Value of Domestic Tourists in the Travel and Tourism Industry

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected South Africa's tourism industry, which had a large dependence on international tourists, due to the restrictive travel measures put in place to curb the spread of the virus. The tourism industry contributes significantly to South Africa's economy, and the lack of international tourists and subsequent revenue loss has been felt across the industry. One proposition to mitigate this is to promote domestic tourism. The report is concerned with the design of a mathematical model which would boost domestic tourism in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. The model investigates the formulation and optimisation of a customised (tourism) package cost function.