Kruger National Park Calendar - January!

Weather:

• peak of rainy season
• frequent thunder storms
• hot days
• warm nights
• high humidity levels

Temperatures:

• between 18°C - 34°C (Fahrenheit: e.g. 34°C = [(34x9)]/5 + 32 = 93.2°F)
• visit our webcam page for live footage from Kruger National Park!

Landscape:

• many veld flowers in bloom
• colourful landscape
• marula tree in fruit

Animal Activity:

• animals spread over wider areas
• a lot predator activity in the south-eastern and central Kruger grasslands
• many nursery herds having youngsters
• a lot of elephant activity around marula trees

Kruger National Park tours >>
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Namibia: NWR has upgraded the camping facilities at Mile 108!

Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR), the state-owned enterprise mandated to run the tourism facilities within the protected areas of Namibia, has announced that it has done significant upgrades to its camping sites at Mile 108. The camping site now has new ablution facilities and the first sixteen camping sites have access to seperate bathroom facilities such as a toilet, shower, storage space and hot water. The newly constructed self-contained camp sites at Mile 108 cost N$ 400 per site per day for four people staying less than ten days. Campers staying more than ten days must pay N$ 300 per site per day. The ordinary camp sites at Mile 108 have been reduced to N$ 240 per campsite per day for four people. Mile 108, which is is located on Namibia's coastline in the Dorob National Park, will be open throughout the year from January 2020. 

Mpumalanga: Graskop Gorge lift to close for scheduled maintenance! [update]

update (04 December 2019): The maintenance work has been finished, so that the Graskop Gorge lift is back in operation earlier than previously announced!

The Graskop Gorge lift in Mpumalanga, a viewing lift that takes visitors 51 metres down the face of the Graskop Gorge and into the forest below, will undergo scheduled maintenance ahead of the festive season from 03 - 05 December 2019 and will not be operational on these three days. The world’s highest cable gorge swing, the Big Swing, and the Zipline (a 130m high-wire zipline!) will be operational, and the shops and restaurant will be open for business as usual during this time.
The Graskop Gorge lift, which is operated by the Graskop Gorge Lift Company, is located just outside of Graskop on the R533 towards Hazyview along the famous Panorama Route (on the opposite side of the gorge to the Big Swing).

Botswana has adjusted visa fees!

Botswana's Ministry of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs (MNIG) has announced the implementation of reviewed visa fees in certain visa categories (tourist, visitor, transit, business, employment, investment, study and transit) as well as introduction of payment for visa in convertible foreign currency (US$, GBP, ZAR). Effective since 25 November 2019, revised fees are as follows:

Tourist visa:

• P300.00 (US$30) single entry for a period up to 1 month
• P500.00 (US$50) multiple entry for a period up to 3 months

Visitor's visa:

• P300.00 (US$30) single entry for a period up to 3 months
• P500.00 (US$50) multiple entry for a period up to 3 months
• P1500 (US$150) multiple entry for a period over 3 months up to 2 years for dependants of residents

Transit visa:

• P300.00 (US$30) single entry for up to 1 week
• P500.00 (US$50) multiple entry for a period up to 3 months
• P1500 (US$150) multiple entry for a period of up to 3 years for tour operators and transporters

Business visa:

• P500.00 (US$50) single entry – for a period up to 3 months
• P1000.00 (US$100) multiple entry – for a period up to 3 months
• P1500.00 (US$150) multiple entry for a period up to 6 months to 1 year

Employment visa:

• gratis

Investment visa:

• P1000.00 (US$100) multiple entry for a period up to 6 months
• P2500.00 (US$250) multiple entry – for a period up to 5 years

Study visa:

• gratis

Western Cape: Gamkaskloof (Die Hel) temporarily closed! [update]

update (12 December 2019): Gamkaskloof (Die Hel) will be closed from 03 December 2019 to 29 February 2020 as a result of damage to infrastructure during the recent fire. 

update (03 December 2019): Gamkaskloof (Die Hel) is closed until further notice as a result of a recent fire. The adjacent private landowners restaurant at Fontein Plaas is still operational and can be entered at own risk.

CapeNature, the public institution with the responsibility for biodiversity conservation in South Africa's Western Cape, has announced that Gamkaskloof (also known as "Die Hel") in the Swartberg Nature Reserve will be closed from today (26 November 2019) to 02 December 2019 as a result of an outbreak of fire. The fire is under control but the reserve will be closed to allow for mopping up operations.
Gamkaskloof (Die Hel), a narrow valley about 32 km long with a maximum of 180 m wide, lies isolated within the Swartberg Nature Reserve in the wedge of the Gamkaskloof valley south of the Gamkapoort Dam. The Swartberg Nature Reserve stretches 121 000 hectares between the Klein Karoo and the Groot Karoo, bordering the Gamkapoort Nature Reserve to the north and the Towerkop Nature Reserve to the west. The town of Oudtshoorn is 40 km away.

Kruger National Park: The residual part of Kanniedood Dam will get demolished!

South African National Parks (SANParks) has announced that it will demolish the remaining part of Kanniedood Dam in Kruger National Park between 29 November 2019 and 06 December 2019. Explosives will be used to demolish the structure; after which the rubble will be removed as part of the rehabilitation process. Kanniedood Dam is located on the S50 gravel road about 9km south east of Shingwedzi Rest Camp. To ensure the safety of tourists, the road will be closed from S50 and S134 junction in Shingwedzi to the S50 and S143 junction in Mooiplaas during the demolishing of the remaining part of the dam is taking place.

Further safety measures have been put in place as follows:

• Kruger National Park ranger teams and South African National Defence Force (SANDF) fire fighting teams will be on stand-by to extinguish any wildfires that may arise.
• The area around the target structures will be cleared on the ground to ensure animals and human beings are safe.
• An aerial flight will be dispatched to the area immediately prior to detonation to ensure no tourists, animals or staff members are near the target.

Kruger National Park: Kanniedood Dam will get demolished! (March 2018) >>

Botswana: Mack Air to launch scheduled services between Maun <> Windhoek!

Mack Air, a private air charter airline based in Maun (Botswana), is set to launch scheduled flights between Maun Airport (MUB) in Maun and Hosea Kutako International Airport (WDH) in Windhoek. Effective April 2020, the airline will operate three weekly return flights to Namibia's capital on board a Cessna Grand Caravan C208 EX with a capacity of 10 passengers. Bookings will open on 01 December 2019. According to the State Of The Nation Address by Botswana's President Mokgweetsi Masisi (18 November 2019), the airline has not only been licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana (CAAB) to carry out scheduled services between Maun and Windhoek but also between Kasane and Victoria Falls. We'll keep you posted!

• Maun 13:30 > 15:50 Windhoek (Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays)
• Windhoek 10:00 > 12:20 Maun (Mondays, Thursdays, Saturdays)

online flight booking on TravelComments.com >>

South Africa Airways strike update (25 November 2019)!

South Africa's flag carrier, South African Airways, has reached an agreement with the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) and the South African Airways Cabin Crew Association (SACCA) to end the industrial action on 21 November 2019. Over the weekend, the airline has restored a full flight schedule. Since 24 November 2019, South African Airways operates services as usual on all three of its networks: domestic, regional (points on the African Continent) and international. Travellers holding a confirmed itinerary may proceed to their departure airport as usual. In line with standard practice, the airline recommends its customers to visit its website for all further flight updates. 

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South African Airways to temporarily suspend flights between Johannesburg <> Hong Kong! [update]

update (05 Februar 2020): South African Airways has extended the service suspension between between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) in Hong Kong to 02 March 2020.

update (14 December 2020): South African Airways has extended the service suspension between between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) in Hong Kong to 22 February 2020.

update (20 December 2019): South African Airways has extended the service suspension between between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) in Hong Kong to 31 January 2020.

update (04 December 2019): South African Airways has extended the service suspension between between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) in Hong Kong to 15 January 2020.

South Africa's flag carrier, South African Airways, has announced the temporary suspension of flights between OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg and Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) in Hong Kong. According to the airline, the service will stop on 23 November 2019 and will resume on 15 December 2019. At present, South African Airways operates four services every week between Johannesburg and Hong Kong. This decision has been taken to curb significant financial losses incurred on the route, exacerbated recently by the ongoing political tensions in Hong Kong.
South African Airways will be implementing a re-accommodation policy for customers booked on services to and from Hong Kong.

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Telegraph Travel Awards 2019: Cape Town has scooped the Best City Award for the seventh consecutive year!

For the seventh consecutive year, Cape Town in South Africa has scooped the Best City Award in the 2019 edition of one of Britain's most comprehensive, wide-ranging and reliable reader travel surveys, the annual Telegraph Travel Awards. Over 39,000 readers of the "The Telegraph" took part in the survey and voted for their favourite travel destinations. Vancouver in Canada and Kyoto in Japan are this year's runner-ups. Congratulations Cape Town!

Telegraph Travel Awards 2019 - The Best City Award:

1. Cape Town
2. Vancouver
3. Kyoto
4. Sydney
5. St Petersburg
6. Singapore
7. Venice
8. Luang Prabang
9. Sevelle
10. New Orleans
11. Havanna
12. New York
13. Bagan
14. Florence
15. Istanbul
16. Rome
17. Dubrovnik
18. Tokyo
19. Krakow
20. Buenos Aires

Air Namibia re-aligns its economy class on-board meal and beverage offerings!

Namibia's flag carrier, Air Namibia, re-aligns its economy class on-board meal and beverage offerings as one of the initiatives to manage costs. Effective 22 November 2019, passengers in economy class on all domestic and regional flights with a flight duration of 2.5hrs and less will be offered a "dry snack" option with juice, still or sparkling water instead of hot meals previously served. Alcoholic beverages (beer, wines and spirits), as well as hot beverages (tea and coffee) will no longer be available. Meal service options along with related beverage offerings currently served in business class and on international routes will remain unchanged.

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South Africa Airways strike update (20 November 2019)!

South African Airways has announced its intention to resume selected flights from Johannesburg to Cape Town, Durban and Victoria Falls, with effect from 21 November 2019. Customers travelling on the airline's regional network to one of the three destinations will be rebooked on the reinstated services and contacted accordingly. South African Airways will seek to rebook customers travelling on other regional routes (points on the African Continent) wherever possible. The airline is also continuing to work with its partner airlines, Mango and SA Airlink, to re-book all customers travelling on domestic services for 21 November 2019 and 22 November 2019.
All flights to the airline's eight international destinations are operating on an ongoing basis and without disruption. Regional fligths to six destinations on the African continent, namely Accra, Lagos, Lusaka, Maputo, Windhoek and Harare, are also successfully operating.

Compensation for flight delay or cancellation >>

South Africa Airways strike update (19 November 2019)!

According to South African Airways' latest press release, all flights to the airline's eight international destinations are now operating as usual and on an ongoing basis. Regional fligths to six destinations on the African continent, namely Accra, Lagos, Lusaka, Maputo, Windhoek and Harare, are resuming today.
South African Airways is continuing to work with its partner airline Mango to re-book all customers travelling on domestic routes and is focussing on gradually ramping up its regional and domestic services. We'll keep you posted!

Compensation for flight delay or cancellation >>

eSwatini Tourism released eight new official tourism videos! [update]

update (26 November 2019): eSwatini Tourism has released an additional video titled "South East Eswatini - Wildlife Up Close".

eSwatini Tourism has released a number of videos about eSwatini, previously known as Swaziland and one of Lonely Planet's top countries for travel in 2020. All eight videos are focussing on different topics of tourists interests - from culture to scenery, wildlife and activities as well as regional highlights. Switch the video to full screen, put your headphones on, lean back and enjoy about 13 minutes about the Kingdom of eSwatini. Kudos eSwatini Tourism.

Africa's longest beachfront promenade has been opened in Durban!

Africa's longest beachfront promenade was officially opened on 16 November 2019 in Durban. The already existing promenade was extended by 750 m so that it now stretches across 8 km from the Umgeni River mouth at Blue Lagoon to the Durban harbour entrance, adjacent to the multi-billion-rand Point Waterfront urban renewal development. The promenade extension is wheelchair friendly and boasts a first aid room, undercover parking bays and a lifeguard tower, all located between the harbor mouth and uShaka Marine World. It welcomes skaters and people who cycle to work. With the ocean on one side and the city on the other, the newly constructed state of the art promenade is an open stretch for pedestrians surrounded by trees and grass, providing a serene way to experience the best that Durban has to offer.

The Durban promenade - before and after ?? See it for yourself this Saturday, the 16th of November at the Durban Beach Promenade walk starting at Blue Lagoon Beach. #DurbanHasMore pic.twitter.com/h1KzMyaFMO

— Durban Tourism (@dbntourism) November 13, 2019

South African Airways: Domestic flights remain canceled, while six regional flights will be reinstated!

South Africa's flag carrier airline, South African Airways, has announced its intention to resume flights to Accra, Lagos, Lusaka, Maputo, Windhoek and Harare, with effect from 19 November 2019. The airline will seek to rebook customers travelling on other regional routes (points on the African Continent) wherever possible.
South African Airways has extended its cancelled domestic flights for 19 November 2019 and 20 November 2019. The airline continues to work with its partner airlines, Mango and Airlink, to rebook all customers travelling on domestic services.
South African Airways' international flights are fully operational and customers are able to travel as booked.
Customers are requested not to travel to their departure airport unless they are in possession of a rebooked itinerary. Customers seeking a refund or wishing to rebook their travel on a future service operated by South African Airways have until 30 November 2019 to finalise their arrangements.

Compensation for flight delay or cancellation >>

South Africa's best restaurants 2019!

South Africa's leading restaurant guide, Eat Out, has announced the winners of the 2019 Eat Out Mercedes-Benz Restaurant Awards at GrandWest in Cape Town on 17 November 2019. According to Eat Out, "La Colombe" in Constantia is South Africa's best restaurant of the year. The "The Test Kitchen" in Woodstock was named second best restaurant in South Africa, followed by last year's winner "The Restaurant at Waterkloof" in Somerset West and "Wolfgat", which was named "Restaurant of the Year" at the inaugural World Restaurant Awards 2019.

Sieh dir diesen Beitrag auf Instagram an

Ein Beitrag geteilt von La Colombe Restaurant (@lacolombect) am Nov 4, 2019 um 9:26 PST

The Top 20 restaurants:

1. La Colombe (Constantia, Cape Town)
2. The Test Kitchen (Woodstock, Cape Town)
3. The Restaurant at Waterkloof (Somerset West)
4. Wolfgat (Paternoster, West Coast)
5. FYN Restaurant (City Bowl, Cape Town)
6. La Petite Colombe (Franschhoek)
7. Eike (Stellenbosch)
8. Salsify (Camps Bay, Cape Town)
9. Restaurant Mosaic at The Orient (Elandsfontein, Pretoria)
10. Chefs Warehouse at Beau Constantia (Constantia, Cape Town)
11. Camphors at Vergelegen (Somerset West)
12. Overture (Stellenbosch)
13. LivingRoom at Summerhill Estate (Cowies Hill, Durban)
14. Chefs Warehouse at Maison (Franschhoek)
15. Greenhouse at The Cellars-Hohenort (Constantia, Cape Town)
16. Le Coin Français (Franschhoek)
17. La Tête (City Bowl, Cape Town)
18. The Shortmarket Club (City Bowl, Cape Town)
19. Tjing Tjing Momiji (City Bowl, Cape Town)
20. Rust en Vrede (Stellenbosch)

In addition to the announcement of the Top 10, stellar restaurants and individuals on the South African scene also received special awards. They are:

• Eat Out S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna Chef of the Year: Bertus Basson, Eike and Overture (Stellenbosch)
• Eat Out Retail Capital New Restaurant of the Year: Jewell’s Restaurant (Paarl)
• Eat Out Nederburg Rising Star: Katlego Mlambo, The Marabi Club (Maboneng Precinct, Johannesburg)
• Eat Out Graham Beck Chefs’ Chef: Ivor Jones, Chefs Warehouse Beau Constantia
  (Constantia, Cape Town)
• Eat Out Woolworths Sustainability Award: Camphors at Vergelegen (Somerset West)
• Eat Out Nespresso Innovation Award: The Test Kitchen (Woodstock, Cape Town)
• Eat Out Service Excellence: The Test Kitchen (Woodstock, Cape Town)
• Eat Out Wine Service Award: Joseph Dhafana, La Colombe (Constantia, Cape Town)
• Eat Out John Psillos Award for Outstanding Contribution to Service: Jennifer Hugé
• Eat Out Bridget McCarney Game Changer Award: SA POC at the Table
• Eat Out Irna van Zyl Food Media Icon: Dorah Sitole
• Eat Out Lannice Snyman Lifetime Achievement Award: Annette Kesler
• Eat Out Style Award: FYN Restaurant (City Bowl, Cape Town)

South African Airways reintroduces international flights from 18 November 2019 and extends cancellations of domestic and regional flights

South Africa's flag carrier airline, South African Airways, has announced that it is aiming to operate all international flights, departing from OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, with effect from 17 November 2019. Departures from South African Airways' international stations, including London, New York, Washington, Munich, Frankfurt and Hong Kong, are expected to operate from 18 November 2019. The first departure from São Paulo is expected to operate on 17 November 2019, while the first departure from Perth is expected to operate on 19 November 2019. The airline's domestic and regional flights scheduled for 17 November 2018 and 18 November 2019 will remain cancelled. South African Airways is working with Mango to to re-accommodate as many customers as possible travelling on domestic services and with Airlink on regional services.
The extension of cancellations is a result of ongoing industrial action by the South African Cabin Crew Association (SACCA) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA).

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Fastjet to launch flights between Bulawayo <> Johannesburg!

Low-cost carrier Fastjet (Zimbabwe) is set to introduce scheduled direct fligths between Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport (BUQ) in Bulawayo and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg. Effective 05 December 2019, the airline will operate 22 flights per week including double daily frequencies from Mondays to Fridays with a single flight operation on Sunday.

• Bulawayo 06:40 > 08:00 Johannesburg (Monday to Friday)
• Johannesburg 08:30 > 09:50 Bulawayo (Monday to Friday)
• Bulawayo 18:10 > 19:30 Johannesburg (every day except Saturday)
• Johannesburg 21:10 > 22:30 Bulawayo (every day except Saturday)

online flight booking on TravelComments.com >>

Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park: All roads in the Mbhuzane Section have been closed until further notice! [update]

update (15 November 2019): Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife just announced that all gravel roads (!) in the Mbhuzane Section of Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park remain closed until further notice for sedans with a low ground clearance. This is with the exception of the road from Mpila to Cengeni via point 28 (Mantiyane) and 24 (Msasaneni).

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, the governmental organisation responsible for maintaining wildlife conservation areas and biodiversity in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, has announced that all roads in the Mbhuzane Section of Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park have been closed until further notice. The roads have been very badly damaged in places due to hevy rain received on 13 November 2019 This is with the exception of the road from Mpila to Cengeni via point 28 (Mantiyane) and 24 (Msasaneni). Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife advises drivers to take extreme caution when traveling this route and recommends not to use sedan vehicles with a low ground clearance.

Namibia: Windhoek has renamed 13 streets!

The City of Windhoek has renamed 13 streets in Windhoek to honour of Namibians who played an important role in the development of Namibia before and after independence. The 13 Namibians who are honoured are Shikongo Gabriel Nuunyango, Matheus Kristof Shikongo, Mburumba Kerina, Tsukhoe //Gowases, Johannes Karuaihe, Paulus //Gowaseb, Ivako Kapuuo, Bartholomew Karuaera, Mika Kaiyamo, Erwin Tjirimuje, Simeon Lineekela Kambo Shixungileni, Festus Lazarus and Deon Heunis de Wet.

The affected streets are as follows:

• Penning Street (Katutura) now Shikongo Nuunyango Street
• Lazarus Street (Katutura) now Festus Lazarus Street
• Bahnhof Street (Windhoek) now Mburumba Kerina Street
• Ranonkel, Begonia and Rooivalk Streets (Khomasdal) now Tsukhoe //Gowases Street
• Dan Close (Elisenheim) now Deon Heunis Close
• Lüderitz Street (Windhoek) now Judge JP Karuaihe Street
• Julius Nyerere (Okuryangava) now Rev Paulus //Gowaseb Street
• Eneas Nanyemba (Katutura – Freedom Square), now Ivako Kapuuo Street
• Ceaser Street (Wanaheda) now Rev. BG Karuaera Street
• Dorp Street (Katutura) now Ev Mika Kaiyamo Street
• Lucifer and Legioen Streets (Katutura) now Rev. Erwin Tjirimuje Street
• Bismarck Street (Windhoek) now Simeon Shixungileni Street

South African Airways cancels most flights on 15 & 16 November 2019 ahead of strike!

South Africa's flag carrier airline, South African Airways, has has cancelled nearly all its domestic, regional and international flights scheduled for 15 November 2019 and 16 November 2019. The cancellations follow an announcement by the South African Cabin Crew Association (SACCA) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) that their members will embark on industrial action starting in the morning hours of 15 November 2019. The two unions are unhappy with South African Airways' restructuring plans which it announced this week in a bid to keep it afloat. Only flights operated by South African Airways will be affected. All flights operated on partner airlines, including SA Express, Mango, SA Airlink and all codeshare partners, including flights operated by our Star Alliance partner airlines will not be affected.

• Regional flights, which will operate on Friday morning (15 November 2019), will return from Maputo (SA147), Lusaka (SA067), Harare (SA025), Windhoek (SA073), and Accra (SA210).
• International flights, which will operate on Friday evening (15 November 2019), will return from Frankfurt (SA261), New York (SA204), Munich (SA265), Hong Kong (SA287), Perth (SA281), Washington D.C. (SA210) and London (SA235).

Compensation for flight delay or cancellation >>