Top 10 Highest Paying Tourism Jobs In South Africa (2024)

Tourism is superb in South Africa, particularly if we should compare with several others in the continent. And one of the beautiful things about the tourism sector is the wide opportunities attached to it. Different people belonging to different careers can easily find a place in the sector and flourish accordingly.

We will see some amazing career opportunities in tourism in the country. These indeed are not just fun-filled enterprises, but are some of the highest paying tourism jobs in South Africa.

Top 10 Highest Paying Tourism Jobs In South Africa

In no particular order or ranking, let’s explore them:

1. Hotel Manager

In every country, hotels are crucial as far as tourism is concerned. Hence, the individual in charge of overseeing all aspects of running one (I.e the hotel manager) is very pivotal. Rising to the top of the ladder to become a manager of a classic hotel in South Africa means you have to be a professional in the field. Therefore, it is reasonable that such people are some of the highest paid in the sector. A top Hotel General Manager in a top South African hotel can earn a whopping ZAR 1,128,524 a year.

2. Travel Agent

The job of a Travel agent is basically to plan and book trips for clients. In spite of the numerous tools available online today that helps anyone research and book their own travel plans all by themselves, a lot of people still prefer working with a Travel Agent for obvious reasons. The well experienced travel agent in South Africa can earn up to R291,564 per annum, as well as an average bonus of R33,821. Hence, this job is one of the highest paying in the tourism sector.

3. Event & Conference Organiser

This job revolves around planning events for clients. Actually, it takes a whole lot to put up an event together. Indeed, many folks would simply prefer handing over the hard works to a professional that can make things easier for them, and won’t mind paying for the service. Therefore, you can earn up to R 450 000 a year on this job.

4. Spa Manager

Another popular tourism inclined destination is the spa. A lot of tourists enjoys having a swell time in these places while visiting. Therefore, many of such businesses are earning reasonably well – justifying the good salaries of spa managers (who works hard everyday to see to the smooth running of the day-to-day activities there). The average pay for a Spa Manager in South Africa is ZAR 268,798 a year.

5. Tour Operator

They are professionals who combines tour and travel components to make holiday packages, partnering with different service providers to make this a reality. You can earn up to R 258 000 per year in this field, and it’s one of the highest paying in tourism.

6. Tour Guide

They are pivotal as far as the travel industry is concerned, and they offer crucial services which many tourists are usually eager to pay for. These experts (they have superb knowledge of specific areas) gives guided tours to groups of visitors/tourists (walking tours, bus tours, boat tours, etc). Aside the knowledge aspect, they are also excellent communicators. In fact, some tour guides speaks more than one language.

7. Executive Chef

The average executive chef salary in South Africa is R 330 000 per year. Hence, this career is another lucrative one in the tourism sector in South Africa. These guys are in charge of a restaurant’s kitchen, and they are really good with their jobs. We don’t have to place emphasis on the place of food as far as this sector is concerned. Therefore, Executive Chefs are doing a very important job to ensure pleasantness as far as the food is concerned.

8. Sommelier

These experts in wines are purposefully employed by big restaurants for sake of all that concerns wine (which fetches them a whole lot of money). They are professionals who are vehemently trained, and as such are properly paid. Also, depending on where they work, the job may be really tasking.

9. PR Manager

These are also experts whose job is to manage a brand’s reputation. Their job revolves around being the firm’s spokesperson, and they have an integral role in the tourist field too. They can work for a game reserve, a hotel, and so on. They are paid to basically plan, develop, and execute specific strategies to build and maintain the overall reputation of the company they are working for. They write and even syndicate lovely press releases about the company, amongst others.

Also, they have to have all it takes to deal with potential crisis situations (meaning these guys have superb communication and problem-solving skills). Finally, the average salary for a Public Relations (PR) Manager in South Africa is R291,012.

10. Leisure Activity Co-ordinator

Finally, just in case you want an exciting job opportunity in the tourism terrain of South Africa and you don’t know what to opt for, you can actually settle for being this. Usually, these guys work for resorts and hotel chains, as their job is to see to it that any planned activities run smoothly.

Leisure Activity Co-ordinators ensures that all aspect of the day-to-day management of a leisure centre will go well. They also engage guests properly (which points to the need to have excellent interpersonal skills), spending a whole lot of time with them. It can be a pleasurable job if you have interest in things like this.

In Conclusion

These are some of the highest paying tourism jobs in South Africa that can be recommended to folks interested in diving into this sector for its lucrative tendencies. However, to get to the cadre of an expert where you can expect to earn a lot, you must be ready to work really hard.