In 2008, the financial crisis had a significant toll on South Africa’s hospitality industry; considerably slowing down its growth and causing occupancy rates to dramatically fall. However, the industry is showing positive signs of recovery, stabilising in 2011 and continuing to improve up until the present day. South Africa has long been ranked as one of the world’s favourite holiday destinations, attracting visitors from all over the world.
Numerous hospitality students opt to study an international hospitality management degree within the country, due to its idyllic setting and acclaimed tertiary education institutions on offer. The opportunities for work post studying are also increasing significantly as the hospitality industry recovers and numerous hotels and guest houses start to creep closer to their pre-recession occupancy rates. The predicted tourism figures for the next five years are extremely encouraging, with 16.85 million tourists expected to grace SA’s shores in 2016, which is a compound annual increase of 4.1% from 2011.
As the hospitality industry is inherently linked to the global economy, it is only natural that its improvement coincides with the gradual recovery of prevailing economic conditions. 2013 has so far witnessed growth and development for the industry, and forward booking trends suggest that this will continue until the end of the financial year. Joop Demes, the CEO of Pam Golding Hospitality, went so far as to say that the South African hospitality industry is currently trumping that of Europe, America and Asia – so it’s no wonder that students from across the globe are choosing to study in here.
Another draw-card is the fact that SA’s hospitality industry is so diverse – people have the option to work anywhere, from five star hotels to wildlife camps in the middle of the bush. Whether you can see yourself smiling at celebrities at the reception desk of the One and Only or dealing with elephants in the dining room at a prestigious bush lodge, South Africa has it all, and studying hotel management here will open numerous career doors for the rest of your life.
