South African Tourism - Best times of year to visit South Africa

Times to Visit

Western Cape: capital Cape Town

Eastern Cape: capital Bisho

The Eastern Cape climate is generally good all year round, although the best time for visiting costal areas is summer and spring (January to May) The more inland you travel the more steady the weather becomes, with hot summers and sunny, dry winters.

Gauteng: capital Johannesburg

Spring and autumn are the best months to visit Gauteng , although the weather is good all year round with approximately 9-10 hours of sunshine each day. In summer there are many beautiful days that are interrupted by thunderstorms, although winter is cooler and mainly dry.

Kwazulu Natal: capital Pietermaritzburg and Ulundi

All times of year are favourable to the visitor, although the summer can be very hot and humid. The Indian Ocean is warm enough to swim in all year round

Mpumalanga: capital Nelspruit

Mpumalanga has pleasant, dry winters from June to September. The summers are hot and spectacular thunderstorms occur all through summer. If a trip to the Kruger National Park is planned, winter is the best time to visit.

Free State: capital Bloemfontien

This region which experiences summer-rainfall, is warm and temperate in the summer but can get cold during the winter months, especially as you head towards the more mountainous areas, temperatures here can drop to 9ºC.

North West Province: capital Mafikeng

Summer brings hot, sunny days (22oC+); winters are quite  warm during the day, however in the evenings the temperature drops down to around 15oC.

Limpopo: capital Polokwane

Limpopo, renowned for its hot summers and dry winters.  This area has almost year round sunshine! It can get very hot in summer (October - March), with temperatures around 30oC or more.

Northern Cape: capital Kimberley

Northern Cape is a semi-arid region with little rainfall in summer, and some rainfall along the coast in winter. The weather conditions are extreme cold and frosty in winter, and extremely high temperatures in summer. Sutherland is one of the coldest towns in southern Africa with an averagetemperature of-6ºC in the winter months. Often snow is on the mountains in the winter.