Only 13% of participants were unsure if they would travel in 2020 or 2021, while 1% said they would consider the circumstances first before setting off. 

Travellers are looking forward to setting off, with 35% of respondents indicating they would like to travel as soon as possible after restrictions are lifted, 25% reporting they would travel within 1 to 3 months, 21% within 4 to 6 months and 15% within 7 to 12 months. 

South African travellers, well accustomed to long haul flights, do not appear averse to travelling internationally either. The survey data showed that 43% would be comfortable travelling internationally with 44% voting for travelling within South Africa. In addition, 6% said they would like to travel to the Indian Ocean islands, traditionally a bestseller in the South African market.

“Although 43% of survey respondents say they would like to travel internationally, it is likely restrictions, regulations and an economic downturn will affect outbound travel. Over the next two years we’re expecting a focus on domestic travel – South Africa for South Africans,” said Andrew Stark, Managing Director Flight Centre Travel Group Middle East Africa. “We have a beautiful country to explore. We can re-ignite that love by spending our hard-earned rands locally.”

The data bears this out, with 73% of respondents reporting that they would be comfortable travelling on a flight locally as well as travelling by car (in their vehicle or hired).

Ideal local travel destinations or experiences saw beach holidays topping the list, followed by bush breaks, the Garden Route, then mountain adventures and exploring a city. Somewhat surprisingly, only 10% opted for a camping holiday.

The overwhelming majority of respondents chose a getaway with family and budget-friendly holidays as their ideal local holiday, with a luxury or getaway with friends coming in neck and neck. 

While the majority of travellers would feel comfortable staying in self-catering accommodation, hotel and lodge stays were not far behind. 

In terms of intra-provincial travel, 59% of travellers said they would travel within their own province, 20% said no, with another 20% saying they would, if the deal was good enough. Interestingly, 43% of the respondents lived in Gauteng, followed by 23% in Cape Town and 18% in KwaZulu-Natal. 

The Western Cape is the number one province South Africans want to visit when interprovincial travel is permitted, with KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape following behind. 

Travellers are in need of a more extended local getaway, with 28% of respondents saying they’d want to take a holiday of between 4 to 5 days. 24% said seven nights was preferred, followed by 20% saying 2 to 3 nights. Only 13% reported a weekend away or a stay of longer than seven nights.

Flight Centre conducted the survey through their newsletter and Facebook page, with 7,546 respondents taking part. By completing the survey, respondents could win one of two local travel vouchers to the value of R2,500.

In line with the survey findings, the Flight Centre Travel Group was already pivoting their business to focus strongly on domestic travel for the next two years. 

From the beginning of the lockdown period, 27 March 2020, to 16 April, Flight Centre South Africa’s website data shows that overall pages per session have increased by 12.7% with searches for all-inclusive packages, Mauritius, beach, budget deals, Phuket, and family holidays proving popular. 

“Africa is uniquely positioned to make a slow, but sure, recovery,” said Sue Garrett, General Manager of Product and Marketing at the Flight Centre Travel Group. “The vast expanse and diversity of the African continent is off the beaten track and away from large crowds. We expect to see this type of intrepid, exploration, adventure and bush break safari-style travel increase in popularity. The shorter flight times will also be appealing,” says Garrett. 

“We respect and understand the decision taken by the South African government to stem the spread of the virus by banning travel to and from certain destinations,” says Otto de Vries, CEO ASATA. “We appreciate the President’s well-considered position on this matter. We await further details, such as timelines when the government will re-evaluate the travel recommendations, to assess the implications for the outbound tourism industry.”

“We look look forward to engaging with the government tomorrow. We will work collectively with the private sector to limit the impact on the travel industry.”

ASATA and its members will continue to provide a calm, informed, coordinated and proactive response to the panic that has emerged globally around COVID-19.

The August 2019 analysis by Cape Town Air Access, a division of Wesgro, reveals the top outbound destinations for flights originating in and returning to South Africa based on passenger volume recorded between 2016 and 2018. In 2018, the top spots were occupied by regional destinations: Lesotho, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Botswana and Namibia respectively. Further afield, the top ten is rounded out by the UK, Spain, Mauritius and USA in that order. There was a three percent increase in outbound travel between 2017 and 2018 and the number of outbound departures is forecast to increase by another 3% by the end of 2019.

To understand current outbound travel trends, South African online travel agency Travelcheck.co.za reviewed bookings made through their website in the past two months. In July 2019, London was the most booked destination while Harare was the most popular choice in August. Based on the same data set, Mauritius, Windhoek and Munich remain popular outbound destinations in the past two months. Travelcheck CEO Odette Faling says increased air access has helped offset the limitations imposed on overseas travel in a challenging economy, “While Joburg’s O.R. Tambo Airport remains the main gateway for international flights to and from South Africa, air access from Cape Town has been given a boost by several carriers establishing non-stop flights to the Mother City.”

In 2018, RwandAir, Kenya Airways, Austrian and Cathay Pacific started direct flights to Cape Town. As a result, international passenger numbers at Cape Town International Airport grew by more than 9% last year. Last month, Kenya Airways announced increased frequency between Cape Town and Nairobi. From 27 October, Capetonians will benefit from two additional direct flights on the weekly Nairobi flight schedule.

In 2019, more carriers entered Cape Town’s air access pipeline including United Airlines which is confirmed to take off in December this year. The American carrier began selling tickets between New York City (Newark Airport) and Cape Town earlier this year. The direct transatlantic flight will take at least 14 ½ hours and cover 12,600km. While the flight is a long-haul service, it will decrease the current flight time between Cape Town and the east coast of America by more than four hours and give travellers one-stop access to more than 80 cities across the United States.

Earlier this year, Australian flag carrier Qantas hinted at initiating direct flights to Cape Town although it is unlikely the service will take off before 2022. Furthermore, Wesgro confirmed that they are in advanced talks with Norwegian Airlines to introduce more competition on the Cape Town to London route. Overall, seat capacity between South Africa and international destinations on direct routes increased by 2.8% between 2013 and 2019. “Expanding air access is key in terms of giving South Africans more choices, direct connectivity and ensuring the cost of overseas travel is fair,” Faling said.

Business vs. Leisure travel

Wesgro’s data measured the number of international trips taken for leisure purposes versus those taken for business in 2018. Sixty four percent of outbound international trips from South Africa were for leisure while 36% were for business. This aligns with recent insights gathered by Travelcheck – the research assessed one thousand travellers’ reasons for travel – 57% say leisure is the primary reason to travel overseas, 13% travel for business while 30% say they travel for business and leisure.