September is Tourism Month in South Africa! A staggering one in every eleven jobs advertised in SA is sustained by this thriving industry. Furthermore our data reveals that Tourism creates more jobs than other top hiring sectors such as mining, creating jobs all throughout the country. With many beautiful natural reserves, a great history and amazing infrastructure, South Africa is a leading destination for tourism globally. To celebrate the industry, in this series we want to showcase the most beautiful places to work across the country, so scroll down and choose your favourite!
Tourists come to South Africa for many reasons, so we’ve separated this series into three different parts.
- Most beautiful beaches
- Most amazing natural reserves
- Top cities
Some stats
- A total of 9,881,368 international tourists visited the country in 2012, representing an increase of 10% from the previous year and of 80% in the last 10 years.
- Tourist growth is twice the global average, with SA catching up to other popular destinations.
- Three quarters of tourists in the country were South Africans.
- The largest influx of tourists comes from other African nations (top 3: Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Mozambique), followed by Europe (UK, Germany and the Netherlands).
- While there are more visitors from the USA than from China (30k vs 10k), the Asian nation’s visits are growing at the astonishing rate of 10% per month.
Workin’ in SA: The Most Beautiful Beaches
1. Camps Bay Beach
Camps Bay is one of the wealthier suburbs of Cape Town, and its namesake beach is the largest white sand beach in the area. Deemed a “Blue Flag” beach by the EFF, it is certainly one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Cape Town is in the top 10 beach cities in the world (according to Lonely Island), and Camps Bay Beach is certainly the crown jewel, attracting many thousands of tourists every year.
Location: Cape Town, Western Cape
Population: 2773
# of Jobs (Cape Town): 189
Hotels and B&Bs: 57
Search on Adzuna for jobs in Cape Town
2. Umhlanga Rocks
A resort town north of Durban, Umhlanga is home to many historic hotels and resorts, such as The Oyster Box, built in 1836. The Prince of Monaco spent his honeymoon in their £4600/night suite, so be prepared for some royal visits to this beautiful town which has its share of hotels, restaurants and nature tours outside of the city.
Location: KwaZulu-Natal
Population: 24,238
# of Jobs (Cape Town): 158
Hotels and B&Bs: 62
Restaurants: 43
Search on Adzuna for jobs in KwaZulu-Natal
3. Hobie Beach
The most popular beach in Port Elizabeth, this beach is not without its wordly temptations, with a Boardwalk Casino and shopping mall located right across the road. A sailing spot, it hosts the World Boardsailing and Beach Volleyball Championships, as well as the “Splash Festival”, which ensure that this city will not be missing its share of tourists visiting every year.
Location: Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape
Population: 312,392
# of Jobs: 575
Hotels and B&Bs: 209
Restaurants: 103
Search on Adzuna for jobs in Port Elizabeth
4. Plettenberg Bay
This bay, originally named “Beautiful Bay” by the Portuguese, was first inhabited by humans over 100,000 years ago. Situated on the Garden Route, about 600km from Cape Town and 210km from Port Elizabeth.
Location: Garden Route, Western Cape
Population: 6,475
# of Jobs: 15
Hotels and B&Bs: 72
Restaurants: 45
Search on Adzuna for jobs in Plettenberg Bay
5. Jeffrey’s Bay
Once a small fisherman’s village, this sleepy town has gained popularity with surfers and now stands as an iconic beach for surfing, having been featured in cult film “The Endless Summer”. Pay special attention to the events and festivals organised here, especially the Billabong Pro ASP World Tour in July.
Location: Kouga, Eastern Cape
Population: 27,511
Hotels and B&Bs: 40
Restaurants: 26
Search on Adzuna for jobs in Jeffrey’s Bay
6. Durban
The largest municipality on the east coast of the African continent, it is warm all year round and has many beautiful beaches right off the city’s boardwalk. A vibrant metropolis, Durban is one of South Africa’s main tourist destinations, especially for those who want to jump into the water and relax by the sea. A city like this will always have opportunities and jobs driven by the many tourists that visit each year.
Location: Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape
Population: 595,061
# of Jobs: 2,274
Hotels and B&Bs: 267
Restaurants: 192
Search on Adzuna for jobs in Durban
Well that’s all folks did you like this post? Tell us about it on Facebook, tweet it or share it on LinkedIn! If it is snazzy offices you are after check out some of Africa’s Craziest Work Spaces. For some extra information on the jobs market stay tuned for some job market insights.
