Durban vs Pretoria

Pretoria leads Durban by 2 points on the CIRA Index, 68 to 66. Durban grades better on 5 measures, Pretoria on 4; the same 35 measures from public sources for both.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• CIRA Index: Durban 66, Pretoria 68
• OECD: Durban 62, Pretoria 66
• UN Tourism: Durban 67, Pretoria 61
• UNDRR: Durban 60, Pretoria 64

Theme by theme

• Demand and seasonality: Durban 67, Pretoria 67
• Economy and jobs: Durban 42, Pretoria 42
• Climate and hazards: Durban 50, Pretoria 70
• Water and environment: Durban 75, Pretoria 63
• Community and housing: Durban 75, Pretoria 100
• Access and continuity: Durban 63, Pretoria 54

Where Durban is stronger

• Largest foreign market: 39 % of international arrivals or nights (region figure) (South African Tourism, Tourism Performance Report January – December 2025, 2025). Between 30 and 40: grade 1/4.
• Water scarcity: low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 3/4.
• Municipal waste per resident: 219 kg per resident per year (metro figure) (eThekwini Municipality Cleansing and Solid Waste (CSW), State of Waste Report for eThekwini Municipality, 2024). At or below 350: grade 4/4.
• Access redundancy: 3 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (metro figure) (Airports Company South Africa, Transnet Port Terminals / KwaZulu Cruise Terminal, SANRAL, 2024–2026). Between 3 and 4: grade 3/4.
• Tourism crisis and recovery plan: A plan with named owners, operators and recovery funding (eThekwini Municipality / SAnews, 2025–2026). Grade 3/4.

Where Pretoria is stronger

• Hotel bed or room occupancy: 48 % average annual occupancy (Airbtics, Airbnb Revenue in Pretoria: Short-Term Rental Data & Insights, February 2025–January 2026). Between 45 and 55: grade 1/4.
• Tropical nights: 7 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). At or below 10: grade 4/4.
• Flood hazard: very low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 4/4.
• Rent growth: 2.4 % change in rents over the last 12 months (region figure) (PayProp South Africa, PayProp Rental Index Q2 2025, Q2 2025). At or below 3: grade 4/4.

Country context (World Economic Forum)

• South Africa: #61 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
• South Africa: #61 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026

Durban in full · Pretoria in full

The CIRA Index ranking · City vs city · How the index works · CIRA Studio · Put your city in the pilot