MOUNTAIN Zebra National Park welcomed more than 30 000 visitors through its gates over the past financial year.
The increase from 27 965 to 31 210 visitors between April 1 last year and March 31 this year accounted for a 10% increase in guests to the park.
A total of just over 81%, or 25 302 of these were South African.
Dissected into provinces, visitors from the Eastern Cape made up the majority – 65% or 16 411, followed by the Western Cape’s 4 013 or 16%.
There was a slight difference between the numbers of visitors who went into the park only for day visits compared to those who chose to stay overnight.
Overnight guests accounted for 53% of the total visitors – 16 563, while the remaining 14 647 came in as day visitors.
Mountain Zebra’s top three overseas markets last financial year were Germany, the Netherlands and France.
They represented 44%, 11% and 7% of the international market respectively.
Park manager, Roland Januarie, said they were excited to see an increase in the popularity of the park, especially among South Africans.
“In a country so rich in the number of game reserves available for locals to choose from, what sets one apart from the others can make all the difference.
“One of the stand-out qualities which make Mountain Zebra unique is our cheetah tracking activity, during which guests get to experience getting close to these unique creatures on foot, in their natural habitat,” said Januarie.
“The smaller size of the park and the variety and number of species almost always guarantee good sightings, coupled with our magnificent views, also give us an edge.
“We expanded our accommodation product offering last year, adding an additional eight units to the rest camp.
“The six cottages and two four-star rock chalets were added to the park’s existing family cottages, which now provide guests with a variety of options from which to choose.
“Added to these we still also have camping and caravan sites in the rest camp and the Doornhoek guesthouse and two mountain cottages inside the game area,” continued Januarie.
The park, located just outside the town of Cradock, offers visitors a number of activities to choose from.
These range from self-drive game viewing, to guided game drives, cheetah tracking, a visit to San cave paintings and a number of walks and hikes.