How to travel to South Africa
On the second Wednesday of the month, Kristin Addis of My Travel Muse Be a Guest Post writes tips and advice for solo female travel features. It is an important issue, I can not adequately cover, so I brought to share in an expert their advice. This week she talks about her trip to South Africa
If my trip to South Africa started planning, many questions went through my head. If a country is, the big easy to travel? Is it expensive? What is even possible?
The online resources I were vague, were found negative, or simply do not exist. But after two months near travel across the country, I found a wide selection of cheap affordable ways to get around. So in order to fill the gap, here is a breakdown of how to get to South Africa:
By bus
There are several companies operating in the country, including Greyhound run, Inter Cape and Baz bus, which provides specifically for backpackers.
Baz Bus runs a route from Johannesburg to Cape Town (or vice versa) with several stops along the way. You can hop on or off when you want, and your trip can start anywhere, but since these two cities have major airports, most people start in one or the other, or sometimes Durban. There is no limit on how long you take to go from one end to another. ( Matt says : I like coaches in New Zealand and Australia have taken you to be good for people who want to meet other travelers to ..)
one-way fares on Baz Bus are available from about 500 rand (about $ 41) for the shortest trip that takes about two hours to complete, and increase from there. For those looking to save a bit of money and the bus use across the country to travel, there is a 21-day, hop-on-hop-off pass, the 4,0 Rand ($ 355) is executed. Baz Bus is not a big saving money, as the rates are more than the web and other bus companies, but it is a convenient option for those who like to travel on the popular routes and meet other backpackers. The route includes the major cities in South Africa, the famous Drakensberg, popular places along the coast, and the famous Garden Route in the Western Cape.
The disadvantages of the bus include dealing with a lack of transport, if you are at your destination, although shuttles to various local attractions such as the bungee jump in Wilderness, sometimes are available at an additional cost. They are also with your schedule must be flexible, since the shuttles do not run every day. The biggest drawback for me was that the buses run along a set route and go only to the most popular tourist destinations and drop-off only at certain backpackers accommodation, so for those who are from the beaten track, the head as it is not great option.
For made raft, Greyhound and Inter various bus connectors are used throughout the country. The buses are large, air conditioned, comfortable and filled with locals, not backpackers. Be sure to bring along snacks, as the buses run on a tight schedule and most stops are very short, if they happen at all.
Prices are more expensive than Baz Bus for shorter trips of two hours or so ($ 30-40), but cheaper for longer trips, such as from Durban to Cape Town, which takes place 15 hours ($ 56). During high season (December and June to August), you should book in advance, as buses fill quickly.
air
fly to South Africa is not that expensive. Budget airlines such as Mango and Kulula serve all the major - and minor - airports in the country with several flights a day. They are easily booked online with a credit card. For example, a one-way ticket from Johannesburg to Durban is $ 67th
Also last minute flights, as long as they still have quite a few seats left, do not tend to rise in price, if there is a major route. For a last minute planner like me, that was a real treat! For less common routes or smaller airports, the prices go up is nearer the date. Not surprisingly, are generally unfavorable times and early morning flights the cheapest. As with most low-cost airlines around the world, checked baggage and meals on board cost extra.
By car
When told that I my friends that I plan to solo driving through South Africa, she spoke to me immediately assume Envisioning dangerous roads and thieves without help should anything go wrong. In truth streets triggering by South Africa is not much of a problem, as other cars of all time are over a mishap should occur, and South Africans are incredibly friendly and helpful.
This is not to say in South Africa go without risk. There Carjacking from time to time, and break-ins are common, but noticed this and precautions to keep hidden valuables and locked doors reduces risks.
Regardless, would, if you prefer to travel alone, there are options. You can post on Offers, as Nomadic Matt, Thorn Tree, the Africa Backpacking Facebook group or Couchsurfing.org. Gumtree and hostels are also good possibilities Carpool find friends. There are always looking target for a ride to some off-the-beaten-path travelers. (I found my partner in crime by a friend of mine.)
to rent a car is the most convenient way to get around, because you too many out-of-the-way to towns to obtain, and objectives and when gas and rental fees divided by one or more other passengers, it beats the price of Baz bus.
I rented a Volkswagen Vevo on a car comparison site that we booked online and personally took up. The price worked out $ 250 for two weeks including gas, the fee in another city when we drop in rented (we picked up the car in Johannesburg and let it in Cape Town) and insurance. Gas runs an average of about $ 1 per liter at the time of this writing, and when a small car to drive as we had, mileage is pretty good. We also gave rides to other backpackers we were heading, met in exchange for a little gas money.
While it is possible to buy a cheap car and sell it later, the papers can sometimes take months to go through and so is not the best for travelers who do not plan, the age on the spending country.
for most of the popular destinations in South Africa, do a little manual car, albeit a 4 × 4 would have been helpful for some of the less visited places we went during our trip, such as the amphitheater hike in the Drakensberg. Had we taken Baz Bus, we would have spent an additional $ 100 per person and some of the areas missed, we visited that Baz Bus not not go to.
By train
South Africa has a lot of railway tracks. Most are not currently in use, as the population has to rely more and more on the extensive motorway system, come. However, the major cities in South Africa are still operated by some railway companies, ranging from cheap to high luxury.
Shosholoza Meyl long-distance trains serve Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, Durban, East London, Johannesburg, Queenstown and East London. They are comfortable and safe, and to make several stops in smaller towns along the way. The rates are some of the cheapest for any mode of transport in Africa is available as low as $ 28 passes for a sleeping car from Johannesburg to Durban. You can check the schedule of the company you can visit for more information on fares and stops.
For those who are interested a little luxury, the famous Blue Train, the Pretoria to Cape Town running form, costs $ 1300 one-way for a shared berth in low season and goes up there. It is an expensive but luxury experience, wine, cigars, fine food, comfortable compartments
Security
includes A final safety issue. South Africa is no longer dangerous for individuals than your typical big city in the United States. I was surprised to see that the murder rate of Detroit is actually significantly higher than that of South Africa. That is, muggings are still widespread, especially among tourists and especially in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Given the high rape and theft in South Africa, I would not advise hitchhiking (and that is to do something I love!).
In addition, one should not walk around alone at night, be conspicuous, or let things shows in the car, but much of this is true all over the world.
There are numerous ways to get South Africa, and to test by several methods, I think the best car hire is. Nothing else has the flexibility, comfort and a good price tag. If car rental is not your thing, and you are solo, I would pull the Baz Bus into consideration.
As I said, no matter which of the above methods of transportation you choose, South Africa is simple and relatively affordable to travel if you are solo in a group, or a duo.
Kristin Addis is a former investment banker, all their belongings and offer California farewell favor of alone sells traveling through Asia while looking for off-the-beaten-path adventures. There is almost nothing that they will not try, and almost nowhere they will not discover. You can find more of her thoughts at MyTravel his muse or on Twitter and Facebook
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