Post in Johannesburg, Gauteng, Republic of South Africa

It's a perfectly easy drive. It's long (1600km) so best done over two days. It's a case of getting on the N1 South and keep driving. There are enough places to stop, refuel, stretch your legs along the way.

Enjoy our beautiful country.

Hi. The route is as safe as anywhere and the roads are good. As Martin said. You can go directly 1600 km or detour to beautiful and interesting places en route. Go via Meiringspoort to the coast and the along the Garden Route. Of course that will take more than the 3 or 3 days already suggested, but it is worth it if you have the time. If you need more info, ask. Have fun

Peter

Hi Maria For the most direct route, you would take the N1, it's convenient and safe. It's a long drive so I would recommend taking an easy drive over two days, and spending the night in / near Beaufort West. I'd say the only difficulty is the length of drive and all the trucks that take that route. It's a good way to go to Cape Town if you have the time and also want to see the Karoo, and also if you have a car that you want to use in CT.
Otherwise I'd fly there and either Uber around or hire a car when I'm in CT.

Hi Maria!

Travelling from Joburg to CT is usually done either by air or road. By air - you can fly from either Lanseria airport or OR Tambo airport to Cape Town airport using Mango, Kulula or Safair. SAA and BA are also options but cost a lot more. The flight is around 1hr40min, and a one-way ticket goes for anything between R700 (on special) and R1500 (last minute, expensive times) but there are many flights every day. You can get a 20kg checked luggage on most airlines, but on Safair you have to pay extra for a checked bag. So, it depends on how much luggage you are trying to transport.

To travel to CT by road, you can either use a car and drive yourself, or buy a bus ticket on one of the many cross-country coach lines we have. The bus will cost less, but then you are stuck on the coach for 18-20hours. You can get an overnight bus, or a luxury sleepliner, but those tickets obviously cost more.

I have driven to and from Cape Town and Joburg several times. I did it last year July, by myself. It is roughly 1600km trip, and you can expect to be driving for 16-18 hours, not counting in stops for food, rest and petrol. I chose to drive because I was moving, so I had a LOT of luggage and to fly it all up would have cost too much. Depending on the fuel economy of the car, and the price of petrol, you can expect to spend around R1500-R2000 on petrol and toll fees for the drive. This is economical if you are more than one person travelling together.

If you are travelling alone, or even if you aren't, I recommend doing the drive over a 2-day period. Sure, it's possible to wake up crazy early and hit the road at 4am, and drive almost non-stop except for 2-3 short petrol breaks for 16 hours and reach Cape Town by 9 or 10pm that same evening, but you will be so utterly exhausted that if you do not have someone to take driving shifts with it can be dangerous.

I usually stop in one of the small towns at around the halfway mark (south of Colesberg) and check into a B&B for the night to get some proper sleep and a warm shower.

The best route is to stick to the N1 highway. The highway does scale down to two single-lanes during the more remote parts of the country, but there are petrol stations every 200-300kms and generally, the road is in good condition. You can expect to encounter a lot of trucks, but there are takeover lanes that change sides every couple of kilometres so just be patient and then overtake them using those. There are often roadworks or roadblocks so drive safely and carefully and don't speed.

The best thing to do if you're travelling by car to Cape Town across the country is to enjoy the fact that you're crossing the country. Make an adventure out of it, perhaps take a slightly different route than the N1 highway, stop off in a few places and see something else. If you're really in a hurry, fly.

And if you really want to drive, and you don't want to do it alone, try one of the lift-sharing websites to find someone else who is also planning to travel down to CT and see if you can drive together and split the costs. But, if you want to do it alone, it can be done. As I've said, I have done it before by myself. Just be careful and be safe and stay alert. Don't take unnecessary risks. Always drive as though everyone else might try to run you off the road at any moment. Drive as though you're invisible, and they haven't seen you. Drive as though they don't mind having an accident.

I hope this helps!

I drove the n1 many times and the roads are great if you drive the speed limit and take regular stops it will take you about 18 hours comfortably but of you want you can stop overnight and make it a 2 day journey but it can be done in one day if you don't mind the long drive

Maria Hi, If you consider possibly you shall only ever take this trip once in your life, do it the best way to optimize your experience. I suggest going from Joburg to Colesberg on the N1, then branching off to Graaf Reinet where I suggest you stay over, from there to Port Elizabeth, make your way down to Storm's River mouth and Natures Valley, stay over in Knysna and then take a leisurely drive down to Swellendam, Riviersonderend (Riverwithoutend), then deviate to Hermanus, Kleinmnond, Betty's Bay, Pringle Bay, Rooi Els, Gordon's Bay, Cape Town.
Then you have completed the creme de la creme road trip of South Africa. The alternate is to get on the N1 and just keep going till you get Cape Town, this trip is very long and extremely boring, so boring that people fall asleep and kill themselves (particularly between Beaufort Wes and Laingsburg), the trip only gets scenic when you exit the Karoo (some people consider this scenic) after Touws River and enter the verdant Hex River Valley, lush and rich with the top table grapes of the world grown here, but not enough payment for enduring a really long and sticky journey which is so arduous, I swore I would not do it again (I have done this trip at least a dozen times). Think of Joburg to Cape Town like you would Moscow to Sevastopol on the Black Sea.

Agree with all the comments, except that it is 1400 km driving from JHB-CT. One thing to keep in mind when driving is that there are speed enforcement cameras and speed traps along the way, which can impact your enjoyment of the route :)

The other alternative to driving 12-14 hrs, or flying, is to take the scenic route - via train. This is not a regular commuter train as it is much more upmarket and a long distance train with dining cart and cabins. Sofar had very positive feedback from all who have taken this train, family included. Safety and service quality appears to be good. www.shosholozameyl.co.za/train-routes.html

Hi Maria, I drive Jhb -Cpt and back every year (sometimes twice a year). It’s a perfectly safe route but long. There are many options to stop along the way and even tons of places to see and enjoy on that route. We make it a habit to try stop at places like Meiringspoort where you can swim under the waterfall or Matjiesfontein where you can explore the "town" and it’s history. For other people it’s just a long trip from one city to another. Enjoy and drive safe.

thank u so much for your reply.