Namibia: Daylight saving time resumes on 06 September 2015

Just a quick reminder: Daylight saving time ended in Namibia already on the first Sunday in April, which happend to be the 05 April 2015. Time changed from UTC+2 to UTC+1. The official time change took place at 02:00am (from 02:00am to 01:00am). Daylight saving time in Namibia will resume again on the first Sunday in September 2015 (06 Sept 2015).

Cape Town: Camps Bay Drive closed for five months

update (02 Dec 2015): After nearly seven months of major roadworks along Camps Bay Drive in Cape Town, the road has been reopened on 30 Nov 2015. 

update (06 Oct 2015): Due to a number of unexpected challenges that have delayed the project, Cape Town's Camps Bay Drive will remain closed to general traffic until late in November 2015. The scenic route has been closed to traffic since 20 April 2015.  

The City of Cape Town will be undertaking major roadworks along Camps Bay Drive this winter to significantly improve the road condition and safety for road users. The road will therefor be closed for general traffic as from Monday 20 April 2015 until end of September 2015 if everything goes according to plan.
Stop-and-go control points will be in operation between Geneva Drive and Prima Avenue and Houghton Drive and Rontree Avenue to give access to residents who live in the vicinity of the roadworks. Commuters can make use of Geneva Drive as an alternative route to enter or exit Camps Bay. The City of Cape Town expects major delays and advises road users to take this into account when planning your journey.

Supermarket prices in South Africa

To give you an idea on the supermarket prices in South Africa, we have set up a list of what we think are the most typical items travellers usually buy. It hopefully helps planning your holidays in South Africa. Safe travels! [exchange rates in the daily news update]

• bread - from R6.99/loaf (700gr)
• Rama Margarine - from R12.00/250gr
• eggs (large, free range) - from R14.00/6ea
• mixed fruit jam - from R12.00/450gr
• peanut butter - from R16.00/250gr
• Nutella - from R29.00/180 gr
• Bovril - from R23.50/125gr
• Marmite - from R23.50/125gr
• baked beans - from R6.30/can (400gr)
• bacon - from R25.00/200gr
• milk - from R9.50/1l
• muesli - from R29.50/750gr
• yoghurt (plain) - from R6.50/175gr
• cheese - from R27.00/200gr (sliced gouda/cheddar)
• potatoes - from R5.00/kg
• tomatoes (mini tomatoes) - from R11.00 (250gr)
• onions - from R4.00/250g
• mushrooms - from R19.00/250gr (white mushrooms)
• cucumber - from 58.00 (english cucumber) 
• lettuce - from R9.50 (crisp lettuce)
• avocado - from R14.95 ea.
• pasta - from R8.00/500gr (macaroni)
• pasta sauce - from R10.00 (instant) 
• instant soup - from R9.00 (Cup-A-Snack e.g. Chicken & Mushroom Noodle Soup)
• biscuits - from R8.00/200gr
• rusks - from R30.00/500gr
• chewing gum - from 11.00/pack (Dentyne)
• boerewors - from R60.00/1kg
• steak - from R80.00/kg (T-bone)
• chakalaka - from R10.00/can (400gr)
• chutney - from R23.00/bottle (Mrs H.S.Ball's Hot Chutney 470gr)
• hot sauce - from R13.00/bottle (125gr)
• potato chips - from R4.50/30gr
• bottled water (still) - from R4.00/500ml 
• Coke - from R9.00/500ml
• orange juice - from R8.00/350ml
• beer - from R9.50/330 or 340ml (Black Label/Castle/Hansa)
• beer - from R11.00/330ml (Windhoek Lager)
• cider - from R12.00/330ml (Hunters Dry)
• cider - from R13.00/330ml (Savanna Dry)
• wine - from R25.00/750ml or R70.00/3l box (white)

The list above is probably missing some items. Let us know what you think is missing & we will add it!

SafariNow's Top 8 Road Trip Routes in South Africa & Beyond!

Africa's biggest travel booking network, SafariNow, recently compiled a list of the Top 8 Road Trip Routes in South Africa and Beyond.

• Cape to Karoo Road Trip
  Cape to Karoo Road Trip Accommodation (2797 Places to stay)
• Magalies Meander Road Trip
  Magalies Meander Road Trip Accommodation (480 Places to stay)
• Route 62 Road Trip
  Route 62 Road Trip Accommodation (263 Places to stay)
• Maloti Drakensberg Road Trip
  Maloti Drakensberg Road Trip Accommodation (154 Places to stay)
• Panorama Route Road Trip
  Panorama Route Road Trip Accommodation (200 Places to stay)
• Midlands Meander Road Trip
  Midlands Meander Road Trip Accommodation (110 Places to stay)
• Namaqualand Road Trip
  Namaqualand Road Trip Accommodation (163 Places to stay)
• Canyon to Coast Road Trip
  Canyon to Coast Road Trip Accommodation (41 Places to stay)

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South Africa's most punctual domestic airlines in March 2015

Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has published the on-time performance results of domestic airlines’ flying out of OR Tambo in Johannesburg, Cape Town International Airport, and Durban's King Shaka International Airport in March 2015.
On-Time Performance is measured by comparing the actual off-block time (when aircraft pushes back) against the airline schedule time for a departing flight. The measurement is done in accordance with the IATA (International Airlines Transport Association) universal standard benchmark with considers a 15 minute deviation from the scheduled time as an on-time departure.

OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg - 15 Min on Time Performance March 2015 (airport target 87%)

1. FlySafair - 94.30% (February 96.80%)
2. Airlink - 92.80% (February 93.81%)  
3. South African Airways - 90.40% (February 93.09%)
4. British Airways Domestic - 87.10% (February 94.04%)
5. Kulula.com - 82.51% (February 90.12%) 
6. Mango - 82.47% (February 84.30%)
7. SA Express - 77.99% (February 80.83%)

Cape Town International Airport - 15 Min on Time Performance March 2015 (airport target 90%)

1. FlySafair - 97.51% (February 98.32%) 
2. SA Express - 92.98% (February 92.32%)
3. Airlink - 92.55% (February 95.86%) 
4. British Airways Domestic - 91.78% (February 95.05%)
5. South African Airways - 91.55% (February 95.12%)
6. Kulula.com - 91.03% (February 94.11%)  
7. Mango - 89.22% (February 91.16%)

 King Shaka International Airport, Durban - 15 Min on Time Performance March 2015 (airport target 91%)

1. South African Airways - 94.08% (February 95.38%)
2. Airlink - 94.04% (February 91.73%) 
3. SA Express - 91.88% (February 89.10%)
4. Kulula.com - 85.50% (February 90.48%) 
5. British Airways Domestic - 84.19% (February 90.47%) 
6. Mango - 83.31% (February 85.27%)  

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New mobile phone app: "Madiba's journey"!

South African Tourism and the Nelson Mandela Foundation launched the "Madiba-inspired tourist attractions" map, which encourages tourists from around the world and South Africa to travel the country and walk in the footsteps of Nelson Mandela, in 2014. The map has now been developed into a GPS-enabled mobile phone app to further enhance visitors’ experiences in South Africa. The app uses location-based services and features tourist sites as well as general places of interest, including Mandela's post-presidential office at the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory in Johannesburg, the Nelson Mandela Statue at Union Buildings in Pretoria, Nobel Square at the V&A Waterfront, Robben Island and Pollsmoor Prison (all in Cape Town) and Qunu in the Eastern Cape, where Madbia was laid to rest.

screenshot

The app "Madiba's journey" is now available for download in English from the Apple iTunes store (iOS devices) and the Google Play store (Android devices). It will soon be available in other languages, including Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Dutch, French, German, Italian, simple Mandarin and Portuguese.

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (Nairobi): Night-time closure for runway!

The runway at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi (Kenya) will be partially closed for rehabilitation between midnight and 06:00 a.m from 02 April 2015. The runway works, which will include resurfacing the full runway, upgrading the Instrument Landing System (ILS) and upgrading the runway capacity by construction of rapid exit taxiways and extending the parallel taxiway, is expected to take 12 month.
All passengers at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) have been advised to contact their airlines to confirm their flight schedule in advance and to arrive at the airport four hours prior to departure.

Jambo, please be advised of the scheduled JKIA runway closure to take effect as from midnight tonight. pic.twitter.com/qlSdCSGqc6
— Kenya Airports (@Kenya_Airports) 1. April 2015

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