30% increase in Toti beachgoers
Beach attendance figures of 1.4 million visitors from 8 December to 8 January.
Sapphire Coast Tourism (SCT) enjoyed a successful festive season welcoming holidaymakers to Amanzimtoti, despite not celebrating a 100% occupancy rate at local accommodation venues.
“Beach attendance figures of 1.4 million visitors from 8 December to 8 January showed an increase of 30% on last year’s figures,” said SCT chairman, Monique Botha.
“However, this did not appear to translate to formal accommodation figures, with odd rooms still available over the peak period, therefore at a guess, about a 90% occupancy rate.
The primary reason we suspect was the three long weekends in December that presented an opportunity for family and friends to pop down to the Sapphire Coast to stay with family and friends.”
The festive season calendar kicked off with another successful Winkle-Toti-Winkle race on Friday, 16 December, and continued until 31 December. “With perfect beach weather conditions for most of the holidays, local beaches were definitely the place to be,” said Monique.
Lots of fun was had by holidaymakers on Toti main beach as they were treated to fun and games for the whole family to enjoy. “A big thank you to the team from Stranddiens, who are a group of church volunteers who come down every year from Johannesburg to organise and manage the beach activities on Toti main beach, for once again assisting with entertainment.”
Entertainment included live music, tug-o-war, puppet shows, treasure hunts, talent competitions, beach volleyball competitions, touch rugby, as well as the annual Mr and Miss Toti pageant.
Along with beach entertainment, SCT arranged for Aisle Hire It to visit the main beach with their photo booth. Holidaymakers were able to have photos taken free of charge to take home as souvenirs to remind them of their wonderful stay in Amanzimtoti.
The Playgirl Hypnotize and Playboy Mesmerize Deodorant Beach Tour, as well as the Nissan Nivara Holiday Roadshow stopped in Toti to hand out freebies to holidaymakers on certain days.
“SCT thanks all our sponsors for their generous contributions: KFC, Lords and Legends, Thirsty Whale and Splash, and Hit the Spot restaurant.
We look forward to welcoming holidaymakers to our shores once again in April for the Easter holiday season,” said Monique.
