South Africa
South Africa is one of the most diverse and enchanting countries in the world. Exotic combinations of landscapes, people, history and culture offer a larger-than-life experience for the traveller in search of a truly unique and inspiring experience. South Africa’s vast landscape includes savannahs, snow-covered mountains, forests, tropical swamps, endless beaches, tranquil rivers, lakes, lagoons, sun-scorched semi-deserts, and bustling urban epicentres.
South Africa is known for its abundant wildlife including the famous “big five” as well as its fantastic birding and eco-tourism possibilities. However, the real heart of this vibrant country is the diversity of people and cultures. South Africa’s family trees go way back to the start of time.
The country has been touted as the Cradle of Humankind, because it was here that archaeologists discovered 2.5 million year old fossils as well as the 100,000-year-old remains of modern humankind. Many of South Africa’s cultures have their roots in an ancient world, whilst some of the cultures are relatively new – and others, well, are a fascinating mix of both.
LAND – South Africa covers an area of 2,500 km (1,553 mi) and along two oceans (the South Atlantic and the Indian) at 1,219,912 km2 (471,011 square miles).
CLIMATE – South Africa’s climatic conditions generally range from Mediterranean in the southwestern corner of South Africa to temperate in the interior plateau, and subtropical in the northeast. A small area in the northwest has a desert climate. Most of the country has warm, sunny days and cool nights.
TOPOGRAPGHY – Although South Africa is classified as semi-arid, it has considerable variation in both climate and topography.
The great inland Karoo plateau, where rocky hills and mountains rise from sparsely populated scrubland, is extremely dry, and gets more so in the northwest towards the Kalahari Desert. This is a region of temperature extremes, extremely hot in summer and icy in winter.
The eastern coastline, by contrast, is lush and well watered, a stranger to frost. The southern coast, part of which is known as the Garden Route, is rather less tropical but also green, as is the Cape of Good Hope – the latter especially in winter. This south-western corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate, with wet winters and hot, dry summers. Its most famous climatic characteristic is its wind, which blows intermittently virtually all year round, either from the southeast or northwest.
PEOPLE – According to the 2010 revision of the United Nations Secretariat’s World Population Prospects, South Africa’s total population was 50,133,000 in 2010, compared to only 13,683,000 in 1950. In 2010, 30.1% of the people were children under the age of 15, 65.2% were between 15 and 64 years of age, and 4.6% were 65 or older. The current population of South Africa is 57,360,976 as of June 2018, based on the latest United Nations estimates.
ECONOMY – The agricultural industry contributes around 5% of formal employment, relatively low compared to other parts of Africa, as well as providing work for casual laborers and contributing around 2.8% of GDP for the nation. However, due to the aridity of the land, only 13.5% can be used for crop production, and only 3% is considered high potential land.
The most important agricultural exports of South Africa include: edible fruit and nuts, beverages, preserved food, tobacco, cereals, wool not carded or combed, miscellaneous food, sugar, meat, milling products, malt and starch. These products accounted for over 80% of agricultural export revenue in the first quarter of 2010. The most important agricultural imports, which accounted for over 60% of agricultural import value during the same period, include: cereals, meat, soya-bean oil cake, beverages, soya-bean oil and its fractions, tobacco, palm oil and its fractions, miscellaneous food, spices, coffee, tea, and preserved food.
LANGUAGE – There are eleven official languages of South Africa: Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Sotho, SiSwati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu. Fewer than two percent of South Africans speak a first language other than an official one.
ELECTRICITY SUPPLY – The South African electricity supply is 220/230 volts AC 50 HZ. – Most plugs are 15 amp 3-prong or 5 amp 2-prong, with round pins. If an adaptor is called for, consider bringing one with you, although they can be purchased locally.
TIME – South African Standard Time (SAST) is the time zone used by all of South Africa, Botswana as well as Swaziland and Lesotho. The zone is two hours ahead of UTC (UTC+2) and is the same as Central Africa Time. Daylight saving time is not observed in either time zone.
CURRENCY – The South African Rand is the currency of South Africa. Our currency rankings show that the most popular South Africa Rand exchange rate is the USD to ZAR rate. The currency code for Rand is ZAR, and the currency symbol is R.
BANKING HOURS – Most banks in South are open from 09h00 to 15h30 on weekdays, and 09h00 – 11h00 over weekends. Banks are closed on Public Holidays and on Sundays.
COURIER & MONEY TRANSFERS – For courier, Post net, TNT SAA Cargo service are available.
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS –
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• 1 January – New Year’s Day
• 21 March – Human Rights Day
• 30 March – Good Friday
• 2 April – Family Day
• 27 April – Freedom Day
• 1 May – Workers Day
• 16 June – Youth Day
• 9 August – National Women’s Day
• 24 September – Heritage Day
• 16 December – Day of Reconciliation
• 17 December – Public Holiday
• 25 December – Christmas Day
• 26 December – Day Of Goodwill
HEALTH REQUIREMENTS – South Africa requires a valid yellow fever certificate from all foreign visitors and citizens over 1 year of age travelling from an infected area or having been in transit through infected areas. The certificates, which are valid for 10 years, must be approved by the World Health Organization, and should be administered at a yellow fever approved vaccination center at least 10 days before departure to South Africa, as the vaccine only offers protection 10 days after administration.
CUSTOMS – Goods falling within the following allowances may be brought in without the payment of customs duty and VAT as accompanied baggage: No more than 200 cigarettes and 20 cigars per person. No more than 250g of cigarette or pipe tobacco per person. Perfumery not exceeding 50ml and toilet water not exceeding 250ml per person
Note also, that if you are importing for business and commercial intent, you will also not qualify for these allowances, other than personal effects. Customs in South Africa further stipulates that when you leave the country you are permitted to take up to R500 in South African Reserve Bank notes. A 20% levy is charged on higher amounts.
IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS – Visitors’ visas are for international travelers (citizens of other countries) who have permanent residence outside South Africa and who wish to visit the country on a temporary basis for tourism or business purposes for a period of 90 days or less. A visa simply indicates that your application has been reviewed at a South African embassy, mission or consulate and that the consular officer has determined you are eligible to enter the country for a specific purpose.
The visa will allow you to travel to a South African port of entry where an immigration official will then determine if you are allowed to enter South Africa and for how long you can stay for that particular visit. Visitors are restricted to the activity or reason for which their visas were issued. On entry to South Africa, a visa is considered to be a visitor’s permit. The permit’s period of validity is calculated from the date of entry into the country and will be set out under the heading “conditions” on the visa label. You must ensure that you apply for the correct visa/permit.
OR TAMBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT – O. R. Tambo International Airport is a hot and high airport. Situated almost 1,700 meters (5,500 feet) above mean sea level, the air is thin. This means some aircraft must reduce weight by loading less fuel than they would otherwise. There are six terminals at the airport, but these can be broken down into three major areas: the international terminals; the domestic terminals; and the transit terminals. The transit terminal housed disused parts of the old domestic terminals. It has been mostly demolished to build a new Central Terminal that will provide an indoor link between domestic and international terminals, as well as a central passenger check-in area and more gates. Terminals A1 and A2 handle international passengers while the other two terminals handle domestic passengers.
SECURITY – The security at airport is very tight these vary from screening and security patrols to x-rays of freight and baggage or operational emergency services.