Five events of the G20 summit will be held in Nelson Mandela Bay.
This will add to the Municipality’s events, which raked in about R200 million, in 2024, through ticket sales, retail, transport and logistics, and hospitality.
Babalwa Lobishe, the Executive Mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay, said the City continues to host strategic events, including international and national sports (Afcon, Cosafa, Home of Legends, Stormers and RC Toulon Rugby match), conferences, and music festivals, all of which have major tourism and economic spin-offs.
The City reported a 2% increase in tourists and visitors, to offerings such as blue flag beaches, the Big 7 (including dolphins and whales), and rich heritage and culture.
The total number of bed nights in Nelson Mandela Bay is estimated to be around 566,831 for the month of December alone.
Using bed nights figures and the average stay of visitors, about 111,143 overnight visitors were in the region between Christmas and New Year’s day.
This has pushed up occupancy by 2% and room nights sold by at least 10%.
Spending figures associated with bed nights equates to about R41,941,593.16 of foreign spending, domestic Spend of R431,085,788.67 and total Overnight Visitor Spend of R473,027,381.83.
About 50,000 day visitors flicked to 13 cruise line ships, 50,000 totalling over R95 million.
Picture: Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism