Best Time to Visit South Africa

One country, three different calendars

South Africa doesn't have one best time. Cape Town gets dry, sunny summers and wet winters. Durban and the Highveld (the high inland plateau around Johannesburg and Pretoria) flip that around. Cape Town is best from October to April, with February the hottest month at 22°C. Durban is best from May to September, when the sticky heat eases and the sea is still swimmable.

Johannesburg, Pretoria and Soweto get their rain in summer, often as loud afternoon thunderstorms. Winter is dry and sunny, with crisp mornings and cool evenings. Pretoria is best April to September. Soweto is best April to October. Johannesburg is best April to May and August to October. Pretoria's jacaranda trees turn the streets purple around October, which is lovely, though it's also the hottest month there at 31°C. Johannesburg is hottest in October too, at 27°C.

Gqeberha and the south coast

Gqeberha sits between the two rain patterns, so it stays mild and fairly dry for much of the year. April to December works well. It's the usual base for Addo Elephant National Park, and the dry months make animals easier to spot at waterholes.

Holidays, crowds and prices

December and January are peak season. South Africans take their summer break then, and beaches in Durban and along the Garden Route fill up. Cape Town is busiest from mid-December to the end of January. Easter and the July school holidays also bring crowds, especially to Kruger National Park and the Drakensberg mountains.

Public holidays can shut shops and change bus and taxi schedules. Freedom Day on 27 April, Youth Day on 16 June and Heritage Day on 24 September are worth knowing about. Youth Day matters in Soweto, where the 1976 student uprising is remembered with events at places like the Hector Pieterson Museum.

If you want fewer crowds and lower prices, try shoulder months. Think March to April or October to November in Cape Town. Winter in Cape Town is wet, with June the wettest month at 111 mm, but it's also quiet.