The Free State tourism sector is markedly underdeveloped compared to metropolitan foreign tourist traffic in some other provinces.

Only 5 % of the 1.4 million overseas tourists visiting South Africa annually come to the Free State (70 000 tourists). They stayed an average of five nights in the province and represented less than 2 % of the nearly 3 million tourists who visited the Free State per year. However, the R105 million they do spend in the Free State, accounts for 17 % of the provinces total tourism revenue per year.

By contrast, the 2.8 million South African citizens to visit the Free State annually represents 98.6 % of total visitors to the province and spend R513 million, which accounts for only 83 % of annual provincial tourism revenue.

The investment and entrepreneurial potential still to be developed in the Free State tourism industry, is simply tremendous.