Tourism in Mozambique
Mozambique is a beautiful country to get away to, with warm weather, great beaches, and an allure that has not yet been discovered by mainstream tourism operators. Several factors have contributed to the lack of exposure Mozambique gets, however, the country is starting to become more of a getaway destination for other countries in the region. At present, the ability to get to the country is also somewhat limited, with the vast majority of visitors having to go through neighboring South Africa first before arriving in Mozambique.
Tourism in Mozambique is the fastest growing part of the economy but yet still hasn’t reached the average contribution to GDP as seen in other, similar countries.
Types of tourism on offer
With a great climate, pristine beaches, and a slowly burgeoning conservation industry, Mozambique is seen as a great place to get away and just relax. The country is the kind of place you go to if you are looking to unwind and get back to the basics in life.
The types of tourism on offer include:
Wildlife tourism: Mozambique has not previously been known for wildlife tourism as the civil war decimated large parts of the local flora and fauna. Concerted efforts have been made of late to address this and now you will find that the Maputo Special Reserve and Gorongosa Park are both showing positive growth.
Adventure tourism: With its miles of beautiful coastline and wonderful weather, Mozambique is a mecca for those wanting to do scuba or normal diving as well as other ocean-related adventures. Game fishing is starting to become popular to a certain extent but don’t expect it to be as big as in other, more developed countries.
Tourist season
Mozambique doesn’t have a set tourism season per se, rather it has times of the year when it is better to visit due to the weather. With a subtropical climate, the country does experience a fair amount of hot days and as such, this is an attraction to many visitors. If however, you are someone who is going to struggle in hot, humid weather then it may be better to look at visiting in the cooler months.
You will notice that prices are generally higher at certain times of the year and this usually coincides with the busier times for tourism providers.
Visitor numbers
Tourist numbers have shown a great increase in recent years although they are still nowhere near as high as they should be. With an estimated 240,000 tourists in 1999, the fact that Mozambique attracted over 2 million visitors just 10 years later in 2009 shows just how quickly the tourism industry is growing.
There is a growing demand for the countries idyllic getaways with an average of 1 in 3 tourists coming from neighboring South Africa.
Limitations to tourism
The poor infrastructure, lack of direct access to the country, and inadequate marketing of the tourism services are all issues that have resulted in the country’s slower-than-expected tourist growth. This is starting to change but there is still room for massive change before the country becomes a premier tourism hot spot.
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