Namibia’s colder months and the peak tourism season officially began in May, albeit on a soft footing.
While the season typically brings increased activity, the early indicators suggest a more subdued start, with momentum expected to build gradually as the country approaches the height of the season in August and September.
National occupancy rates declined marginally by 0.04 percentage points month-on-month, easing from 54.94% in April to 54.90% in May.
On an annual basis, however, the sector experienced a more notable
slowdown, with occupancy rates falling by 5.44 percentage points from 60.34% recorded in May 2024.
Despite this annual decline, current levels remain slightly above pre-pandemic benchmarks last seen in 2019, suggesting a degree of resilience in the sector.
The performance across Namibia’s tourism regions was uneven. The central region recorded the lowest
occupancy rate in May, dropping to 37.52% from 44.41% in April. This sharp decline may reflect a reduction in corporate or event-based travel during the month.
Similarly, the coastal region saw occupancy fall to 54.43% in May, down from a regional high of 60.79% the previous month.
Despite the dip, the coast continues to attract a mix of leisure and business travellers.
In contrast, the northern region posted the strongest improvement, with occupancy reaching 58.36%. This increase was likely driven by a series of public holidays during May that spurred domestic travel.
The north also benefits from its proximity to key tourist destinations such as Etosha National Park and Damaraland, which continue to attract both local and international visitors.
The southern region also recorded a moderate improvement, with occupancy rising from 53.65% in April to 55.73% in May.
Popular attractions such as Sossusvlei continue to support demand for leisure travel in the area, while Lüderitz has emerged as a growing hub for business-related visits due to increased economic activity in the region.
In terms of visitor composition, leisure travel remained the dominant segment, accounting for 96.80% of all guests in May.
This segment was most prominent in the northern and southern regions. Business travel accounted for 2.63% of occupancy, with the majority of business travellers concentrated in the coastal region.
However, this was a one percentage point decrease compared to April.
Conference travel remained limited, representing just 0.56% of all visitors, again largely centred in the coastal area. Looking ahead, business and conference travel is expected to increase in the coming months.
This will likely be supported by heightened foreign investor activity, particularly around Namibia’s green hydrogen pilot programmes and the Hyphen project in the south. In addition, ongoing exploration in oil, gas, copper, gold, and rare earth minerals is expected to contribute to higher travel volumes in support of business development.
Several major events on the calendar are also expected to drive an uptick in conference-related tourism.
As in previous months, the majority of international visitors to Namibia in May 2025 originated from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, collectively accounting for 31.19% of total arrivals.
However, this reflects a notable decline from 40.29% recorded in April. Domestic travellers made up the second-largest share, contributing 19.67% to overall occupancy, slightly higher than the 19.30% recorded the previous month.
According to the Hospitality Association of Namibia (HAN), the drop in arrivals from the DACH region Namibia’s key middle-market segment can be attributed to rising travel-related costs, such as higher airfare and visa fees, which continue to discourage long-haul travel.
HAN also highlighted the broader impact of global political uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, which are weighing on international travel sentiment and affecting outbound travel demand from traditionally strong European markets.
In contrast, arrivals from other source markets showed growth. The share of French visitors rose significantly from 6.90% in April to 10.34% in May, indicating growing interest in Namibia among travellers from France.
Similarly, visitors from the USA and Canada increased their share from 3.07% to 6.04% over the same period.
On the domestic front, the tourism sector benefitted from a cluster of public holidays in May, which encouraged internal travel and led to a modest rise in local tourism activity. Meanwhile, regional travel from South Africa also strengthened, with the share of South African tourists increasing from 7.23% in April to 7.81% in May, reinforcing South Africa’s role as a vital short-haul market for Namibia’s tourism industry. –Simonis Storm Securities
