South Africa Travel Guide 2026

Explore 2 cities in South Africa including Cape Town, Johannesburg. Compare budget, mid-range and luxury travel options across every destination.

Currency

ZAR (R)

Language

Afrikaans, English, and Xhosa (English is the lingua franca of business and tourism; you will never need another language)

Visa

Visa-free for most Western nationalities for 90 days (US, EU, UK, CA, AU). South Africa requires that your passport be valid for 30 days after your intended departure and have at least 2 blank pages.

Staying connected

A travel eSIM gets you online the moment you land in South Africa — data plans start at $4 — no roaming bill, no queue for a local SIM, and nothing to swap in and out of your phone. Install it before you fly.

Get a South Africa eSIMfrom $4 Or one Africa-wide plan

Cities in South Africa

Cape Town

South Africa

Cape Town is the most beautiful city in the world by many measures — Table Mountain rising directly from the ocean, the Cape Peninsula winding to the meeting of two oceans, world-class wine country 45 minutes away, and some of Africa's finest restaurants. The favourable rand exchange rate makes it extraordinary value at every tier.

Johannesburg

South Africa

Johannesburg — Joburg, Jozi, eGoli (City of Gold) — is Africa's most dynamic and economically powerful city. Born from the 1886 gold rush, it grew into a sprawling metropolis of five million that is the continent's financial engine. The Apartheid Museum is one of the world's most powerful historical institutions; the regenerated Maboneng Precinct and Braamfontein are thriving cultural hubs; the Soweto township contains Nelson Mandela's and Desmond Tutu's homes side by side on the same street. This is a city that demands engagement.

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