Budget safari holiday in South Africa

Camping is a budget-friendly activity in South Africa | Credit: Getaway Magazine

South Africa is well-suited to budget travellers. There are backpacker hostels and affordable B&Bs as well as self-catering options in all major centres. There are also very affordable and well-equipped campsites, usually with hot water in the ablution blocks and electricity. For transport, the perennially popular hop-on, hop-off Baz Bus connects Johannesburg to Cape Town via the uKhahlamba-Drakensberg, Durban, East London, Port Elizabeth and the Garden Route. Good and very affordable coach services run along these and most other trunk routes.

Most backpacker hostels offer or can arrange a variety of excursions - from half-day wine-tasting trips out of Cape Town to multi-night Kruger safaris out of Johannesburg - at prices that cater to their intended clientele. Although restaurants in South Africa are very affordable by international standards, the cost of eating out three times a day will add up, and you can save a lot of money by self-catering and buying ingredients and drinks directly from supermarkets and liquor stores.