| Hints for tourists
Every person wishing to enter South Africa must be in possession of a valid passport for travel to South Africa and, where necessary, a visa.
The Immigration Act, 2002(Act 13 of 2002), stipulates that all visitors to South Africa are required to have a minimum of one blank page (both back and front) in their passport to enable the entry visa to be issued.
If there is insufficient space in the passport, entry will be denied.
Enquiries can be directed to South African diplomatic representatives abroad or the Department of Home Affairs in Pretoria . Visas are issued free of charge. Visitors who intend travelling to South Africa 's neighbouring countries and back into South Africa are advised to apply for multiple-entry visas. Passport-holders of certain countries are exempt from visa requirements. Tourists must satisfy immigration officers that they have the means to support themselves during their stay and that they are in possession of return or onward tickets. They must also have valid international health certificates.
Visitors from the yellow-fever belt in Africa and the USA , as well as those who travel through or disembark in these areas, have to be inoculated against the disease. 
Malaria is endemic to parts of KwaZulu-Natal , Mpumalanga and Limpopo . It is essential to take precautions when visiting these areas.
Foreign tourists visiting South Africa can have their value-added tax (VAT) refunded, provided the value of the items purchased exceeds R20. VAT is refunded on departure at the point of exit.
South Africa's transport infrastructure airlines, railroads, roads, luxury touring buses (coaches) and motor cars is such that tourists can travel comfortably and quickly from their port of entry to any other part of the country. A number of international airlines, including South African Airways , operate regular scheduled flights to and from South Africa . Several domestic airlines operate in the country. There are also mainline trains to all parts of the country.
A brochure entitled Helpful Hints to Make Your Stay Enjoyable and Safe is distributed to tourists at international airports.
Accommodation
The tourist accommodation industry in South Africa provides a wide spectrum of accommodation, from formal hotels to informal holiday flats and cottages, game lodges and reserves, guest-houses, youth hostels and bed-and-breakfast establishments.
A variety of promotional material on South Africa is available. Comprehensive guides and maps cover all the regions and aspects of interest to tourists, including accommodation. Various useful tourism websites can be found on the Internet.
The Tourism Grading Council of South Africa (TGCSA) was appointed in September 2000 to inspect the standards in the hospitality and accommodation industry.
The voluntary grading system, which was launched in 2001, uses internationally recognised star insignia to rate accommodation establishments initially, and will be extended to include relevant businesses in classified sectors of the tourism industry. Once graded, establishments will be encouraged to utilise the star system for marketing and advertising purposes.
Since its inception in 2001, the TGCSA has been directly responsible for an additional R76,5 million being invested in hotels, lodges, guesthouses, bed-and-breakfast and self-catering establishments.
 Management at 34 hospitality establishments that have adopted TGCSA's National Star-Grading Scheme decided to invest the R76,5 million in refurbishing and other infrastructure spending.
Grading assessors undergo training to receive the National Certificate in tourism grading. The awarding of such a qualification is a world-first. Assessors are then accredited with THETA and registered with the TGCSA before being recommended to the industry. Larger group hotels with their own internal assessors will also be accredited with THETA. Independent auditors conduct random audits. These auditors also assist in ensuring that the assessors adhere to a Code of Conduct.
By March 2003, more than 1 200 accommodation establishments had been graded as part of the Star-Grading System. Forty-eight independent assessors, including 15 from historically disadvantaged backgrounds, have been trained and accredited to undertake grading on behalf of the TGCSA. The star grading is the only system recognised by government and the Tourism Business Council.
By March 2003, the Council was working with representatives from the Meetings Incentive, Conference and Exhibitions Industry (MICE) industry to develop customer-orientated, practical and relevant star-grading criteria for the sector.
South Africa will be one of the first countries in the world to have national grading criteria for the MICE venues sector.
Implementation of the star-grading criteria for caravan and camping facilities was expected to commence during the middle of 2003.
The TGCSA is also in the process of developing star-grading criteria for backpacker and hostel establishments, conference venues, restaurants, tour operators and tourist transport service-providers.
By April 2003, the TGCSA was engaging representatives from the food and beverage industry (coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc.) in developing star-grading criteria for the sector.
Tourist safety
South African Tourism has launched several initiatives aimed at ensuring the safety of travellers to the country.
These include a partnership initiative with the oil company Engen and the Tourism Information and Safety Call Line , which provides tourists with information on what to do in an emergency and where to locate services.
The line, 083 123 2345 is operational 24 hours per day.
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism has established a National Tourism Safety Network, which is a multi-stakeholder structure comprising provincial representatives, the South African Police Service (SAPS), metro police, organised local government, community policing structures, South African Tourism and other key stakeholders.
The forum has so far developed a Tourism Safety Communications Strategy that is presently being implemented by provinces. It has also redrafted the National Tourism Safety Tips for visitors and established agreement in the industry to distribute only the new documents to tourists.
 The Mpumalanga Provincial Government announced in April 2003 that it would be spending R1,4 million to establish permanent tourism-safety monitors.
The Tourism-Safety Monitors Project was launched in December 2002 as a pilot project aimed at preventing and curbing criminal attacks against both domestic and foreign visitors. Some 85 youth were trained and placed at more than 10 tourist points in the province.
The Western Cape Government established the Western Cape Tourism Safety Forum, a task team joining tourism bureaux, the SAPS and community-safety authorities.
Together they ensure that tourists who are involved in incidents of crime receive humanitarian support.
On 15 and 16 October 2003 , the provincial Government hosted the Tourism Safety Conference in Cape Town to discuss issues around tourism safety.
The Conference harnessed the collective thinking of tourism and safety stakeholders to come up with consistent and co-ordinated actions.
|
