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What is the best time to travel to South Africa,
Swaziland and Lesotho? An often asked
question. Should your budget be limitited, then May, June, July, August and
September are the best month for you. These months are the 'winter months'
and nearly everybody is offering low season tarifs. Hotels and guesthouses
offer within this period (mainly May to July) promotions such as pay for 4
nights and get 1 night complimentary. Car rental is also cheaper in winter.
October is concerning the rates the best summer month as
the tourism industry has its annual/seasonal revised rates from 1 November
which includes a possible rates increase. |
The weather in the Cape is fairly
stable in May and can still reach up to 25°C, nights however are getting
cooler with temperatures up to 15°C. From June to July, rain can spoil
things a little, however it does not rain for days. There are often welcome
interruptions with lots of sun and temperatures between 16 and 20°C, nights
are cold up to 8°C. The nothern provinces such as Mpumalanga, Gauteng, North West, Limpopo
and the coastal region of Kwazulu Natal
is compared with the average European and American summer pretty cosy with
temperatures up to 30°C in the Kruger, nights however are much cooler and
temperatures drop from 16h00 fast to a low of about 8 to 10°C. What many
travellers seems to forget is that winter is the best period to do safari.
Winter is dry season and this means a water shortage, good game viewing and
very active predators but also an excellent time for photography.
Snowfall is common in the Drakensberg and parts of the
Eastern Cape in winter, especially in July. This offers a beautiful scenery.
There is even possibility to ski in Lesotho.
The table (Kruger Park central) below gives a good idea
of average rainfall and temperatures on annual basis.
Climate in Swaziland and Lesotho is quite similar with
its big neighbour South Africa. Logically temperatures in Lesotho are lower
in summer and winter due to the country's altitude.
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What is the best time to travel to Namibië?
Namibia is without a doubt one of the most sunny
destination on earth with an average 300 days sunshine.
Summer runs from October to April and
temperatures can reach up to a very hot 40°C plunging tot a 20°C at night or
lower. The average day temperatures are between 20 and 34°C. Winter is from
May to September offering very cosy temperatures during the day which is in
contrast with the cold nights, even below freezing point. The winter period
is the most popular period to travel.
Namibia is not really a large groups
destination (35+ pax) as hotels and lodges usually do not have enough
capacity. Should you wish to travel, then early blocked bookings are
unavoidable should you wish to get enough rooms. The country is however a
wonderful destination for small groups up to 25 guests and for self-drives.
Hotels and lodges are in comparison with South Africa much smaller and as
result more expensive. |
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What is the best time to travel to Botswana?
Botswana's climate is semi-arid. Though it is hot and dry
for much of the year, there is a rainy season, which runs through the summer
months. Rainfall tends to be erratic, unpredictable and highly regional.
Often a heavy downpour may occur in one area while 10 or 15 kilometres away
there is no rain at all. Showers are often followed by strong sunshine so
that a good deal of the rainfall does not penetrate the ground but is lost
to evaporation and transpiration.
Summer runs from November to end March
and bring usually hot temperatures. Winter begins in May and ends in August,
there is hardly rainfall during this period. Temperatures are lovely during
the day but can drop below freezing point during the night, especially in
the southwest region of the country.
The best period to travel is between
April, beginning May and September/October as temperatures are cooler
compared with summer and nights are much warmer than in winter.
Rain occurs between October and April
while January and February are regarded as the peak rainfall months. The
annual rainfall is around 650 mm in the far northeast from the Chobe
District to less than 250 mm in the southwest of the Kgalagadi District
(Kalahari Desert). Nearly all rainfall drops in summer while winter is only
10% of the annual rainfall. |
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What is the best time to travel to Mozambique?
Mozambique offers quite some regional variations in
climate but is on average the warmest between November and March with
average day temperature of 31°C.
The dry season is
from April to September with an average of 27°C in the coastal areas and
cooler temperatures inland.
Tropical cyclones are
common during the rain season and can caused the past years a lot of damage.
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