BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – The number of tourists who visited Eswatini in May 2024 has increased by over 8 000 compared to April 2024.
This is according to the May 2024 Monthly Tourism Statistical Release produced by Eswatini Tourism Authority (ETA). According to the report, 64 465 tourists arrived in Eswatini in April and 72 484 arrived in May. This shows that the number of tourists who visited Eswatini between February and March 2024 increased by 8 019.
According to the report, the 64 465 tourists represent an increase of 5.5 percent, compared to the same month last year.
The tourists came from African countries such as South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Malawi. Tourists from overseas came from countries such as France, Netherlands, and the United States of America (USA), and China. Three countries have been identified by the report as being the top three regional markets.
They include South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. Tourists from South Africa were 44 638, representing a decrease of 2.4 percent, when compared with the same month last year. Tourists from Mozambique were 12 362, representing an increase of 15.9 percent, compared with the same month last year.
Tourists from Zimbabwe were 4 009, representing an increase of 45.8 percent, compared with the same month last year. Among countries from the top three overseas markets are France, Netherlands, and the USA. Tourists from France were 1 852, representing an increase of 91 percent, when compared with the same month last year.
Eswatini received 976 tourists from Netherlands, representing an increase of 32 percent, when compared with the same time last year, while 1 283 tourists were from USA, representing a decrease of 11.1 percent, compared to this time last year. Countries such as Tanzania, Malawi, and China have been identified as the top three emerging markets for Eswatini’s tourism industry. The monthly average length of stay for the tourists during March was 1.77 nights.
