Zimbabwe the largest single source market. (gov.za)
Tourism’s macro footprint is rebounding alongside these flows. According to South Africa’s government, World Travel & Tourism Council estimates put the sector’s 2024 contribution at 8.8% of GDP and 1.68 million jobs, with employment projected to reach new highs in 2025-evidence that the recovery is transmitting into the wider economy. The sector remains one of the most employment‑intensive parts of South Africa’s services industry, meaning that shifts in regional demand have direct implications for Cabinet decisions on infrastructure spending, work‑visa quotas and skills programmes.
How other African markets stack up
South Africa’s strength in 2025 is broad-based across the continent, but Zimbabwe’s scale and proximity keep it ahead of the pack. Department of Tourism figures highlight particularly strong momentum from Kenya and Nigeria on the air side, with year‑on‑year gains of 27% and 42% respectively in the January-September window. Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini and Botswana continue to deliver steady land arrivals, while Namibia and Tanzania contribute to growth from a lower base. (gov.za)
North African markets are also in recovery mode-Egypt has set ambitious targets off a higher 2024 base-but for South Africa the most immediate gains remain regional. The contrast illustrates how geography, entry policies and transport links shape demand: markets with straightforward access and multiple transport modes are returning faster and spending more time in‑country. For planners in both Pretoria and Harare, that dynamic strengthens the case for coordinated transport corridors, harmonised border standards and predictable entry rules.
Policy and connectivity are moving the needle
South Africa’s recent visa reforms have helped unlock demand. The Digital Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS), launched in February 2025, is streamlining group visas for China and India; by late May, more than 11,000 tourists from those markets had secured visas through the platform, with the government now expanding the scheme. While not directly aimed at Africa, the same administrative focus on speed and predictability is benefiting the sector as a whole, and is consistent with the principles set out in the country’s White Paper on the Development and Promotion of Tourism in South Africa, which frames tourism as a tool for inclusive growth.
Regionally, the planned expansion of the KAZA Univisa among Zimbabwe, Zambia, Angola, Botswana and Namibia signals a broader shift toward seamless cross‑border travel in Southern Africa. As that initiative scales, it could further integrate circuits that already link Victoria Falls, the Okavango and South Africa’s safari and city hubs, and will require participating states to align elements of their immigration, customs and security regimes.
On the ground, Beitbridge’s modernization is proving pivotal for Zimbabwe-South Africa flows. The 24‑hour border now features dedicated lanes, automated systems and capacity to process up to 1,000 trucks daily, with reported pedestrian processing down to roughly 30 minutes at peak holiday periods-transformations that reduce friction for both trade and tourism. Those operational gains are closely watched by regional bodies, which see Beitbridge as a test case for corridor‑wide reforms.
The global backdrop
UN Tourism reports that 2024 global arrivals reached 1.4 billion-99% of pre‑pandemic levels-setting up a continued rebound through 2025. South Africa’s late‑2025 data align with that trajectory and have filtered into broader business sentiment at home, with surveys in November pointing to a tourism‑linked boost to confidence even as other sectors lag. (unwto.org)
“We are now in a period of sustained growth. These numbers reflect the hard work of our industry partners, the improved ease of travel, enhanced air access, and our continued focus on service excellence and new tourism experiences,” Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said after October’s record arrivals. (gov.za)
As of January 3, 2026, South Africa’s Department of Tourism’s most recent public update confirms 8.56 million international arrivals for January-October 2025 and a record October; full‑year 2025 totals will be published by Statistics South Africa in the next statistical release. Ministerial and Cabinet committees will then have to decide whether the current mix of visa rules, border‑modernisation projects and air‑service agreements is sufficient to sustain Zimbabwe‑led growth, or whether a new phase of tourism and transport policy is needed to lock in the gains.