Top air travel destinations for South Africans — and how much flights cost

Mauritius is the most popular international destination for South African air travellers this festive season, while Cape Town and Johannesburg are the top domestic destinations in December and January.

FlightSite revealed the five most popular domestic and international destinations for South Africans over December 2021 and January 2022.

“Against the restrictive conditions Covid-19 has imposed on travellers and the trade, the booking numbers show that South Africans’ appetite for travel endures,” said Rian Bornman, managing director at FlightSite.

While this is promising, the pandemic continues, and FlightSite is yet to see the same pre-virus demand for international flight tickets.

“Usually, when travel supply exceeds demand, cheap flights can be found,” Bornman said.

“But the economics under Covid are entirely different to anything we’ve experienced before.”

According to FlightSite, the top five international destinations for South African travellers are different to previous years.

The UK has been the favourite for South Africans over previous years, but it ranks as the fourth most popular international destination for December 2021.

The UK doesn’t even appear in the top five for January 2022.

“If restrictions remain light and more airlines continue resuming flights to and from South Africa, the current top five will probably look slightly different soon,” Bornman said.

The most affordable destination to travel to locally is Durban, with the lowest price of R889 for December 2021 and R729 for January 2022.

The most popular destination to travel to is also the most affordable when it comes to travelling overseas.

South Africans can fly to Mauritius from Johannesburg for as little as R3,679 in December 2021 and January 2022.

The top domestic and international destinations for South African travellers and flight prices are summarised in the table below.