Top South Africa hotels
Car / Taxi Cape Town
51 Reviews There are numerous car rental companies located at the airport and throughout town but we have secured our car from SIXT First Car Rental from UK via another third party website CarHire3000.com. The...
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self drive Kruger National Park
25 Reviews Shell Ultra City N4 highway at Middelburg is on the main route from to Johannesburg and Pretoria to the Kruger National park. Thieves are using car lock jamming devices to block the signal to auto...
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Buses Cape Town
22 Reviews I have never used the City Sightseeing bus in Cape Town, but looking at the website, it seems like so much fun that I can't wait to give it a go! South Africa is notorious for its lack of public...
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airport Kruger National Park
8 Reviews I fly about once a fortnight on business :( and as often as I can for pleasure :), but let me confess up front that although its an integral part of my life, I just don't like flying. And I really...
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Trains Cape Town
13 Reviews The Muizenberg-Simonstown railway is probably one of the most picturesque sections of coastal railway line in the world, and if you're lucky, you can watch whales frolicking in False Bay. The line...
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safari tour Kruger National Park
9 Reviews Transport within the park has to be done either with Safari Company or with your own vehicle. In the environment of Kruger Park unlike the Etosha Park in Namibia, where the grass is lower and there...
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Air Travel Cape Town
36 Reviews Kulula and 1Time fly into Cape Town and generally offer the cheapest tickets. SAA and BA are often 3 or 4 times the price. Shop around and always look for the "best fare prices". If your dates are...
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Check out the car beforehand to make sure everything works. One consideration that may save you from a fine is to make sure the insurance, registration and license are all up to date and in order before leaving the rental compound. We got a fine leaving Lesotho for expired something or other, which other places let go.
In cars, SUVs and especially motorcycles, you really have to be aware of animals on the road... and in the air above the road. While goats, cows, chickens, elephants, giraffes, impalas and other barnyard animals aren't much more common than encountering people on the roads, you need to watch out for them. Keep in mind also that many people walk along the sides of the road, and they don't seem to fully appreciate what damage a car doing 120kph could do. So we have to watch out for them. Animals can be encountered any time on any road. One of the problems we had with animals were birds who weren't bright enough to get out of the way fast enough. Total birds killed in our wake here: 0, but check out Namibia...
Driving in South Africa, is not as bad as people say. I highly recommend driving yourself, as it gives you the freedom to move and stop as you please. It beats tours any day.But if you do plan to drive there's a few things you should know. In South Africa (as well as Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Swaziland, maybe among others) they drive on the left. It's not that hard for those who haven't done it, but it does sometimes require you to think. Don't drive too fast until you're familiar with it. That's the most important thing.South Africa is reputed to be a very dangerous place to drive. I'm not sure I fully agree- I've seen worse driving other places. In South Africa the road system is quite good, but they are often only one lane per direction plus a paved shoulder. Passing is where some of the danger comes in. If a car wants to pass you, get over onto the shoulder...
We were pulled over twice just for them to look at our drivers licence. Apparently its very difficult to pass the drivers test in SA, so there are a lot of fake drivers licences.It's a country that requires an international licence, but they didn't seem to care to look at that either time.They just have checkpoints on the side of the road, and waive you over to stop and check.DON"T SPEED. there were SO many cops with photo cameras on the side of the road hidden, with no car or anything... There are also boxes on poles with cameras mounted. Seemed like they are really fair in telling you where the cameras are going to be, but I also saw several cars with radar guns in the MIDDLE of NOWHERE, with no advance warning except the wonderful drivers coming the other way that flashed their lights as they passed. Please return the favor.
I have a Garmin Nuvi 650 which is incredible. I purchased the City Navigator South Africa CD version 6, off the internet, and downloaded it before I went.THIS SINGLE-HANDEDLY made my trip INCREDIBLE. It was so easy to go everywhere, divert around construction, get "lost" without paying any attention to where you were going, and rumble down dirt roads thru villages on the way somewhere! I can't say enough how much its worth the investment if you are planning on renting a car or doing any driving. It never ceased to amaze me the accuracy when you were in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road and it tells you to turn just ahead. You can mark all the places you stayed, or beautiful scenery, or in my case, ask the lodge we were staying for their coordinates, program it in, and tell it to take me right there, which worked perfectly!
Speed limit : 60km/hr in urban areas and 100km/hr outside of cities and towns and 120km/hr on highways.The N3 in Kwazulu Natal is a hotspot for police checking for speeding. If you notice oncoming traffic flashing you, it's to warn you the police are out to catch you speeding.In National Parks the speed limit is 50km/hr on tarred roads and 40km/hr on dirt roads.
Every petrol station is attended. This means there is always someone to fill the car up for you, you will have to pay in cash. The attendant will normally clean your windows and a tip of approx. ZAR5 is appropriate
If you book a stay in a safari lodge, make sure that you know whether there is any local transportation. Otherwise you might get stuck in the lodge. The best is to rent a car at the airport, so you become mobile and can do your own explorations and safaris. Our lodge was located in the middle of nowhere and a game reserve and walking around was not allowed. We were lucky that we rented a car and were able to travel around. That is the best way to experience Africa and its people.
If you don't mind small planes, the local airlines that do quick flights around the game lodges of Kruger are a grea option, with one exception. Do not use Nelair. Most South African travel companies seem to rally care about their customers, but Nelair could write the manual on how not to treat people. And theri operations are downright dangerous. there are much better choices.
From Vienna to South Africa there are a number of possibilities for flights. The major consideration will be convenience vs price. I got a ticket via Madrid on Iberia for EUR 660 - and the miles I collect can go on my BA frequent flyer card. It is not quite as practical as getting a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt and from Vienna to Frankfurt, which would give my a lot of points on my Star Alliance frequent flyer card but the price difference for the time I want to go was EUR 500 - which would be the same at two internal flights return from Johannesburg (on South African Airways - part of the Star Alliance group). Other options include Emirates or Qatar Airways - both of which were considerable cheaper than the Lufthansa option, but with stopovers in Dubai or Doha respectively. For any flights leaving Vienna bound for South Africa, I would recommend Check Felix - www.checkfelix.com.
The Table Bay Hotel Cape Town
9 Reviews and 345 Opinions One of the more expensive options, but if you can afford it then go for it. The location is great,...
The Westcliff Hotel Johannesburg
5 Reviews and 201 Opinions Being a local, I have never stayed here (and probably couldn't afford to!) - having visited business...
Skukuza Restcamp - Kruger National Park Kruger National Park
8 Reviews and 100 Opinions This is the largest camp on the banks of the Sabie river, it is also the administrative centre of...
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Reviews and photos of South Africa attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for South Africa sightseeing.
Q: Hi all, im travelling to South Africa and Malarone is not sold in Argentina, so I should buy it when I get to South Africa. Do you...
A: You will need a prescription from a South Africa registered doctor.
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