South Africa and Kenya among top tourism sources for Zanzibar in December 2024

Unguja. South Africa and Kenya have emerged as key tourist sources for Zanzibar in the month of December 2024 after the two emerged second and sixth respectively, as Italy maintained the number one spot.

Zanzibar's tourism sector experienced a remarkable surge in December 2024, welcoming 91,611 international visitors, marking a significant 30.5 percent increase from the 70,186 recorded in the same month of 2023.

The increase reflects not only an uptick in global travel but also a 36.6 percent rise compared to the previous month, November 2024.

The latest statistics, released by the Office of the Chief Government Statistician and the Zanzibar Commission for Tourism, show that Europe remains the leading source of international visitors, accounting for 68.1 percent of arrivals.

Italian tourists led the charge, comprising 13.7 percent (12,552) of all visitors. However, African nations South Africa and Kenya also played a pivotal role in driving growth.

South Africa emerged as the second-largest market, contributing 7,252 visitors (7.9 percent), while Kenya followed closely, securing the sixth spot with 4,260 visitors (4.7 percent).

Notably, the majority of international visitors—89.7 percent—arrived by air. A total of 82,154 visitors flew into Zanzibar's Abeid Amaan Karume International Airport during the month, with 69,779 arriving on international flights and 12,375 on domestic flights.

The remaining visitors (9,457) entered through the seaport, with 1,332 arriving by cruise ship and 8,125 by sea ferry from mainland Tanzania.

The primary motivation for travel remained leisure, with 99.2 percent of visitors coming for holidays. Only a small proportion traveled to visit friends and relatives (0.4 percent) or for other reasons (0.4 percent). Gender-wise, the island saw a higher proportion of female visitors, who made up 55.7 percent of the arrivals, compared to 44.3 percent male visitors.

Zanzibar’s tourism continues to attract working-age travelers, with 84.1 percent of visitors aged between 15 and 64. Children under 15 years accounted for 10 percent of visitors, and retirees aged 65 and older made up 5.9 percent.

Emerging markets also showed strong growth, with countries such as Poland, India, Russia, Israel, China, and Ukraine collectively recording a 26.6 percent increase in arrivals compared to December 2023.

Visitors in December 2024 stayed an average of 8 days, with 22.9 percent spending seven days on the island. The demand for accommodation remained robust, with Zanzibar’s hotels achieving an impressive bed occupancy rate of 92.4 percent, as 720,102 out of 779,216 available bed spaces were sold.

With its diverse visitor profile, Zanzibar's tourism sector is well-positioned for continued growth, particularly as it draws an increasing number of tourists from both established markets in Europe and Africa, as well as from emerging economies.