South Africa Travel Forum

I've been trying, unsuccessfully, to get specific information as to how to book a trip to Robben Island in advance of arriving in Cape Town (preferrably by email). I also want to know if the cost of a round trip ticket to the island includes a tour. There are apparently a number of tour companies that will prearrange this kind of trip but they seem very expensive. Is it possible to visit the island without booking with a tour company? If so, how?

i just have some questions for you guys which i hope you can answer for me. im planning on traveling to south africa next year as part of a round the world trip and i just wanted to know some stuff.
i plan on staying there for about 4 weeks, will this be enough time to see all the hot spots or do i need to spend more or less!?
how much do you think i will need for this length of time just for some sight seeing and some safri trip and a possible bunjy jump!? iplan to try and do it as cheap as possible by staying in cheap hostels and eating street food.
what should i not miss here?
any info here guys will be much appreciated and i thank you in advance!
happy travels :)

I will be visiting Cape Town in November and want to pre-book trips to both Table Mountain and Robben Island. I am trying to find out if I need to do these trips on a tour or if I can just go by myself. What's the difference - in cost and in fact - on a tour vs. going alone? If I can go without a tour, can I reserve tickets from the U.S. for the date and time that I want? If so, how?

what is the distance between Johannesburg town and goldreef city,approximately how many hours drive?

We are travelling to South Africa in mid-August and arrive at OR Tambo Int at about 10 at night. Rather than collect our hire car and drive in the dark, I would prefer to get a taxi to take us to where we are staying near Hartebeespoort Dam.

Can anyone recommend a reliable taxi that will meet us at the airport and drive us there (two adults and three children). What would be a reasonalbe charge?

Greetings,

I would like to surprise my husband in May 2009 for his 50th birthday by taking him on an African Safari...a dream for him.

We are avid animal lovers and want to work with a tour company or game reserve where all proceeds go to the preservation of the wildlife.

Although we do not mind roughing it in anyway, we would not be opposed to luxurious accommodations if we are able to enjoy a true safari experience. I have been reading about Singita Game Reserve and wondered what everyone has heard about this company.

Also, does it makes sense to include a trip to Cape Town? We would allow a two week stay.

Thanks in advance for everyone's advice!

I need transport for 2 people from Kruger National Park Airport to Sanbonani Lodge in Kruger National Park on 12 Septemebr and the reverse direction on 24th September. How much should I have to pay for a reputable transport company

Hello friends of Cape Town,

Ive also got a question for a change :)

I have just reserved a weekend in on of the private chalets in "the bath" in Citrusdal. I havent been there for ca 5 years. I had a look at the website and the place seems to have changed completely...much bigger, more commercialized.

Has anyone been there lately and can tell me what its like?

Much appreciated!

Michaela
www.arbeiteninkapstadt.com

Hi there,
We'd like to visit South Africa on an individual tour (preferably no self drive )and we are looking for a local South African travel company that organizes such tours. Does anyone know such (trustworthy )companies or have experiences with them (both positive and negative...so we know which ones to avaoid )?

Am interested in visiting cape town in sept/oct.
have not been to cape town before so is looking for a good tour company I can join for a guided tour for 2 persons. Would like to visit
- the usual places of interest in cape town 4-5 days
- seals
- penguin colony
And drive tour of Garden route 4-5 days
- cango caves
- storms river mouth etc
- whale watching in Hermanus
Ending the trip with visit to Addo Elephant park

I have 2-3 weeks to spare for idyllic tour though will have to be on budget
was recommended to try Romer tours..anyone heard of it? But problem is that they need a group size of 4 to start a tour.

Do u have any recommended tour operators for me n my husband?
Do u have any to recommend?

We have booked a two week holiday in South Africa for the end of August and the first week will be spent in the Kruger National Park. We are taking our five year old son and we are worried about the possibility of him catching malaria, particularly as it appears to be very dangerours to young children. Is anybody able to give me any kind of reassurance that we are doing the right thing? Obviously we will take all precautions available including anti malarial drugs and we will be staying in top class accommodation, but I am still worried.

Hi, I plan to do a self drive from Cape town to a game reserve near Port Elizabeth, overnighting in Oudtshoorn, Knysna & Storms River along the way. I will travelling with my wife and 6 year old boy.

We are Chinese so can be easily identified as tourists. The fact that we are Chinese and travelling with a young child make us obvious targets. We have been hearing lots of horror stories about crimes in South Africa (Cape town included).

Any opinions on safety in Cape Town, Oudtshoorn and along garden route would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I am visiting Johannesburg and Pretoria and the Kruger National Park from 25th July - 1oth August this year. What will the weather be like then and what sort of clothing will be appropriate? I have a two and half year old and wonder if there are any tips they may help me?
Thanks in advance.
Cathi.

Is it safe to travel in South Africa right now, given all the anti-immigrant violence this summer? A couple of friends and I were thinking of traveling for a couple of weeks from Johannesburg to Cape Town in August. Thank you!

I have 8 hours before my next flight. Can you recommend a nice, reasonable hotel near Johannesburg International airport?

Has anyone seen the Hall of treasure? Does anyone have picture or can describe it to me? Please?

Coming out at Christmas and can't decide best location to stay....
we do like nice clean pref sort of "modern" rooms...not sure whether to go Waterfront or Camps Bay...or is it round "Kloof street??"..
Looking to spend around £150ish a night....
We like to go out to bars/restaurants....but not too "stuffy"...
also quite like hotels with good facilities and a little pampering...I'm not sure about smaller hotels as we are not "big" on quiet/intimate hotels but everyone seems to rave about the boutique style ones...
We intend to have a car and go out for some days but also like a bit of relax round the pool.....have looked at Westin/Commodore out of the "bigger" ones.....
any help would be brill......(or just someone to make my mind up for me!!)

Can one use the hiking trails in the Cederberg to do mountain biking or do one have to stay on the main gravel roads?

I have tried every number listed on every website link for Cheetah Coaches but they just ring. The e-mails I send are being returned. Have these guys gone out of business?

Hello,
I have booked a flight to South Africa from 1 OCT thru 10 OCT 2008. This will be my first trip to South Africa. My friend and I are American, 34 yrs old, white, males. We arrive in Johannesburg and have currently a rental car booked from the airport. We plan on seeing has many countries has possible in this short time. What would you do or plan in this period? We would like to see as much as possible. We have been exposed to hostile environments in past situations, we are not sure how remarkable the advisories that have been posted here in the U.S. are to visitors. The primary focus of our holiday is photography and cultural awareness, we rather stay away from the common tourist. Thank you for your input.

This may be a difficult question but here is what I would like to know. I would like to come to South Africa (from the U.S.). I always assume whenever I go somewhere that I might never be back. After all, there's lots of places to go in the world and no one is even guaranteed tomorrow. But in the case of someplace this far, it would be even more likely I'll never be back than usual. Therefore, I want to see everything. And by everything, I mean all points of interest in South Africa (coast to coast and top to bottom) as well as go to Victoria Falls and Madagascar. If I have to stay 6 weeks to do that and that means I have to put off the trip until I have enough money for that, so be it. Anyone got a reasonable idea. Just so you know, I would be buying a visitor's air pass so I could fly between destinations that were more than, say, 6 hours apart. Anything less than 6 hours (with the hassles of airports on both ends) becomes more worth renting a car and driving between points. It's more likely I'll base in the east and do excursions from a home base, then do the same in the central and then in the west. Anyone got any suggestions on how long and what you might be basing that time estimate upon. Thanks...

While I can find out the currency conversion rate online, what is difficult to know is how much is charged. For instance, even if the dollar changes quite well in local currency, it doesn't make it cheap if they are charging so much in local currency that a Big Mac (for instance) is still $14 after conversion. So here is my question. What kind of cost of living/cost of travel should I expect prior to conversion into US$. I've heard that things are quite affordable on the ground once you get there but I just wanted to check with some of you that knew for sure. Thanks...

I'm trying to go to South Africa over my Christmas/New Year's break which coincides with summer there. I'm looking at flights and they are anywhere from $2100 and up. Anyone got any ideas how to get there for less than $2000 from the USA? I don't care if I go East first and then South (as in through Europe) or if I go South first and then East (as in through South America most likely Brazil or Argentina). I just want to get there for less than $6000 for the 3 of us (self, wife, daughter). Thanks for assistance.

Hi. My name is Greg, and I'm new to this site. I love traveling, and I've been to many places around the world. I haven't been to Africa yet, though. I have a few countries in mind right now. I know a few people who have been to South Africa, and they loved it. I'm not sure when I'm going to go yet; I haven't booked anything. I do know that I want to go on a safari. I found this website. www.eyesonafrica.net that creates customized safaris and tours for small groups. It sounds really interesting. Tell me what you think.

We are staying in Hazyview in October and are looking at day tours into Kruger. We can't decide whether to do a couple of half day tours - one day in the morning and another day in the afternoon - or whether to do a full day tour. Are the full day tours too long? Do you get fed-up of sitting in the vehicle? Or are you able to get further into the park and so see more? Also what about walking safaris - has anyone done one and would you recommend them? Thanks.

I am planning trip to Cape Town in mid of July. Just got few questions, would appreciate your replies:

(1) How much should i expect to pay in a clean three star accomodation? Some one quoted me R500 per night. Is it expensive?

(2) How much is conversion rate...US dollar to Rand?

(3) Would it be very very cold in mid of July or i can expect some nice days?

(4) I plan to stay in sea point area. Is it good safe location? Is it very far from table mountain?

I was wondering how heavy the traffic is in Petoria? I'm from a small city in Northern Idaho and moving to Pretoria and have visions of cars coming at me from all directions. Is Pretoria a large city with wall to wall people? Is it expensive? Let me know what you think. And any tips you might have to help me get prepared.
Thanks
Pat

Hi again,
I will spend one day in Johannesburg before venturing off on a volunteer project in SA. Where is a nice place to stay that isn't expensive? Also,
what's the best way to spend my one day in Johannesburg?
As always...thanks for any advice.

Is it easy (and safe) for a single (female) traveler to take a bus from Johannesburg to Tzaneen?

Hello, I posted a question few weeks ago saying we are planning to visit Cape Town in August, we have the flighst and hotel booked but with all the xenofobic problems you are suffering and the few information we can get in Spain I would like to ask you advice, do you recomend us still travel there or shall we delay the visit until December to see if things get better?
I have read in a comment that the refugees are all over Cape Town ( also at the Waterfront and also there is a tuberculosis epidemia) is this true?
I would really apreciate your honest comments. Thank you very much.