A travel guide to South Africa.

What the guide covers

The guide starts with Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula and continues through the Western Cape: the Cape Winelands, Hermanus and the Overberg, and the Garden Route, up to Gqeberha and Addo Elephant Park in the Eastern Cape. To the northwest are Namaqualand and the spring wildflowers.

To the north and east are safari in Kruger National Park and the Panorama Route, Johannesburg and Pretoria, Pilanesberg, Durban and the north coast, the Drakensberg and iSimangaliso, including Hluhluwe-iMfolozi.

Each destination brings together the cities of the region, what to do in each one, attractions with their own pages, when to go and how to get there.

Provinces and groups

South Africa is divided into nine provinces, and the guide organizes towns by province. To make travel easier, they are grouped into six clusters: Cape Town and the Western Cape, the Eastern Cape, the Northern Cape, Johannesburg, Pretoria and the highveld, KwaZulu‑Natal and Kruger with Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

The country has three capitals: Pretoria, seat of government; Cape Town, seat of parliament; and Bloemfontein, seat of the judiciary.

How to travel in South Africa

Distances between regions are long, and domestic flights are usually the fastest way to travel from Johannesburg to Cape Town, Durban or Kruger. Within each region, renting a car gives freedom to explore the Garden Route, the Winelands and the parks; driving is on the left.

The time zone is UTC+2 year‑round. South Africa is in the Southern Hemisphere: the dry summer is often the most popular time for the Cape, and the dry winter for safari.

Yellow fever

To enter South Africa, travelers from a country with yellow fever risk must present an International Certificate of Vaccination, with the vaccine administered at least 10 days before departure. Requirements vary by country of origin: confirm before you travel.

Why there are no prices

Outside Brazil, the guide does not show prices for tours or tickets, because they change frequently. When there is an entrance fee or charge, the text notes it, and the amount should be checked before you go.

How the content is made

The information for each place is researched from official sources, such as South Africa’s tourism bodies and provincial tourism, national parks, UNESCO and the attractions themselves, and checked before being published.

The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it. Photos sent by travelers appear separately, as travelers' photos.

If you find any information that differs, write to us: fixing it is quicker than it seems.

All of Cidade Turismo

The guide started in Brazil and now also covers other countries, always with the same organization: routes, destinations and cities.

About Cidade Turismo: who we are, how the content is made and the guide's numbers →