Tourist Information

Visa Requirements:

Every person seeking to enter South Africa must be in possession of a valid passport for travel to South Africa and, where necessary, a visa. Enquiries can be directed to South African diplomatic representatives abroad or the Department of Home Affairs in Pretoria. Visitors who intend traveling to South Africa's neighboring countries and back into South Africa are advised to apply for multiple entry visas. In terms of existing arrangements, passport holders of certain countries are exempt from visa requirements. Tourists must satisfy immigration officers that they have the means to support themselves during their stay, and that they are in possession of return or onward air tickets. They must also have valid international health certificates.

Weather:

Immunisations:

No international immunization is needed when entering South Africa.

The only inoculation requirement is a yellow fever vaccination certificate from travelers over one year of age entering South Africa within six days of leaving an infected country. Visitors who travel through or disembark in these areas are advised to be inoculated against the disease before visiting South Africa.

Malaria:

This disease is to the larger extent under control in South Africa. Regions that are affected are the Northern Province and Mpumalanga, northern Natal and Zululand.The risk of contracting the disease is negligible provided that you take the standard precautions. Malaria tablets, a good insect repellent particularly in the evening, long-sleeved shirts and mosquito coils are advisable precautions.

Phoning:

If you wish to make a call overseas, you must first dial 09, which is South Africa's international access code. You then dial the country code, area code of the city or region and the number of the person you wish to call. For example, if you make a call to Sydney, Australia, telephone number 456 1234 you must dial 09 61 2 456 1234.

Electricity:

220/230 volts AC at 50 cycles per second. Three pronged plugs are universal, so take an adapter. Most hotel rooms have 110 volt outlets for electric shavers and small appliances.

Currency:

One Rand (R) = 100 cents (c). Notes issued R200, R100, R50, R20, R10; coins R5, R2, R1, 50c 20c, 10c, 5c, 2c, & 1c. Currency exchange rates are available at banks and published daily in the press.

Postal Service:

Open Mon - Fri 08h00 - 16h30 & Sat 08h00 - 12h00. Mail may be addressed to you Post Restante. The main post offices have special counters for this purpose. Postage stamps are widely available (e.g. at some cafes and branches of the Central News Agency - CNA).

Tipping:

Tipping is expected in South Africa. A guideline for visitors is the following: Porters R2 per item, taxis 10%, waiters & waitresses in restaurants 10 - 15%.

Traveller's Cheques:

Most international traveler's checks are accepted provided they are in an acceptable currency and may be cashed at most banks. Many hotels and shops also provide this service.

VAT Refunds: Foreign tourists visiting South Africa can have their value-added tax (VAT) refunded provided the value of the items purchased exceeds R250. VAT is refunded on departure at the point of departure.

VAT of 14% is levied on nearly all goods and services. Foreign tourists may claim back VAT paid on items that will be taken out of the country. Original tax invoices, foreign passport, plus all the items on which a refund is claimed, must be presented at the VAT refund administration office or an appointed RSA customs and excise official on departure, and the total VAT on these items will be refunded. Visitors will be requested to fill out a VAT Refund Control Sheet (VAT 255). Where a visitor does not export all the goods specified on a particular tax invoice, only the value of the goods and the tax paid on such goods exported must be declared on this form.

Driving:

Drive on the left and give way to traffic approaching from the right. The general speed limit is 120km/h on open roads and 60km/h in urban areas.

Source: South Africa Tourist Information

Cape Town Lure Visitors With Spectacular Beauty and a Rich Cultural Diversity

Cape Town has had a long and turbulent history. With Apartheid still linger in the minds and hearts of its people. Transformation has led to the new 'Rainbow Nation', which can be experienced in the cosmopolitan city centre of Cape Town.

Flower sellers, business executives, parking attendants, office workers and shoppers all rub shoulders in a setting of both historical and modern buildings, backed by the city's most famous landmark, Table Mountain. The colourful Malay Quarter, the remains of District Six, St George's Cathedral, Government Avenue and the old Castle are historically significant, while world-class African and international restaurants tempt travellers with their culinary delights.

Although an African city, Cape Town has a European flavour but the city has comforts of First World standard.

Cape Town's unique setting means that it can be enjoyed from various vantage points: Table Mountain provide breathtaking vistas over the city bowl and the Cape peninsula.

You can find many scenic routes along magnificent stretches of coastline and inland terrain leading to special places like Cape Point.

The city has four distinct seasons.

Summer - White sandy beaches, Autumn - Crisp colours, Winter - Ferocity of stormy seas in winter, Spring - Show of Cape 'fynbos' flowers.

From culture, history and scenery - to an unforgettable experience.

Cape Town is a special place with much to contribute towards its growing reputation as a favoured travel destination.

Cape Town Excursions

** Robben Island and Table Mountain

South Africa's most widely known tourist attraction is probably Robben Island, seven miles (11 km) from Cape Town in the centre of Table Bay.

For nearly 400 years this tiny rocky island outcrop was utilised as a place of banishment, exile, isolation and imprisonment for numerous categories of people ostracised by society, ranging from political protestors to lepers.

During the years of Apartheid, Robben Island became synonymous with institutional brutality as numerous freedom fighters, including the island's most famous resident Nelson Mandela, were imprisoned here for more than a quarter of a century.

The island is now a museum, symbolising liberation and the triumph of the human spirit. Regular island tours are conducted, lasting three and a half hours. The tours, which are guided by former prisoners, include a visit to the maximum-security prison on the island where an estimated 3,000 freedom fighters were incarcerated between 1962 and 1991.

** Capman's Peak Drive lookout Chapman's Peak

Chapman's Peak Drive is one of the most spectacular coastal roads in South Africa, linking the seaside community of Hout Bay to the Noordhoek Valley along the Atlantic Coast, with breathtaking views from along the narrow, winding road blasted into the cliffs.

Constructed in 1915, the six-mile (9km) route took about seven years to complete and was built as a shorter, alternative route between Cape Town central and the South Peninsula. Many visitors use this scenic route to reach Cape Point Nature Reserve situated at the tip of the Peninsula.

** Penguins on Boulders Beach

A recommended day excursion from the city includes a trip through the southern suburbs and along the scenically beautiful False Bay coastline via Muizenberg to Simonstown, South Africa's principal naval base.

Simonstown lies about 25 miles (40km) from the city and is a quaint town built around a naval dockyard, with well-preserved Victorian buildings, museums, sidewalk cafes and local legends to learn about. One such legend is about a dog called 'Just Nuisance' who 'joined' the British navy, becoming their mascot, when Simonstown was a British base.

A short distance from the town is Boulder's beach, famous for its protected colony of African Penguins (formerly Jackass Penguin) that can be viewed from the boardwalks.

Transport: Metrorail suburban train from Cape Town's central station; Admission: Boulders Beach Penguin Colony: R15 (adults), R5 (scholars)

** Cape Point

Most visitors to Cape Town are keen to make a day trip 40 miles (65km) from the city to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, not only to take in its floral diversity in what at first sight appears to be a bleak landscape, but to stand at the top of the towering promontory at the most southerly point of the Cape Peninsula (not of Africa, visitors must go further afield to Cape Agulhus for this).

Read Further: Article Base
Green Point Accommodation

Bungee jumping in South Africa

Weehah! South Africa has the highest commercial bungee jump in the world - it's official. At 216 metres, it's not for the faint of heart.

The jump is run by Face Adrenalin, at the Bloukrans Bridge on the border of the Eastern and Western Cape.

The same company also offers a range of jumps on the much lower Gouritz River Bridge near Mossel Bay, also in the Western Cape. Here you'll also find South Africa's only commercial bridge swinging operation, run by Wildthing Adventures.

Abseil, rapp jump

Hang out a kilometre high over Cape Town, over crashing waves at Knysna, or rapp jump down skyscrapers in Johannesburg or Durban.

Not sure of difference between bungee jumping and bridge swinging? With bungee, you jump off a bridge (or other high fixed platform) with giant elastic bands usually, but not always, tied to your feet.

Bridge swinging, on the other hand, involves jumping from one bridge while tied in to climbing ropes suspended from an adjacent bridge.

OPERATORS

Face Adrenaline - enough said.

Wildthing Adventures offers bridge jumping, which involves a big fall in a body harness before swinging between two bridges. It happens at the Gouritz River Bridge and has attracted visitors from over 70 countries. The record for the oldest jumper belongs to a 91-year-old man, the youngest to a five-year-old boy. Wildthing also presents other adventure activities, such as mountain biking, white water rafting and canoeing.

Orlando Towers in Soweto, Johannesburg calls itself a vertical adventure centre, and it's hard to argue with that description. They offer bungee jumping, climbing, abseiling, rap jumping, and swinging. The Towers, with their eye-catching paintings, were once part of one of the most advanced power stations in the southern hemisphere. They no longer function as a power station, but with all their exciting offerings there is still eletricity in the air!

Living on the Edge Adventures hosts Bungee Mogale, which operates off the Kings Kloof Bridge in Krugersdorp / Mogale City. People between the weights of 40 and 120 kilograms are able to do the bungee jump, but no tandem jumps are allowed. The height of the jump is about 50 metres - plenty high for adrenaline seekers!

Cape Xtreme presents tours of Cape Town and overland tours. Included in the adventure activities are white water rafting, quad biking, shark cage diving, bungee jumping at the Bloukrans River Bridge, and trips to the Kruger National Park, Mozambique, and Kenya.

Cape Town-based Downhill Adventures has a number of bungee jumping options. There's a two-day trip that includes jumps off the Gouritz and Bloukrans Bridges, a one-day option that includes a visit to the Gouritz Bridge, and a combo Great Shark-Jump option that includes cage diving with Great White Sharks and bungee jumping at the Gouritz Bridge. Bridge swinging, single or tandem, is also part of the deal.

Source: http://www.southafrica.info
Cape Town Accommodation

Botanical Gardens in South Africa

South Africa botanical gardens are some of the best in the world, especially ones that concentrate on cultivating and conserving indigenous plants. Eight of the country's botanical gardens are managed by the South African National Biodiversity Institute.

The botanical gardens in South Africa include the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden near Cape Town, which is not only the largest but also the most popular with an estimated 680 000 visitors per annum. The garden is home to a wide variety of the Cape Flora.

The Disa flora and the King protea, South Africa's national flower, are cultivated in the Harold Porter National Botanical Garden, located an hour from Cape Town near the coastal town of Hermanus. This garden lies in the Cape fynbos region.

The Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden near Johannesburg boasts a large collection of lithops, one of the largest in the world and is home to over 230 species of birds, reptiles and mammals.

Pretoria National Botanical Garden boasts the biggest herbarium in the Southern Hemisphere.

For plants originating from the Free State, Northern Cape and Lesotho, turn to the Free State Botanical Garden near Bloemfontein, where they are grown.

The KwaZulu-Natal Botanical Garden in Pietermaritzburg focuses on growing indigenous plants from the eastern region of South Africa, many of which are endangered; while the Lowveld National Botanical Garden near Nelspruit is home to ancient cycads and various shrubs, which are evergreen thanks to the Nels River and Crocodile River that course through the garden.

Two other remarkable South African Botanical gardens are the Durban Botanical Garden, popular for its large collection of cycad and its huge Orchid House, as well as the Johannesburg National Botanical Garden, which offers large green spaces close to the city centre.

Source: http://www.southafrica.net
Cape Town Bed and Breakfast