Samenvatting

The implementation of democracy in 1994 has led the country to become one of the fastest growing tourist markets of the African continent. The increasing number of foreign tourists to South Africa has resulted in more demand for paid accommodation. This report provides detailed information on South Africa's tourist accommodation market and whether there are opportunities for Dutch investors. The main question that will be answered in this report is:

"Are there opportunities for Dutch entrepreneurs with regard to Bed and Breakfast services in South Africa?"

The answer to this question is found by analyzing the market attractiveness of the tourist accommodation industry, the market features of the tourism sector, and the potential customers and competitors. Chapter 2 describes the developments in the tourism sector. Although the number of foreign tourists to South Africa rises rapidly, the government also makes huge investments to improve the infrastructure, which should help South Africa extract the most from FIFA World Cup 2010. This event, that will be held be held in South Africa, is expected to generate more tourists for South Africa on the long term.

The subsequent chapters describe the potential customer base and the competitors. By analyzing the purpose of visit, welfare and number of bed nights spent by visitors from the key markets, it seems that the potential customers will most likely be overseas visitors who value a personal touch for a good price. Although each tourist has different needs and requirements, safety is viewed as the most important need under all tourists. All the other providers of paid accommodation in the area can be competitors, and their strengths and weaknesses may vary.

Chapter five examines the overall market attractiveness in which B&Bs operate. Although competition is intense, the market and macro environmental factors indicate that the tourist accommodation market is a growing market segment with many opportunities. The efforts of the South African government to reduce regulations and stimulate business seem to be successful in the tourist accommodation market. Labour is cheap, while the prices of rooms are well developed compared to other tourist destinations. However, the devaluating currency has led to an increase in interest rates, and a decline in the growth of house prices. This makes it unattractive to finance property by means of a loan.

Finally, all nine provinces in South Africa are analyzed in the regional analysis. A preliminary analysis indicates that Gauteng and Western Cape are the two provinces with the highest potential. Followed is an analysis of the unique selling points in the two provinces. These indicate that Cape Town is the place with the most potential in South Africa, followed by Johannesburg.