Major upgrade work underway at Nelson Mandela Capture Site in Howick, rise in international tourists
KZN Tourism & Film Authority Board chairperson Dr Sibusiso Ndebele, Tourism MEC Rev Musa Zondi, uMngeni Municipality speaker Janis Holmes, uMngeni deputy mayor Sandile Mnikathi and Sibusiso Gumbi, interim CEO of KZN Tourism and Film at the Nelson Mandela Capture Site.
Image: Supplied
The Nelson Mandela Capture Site in Howick is seeing a significant surge in international tourists as the heritage destination undergoes major infrastructure upgrades, including a new access road, improved parking, a gatehouse, and stormwater systems.
Operations Manager Thuli Mtolo said the site in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands now receives an average of 112 to 250 visitors a day, most of them from outside South Africa.
She explained that this shift is the result of a deliberate effort to improve international marketing. “We brought in a marketing team to help us reach more international tourists. Previously, the site was mostly supported by domestic visitors,” she said. “International tourists used to hear about us through word of mouth, but it didn’t translate into big numbers.”
Mtolo noted that dedicated marketing has already changed the pattern of visitor arrivals. “We started seeing a real increase in international tourism. We are getting a lot of support, and you can see it with the tour buses arriving.”
She mentioned that while visitor numbers have not yet exceeded pre-pandemic records, figures are now close. “When I compare this year month-by-month with the same periods before Covid-19, the difference is very small,” she said. “We hoped to exceed those numbers, but we are pleased to see that we are returning to our previous levels.”
Mtolo explained that access challenges previously discouraged some visitors. “Many tourists struggled to find the entrance. With the new road and gatehouse, we expected to see an improvement in the numbers.”
Construction work began in March and Mtolo said the upgrades are expected to support continued growth once fully completed.
The site is already seeing early festive-season growth. “We started noticing higher visitor numbers at the beginning of November,” Mtolo said. Staff are preparing for a busy period. “We know the site very well and we plan for this every year, so we are ready for increased foot traffic.”