£288 Find Cheap Flights to South Africa – Compare and Save

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from the United Kingdom to South Africa departing on 7/9. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
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Cheap Flights to South Africa

Cheapest return prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours
Cape Town
Cape Town1 stop£570
Durban
Durban1 stop£626
Port Elizabeth
Port Elizabeth2 stops£562
George
George2 stops£589
East London
East London2 stops£687
Hoedspruit
Hoedspruit2 stops£715
Pietermaritzburg
Pietermaritzburg2 stops£891
Skukuza
Skukuza2 stops£993
Mthatha
Mthatha2 stops£1,031
Cape Town
Cape Town1 stop£570
Durban
Durban1 stop£626
Port Elizabeth
Port Elizabeth2 stops£562
George
George2 stops£589
East London
East London2 stops£687
Hoedspruit
Hoedspruit2 stops£715
Pietermaritzburg
Pietermaritzburg2 stops£891
Skukuza
Skukuza2 stops£993
Mthatha
Mthatha2 stops£1,031

Book Cheap South Africa Plane Tickets

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for return flights to South Africa that are departing in the next months. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.

Recent return flight deals to South Africa

Sat, 29 Aug - Sun, 6 Sep
Condor Logo
10:20 - 07:50
LGW
-
JNB
20h 30m
1 stop
Condor Logo
18:35 - 18:50
JNB
-
LGW
25h 15m
1 stop
£458Condor
Wed, 29 Jul - Fri, 31 Jul
Condor Logo
19:40 - 08:45
LGW
-
JNB
36h 05m
1 stop
Condor Logo
18:35 - 14:40
JNB
-
LGW
21h 05m
1 stop
£459Condor
Wed, 19 Aug - Wed, 26 Aug
Condor Logo
19:40 - 08:45
LGW
-
JNB
36h 05m
1 stop
Condor Logo
18:35 - 18:45
JNB
-
LGW
25h 10m
1 stop
£460Condor
Wed, 2 Sep - Wed, 9 Sep
Lufthansa Logo
18:30 - 08:35
LHR
-
JNB
13h 05m
1 stop
Lufthansa Logo
08:45 - 22:40
JNB
-
LHR
14h 55m
1 stop
£514Lufthansa
Wed, 26 Aug - Tue, 15 Sep
Lufthansa Logo
18:30 - 08:35
LHR
-
JNB
13h 05m
1 stop
Lufthansa Logo
19:00 - 07:40
JNB
-
LHR
13h 40m
1 stop
£522Lufthansa
Tue, 3 Nov - Tue, 10 Nov
Norse Atlantic UK Logo
07:30 - 21:00
LGW
-
CPT
11h 30mdirect
Norse Atlantic UK Logo
23:00 - 08:45
CPT
-
LGW
11h 45mdirect
£581Norse Atlantic UK
Tue, 17 Nov - Tue, 24 Nov
Norse Atlantic UK Logo
07:30 - 21:00
LGW
-
CPT
11h 30mdirect
Norse Atlantic UK Logo
23:00 - 08:45
CPT
-
LGW
11h 45mdirect
£582Norse Atlantic UK
Tue, 27 Oct - Thu, 19 Nov
Ethiopian Air Logo
18:30 - 14:35
MAN
-
CPT
18h 05m
1 stop
Ethiopian Air Logo
15:25 - 08:20
CPT
-
MAN
18h 55m
1 stop
£679Ethiopian Air
Thu, 17 Sep - Sun, 27 Sep
Qatar Airways Logo
14:55 - 17:30
MAN
-
CPT
25h 35m
1 stop
Qatar Airways Logo
13:15 - 13:10
CPT
-
MAN
24h 55m
1 stop
£680Qatar Airways
Thu, 17 Sep - Sun, 27 Sep
Qatar Airways Logo
14:55 - 17:30
MAN
-
CPT
25h 35m
1 stop
Qatar Airways Logo
13:15 - 13:10
CPT
-
MAN
24h 55m
1 stop
£685Qatar Airways
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for flights to South Africa

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights to South Africa to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

What is the cheapest flight to South Africa?

These are the best return prices found by users searching on KAYAK in the last 5 days.

The cheapest ticket to South Africa from the United Kingdom found in the last 5 days was to Cape Town, at £347 return. The most popular route is London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Johannesburg OR Tambo Airport (JNB) and the cheapest return ticket found on this route in the last 5 days was £480.

How much is a flight to South Africa?

The average and cheapest price for all round-trip flights to South Africa from each origin found by users searching on KAYAK in the last month.

A flight to South Africa costs £839 on average. The cheapest price found on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks was £264 for the route London Gatwick Airport (LGW) to Cape Town (CPT). The most popular routes on KAYAK are London to Cape Town which costs £668 on average, and London to Cape Town, which costs £922 on average.

See prices from:

What is the cheapest month to fly from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the median of all values for each month.

The cheapest month for flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa is November, when tickets cost £415 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are July and December, when the average cost of round-trip tickets is £715 and £636 respectively.

What is the cheapest time of day to fly to South Africa?

The average price for all round-trip flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa depending on the time of departure, clicked by users on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks.

The cheapest time of day to fly to South Africa is generally in the evening, when retur flights cost £739 on average. Morning departures are around 100% cheaper than evening flights, on average. The most expensive time of day to fly to South Africa is generally at night, which is peak travel time and where the average cost of a ticket is £770.

How far in advance should I book a flight from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

To calculate weekly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each week before departure over the last year for round-trip flights to South Africa, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the average of all the values for each week.

To get a below-average price on a flight from the United Kingdom to South Africa, you should book around 2 weeks before departure, which saves you about 4% compared to booking last-minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 8 weeks before departure.

Which is the cheapest airport to fly into in South Africa?

Prices will differ depending on the departure airport, but generally, the cheapest airport to fly to in South Africa is Cape Town Intl Airport (CPT), with an average flight price of £637.

Good to know - Cheap tickets to South Africa

Low seasonJune
Cheapest flight£288
Best time to beat the crowds (3% less expensive on average)
Most popular time to fly (30% more expensive on average)
Flight from Manchester to Cape Town

FAQs - booking South Africa flights

  • Which airlines operate non-stop flights to South Africa?

    British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and South African Airways operate direct flights from London Heathrow to Oliver Tambo International Airport and British Airways also operates direct flights to Cape Town International Airport.

  • What are the rules about car seats for children in South Africa?

    While it is not yet mandatory to have a suitable car seat for young children when driving in South Africa, it is advisable to take one with you if you are planning on doing a lot of driving. Alternatively, you can hire one along with your car hire and it is wise to do this in advance.

  • Where should I fly to in South Africa if I want to go to the Drakensberg?

    The Drakensberg, the highest range of mountains in southern Africa, is located in KwaZulu-Natal, so the best airport to fly into is King Shaka International in Durban. From here you can hire a car and drive to the southern part of the Drakensberg.

  • Do I need a visa for South Africa?

    British passport holders who are visiting South Africa for a period of less than 90 days do not need a visa to enter the country. However, your passport should have two blank pages in it and should also be valid for 6 months from your date of entry to South Africa.

  • Do some airlines offer more flights to South Africa for historical reasons?

    Due to South Africa's former status as a British colony and it remaining a member of the Commonwealth, British Airways has always offered the majority of flights from the UK to Cape Town and Johannesburg. The same is true of South African Airways, so you'll find plenty of flights on offer between these two carriers.

  • Are some flights to South Africa more carbon-efficient than others?

    Use the CO2 filter to find the flights that emit the least carbon from whichever airport you choose for your departure. British Airways is your best option if you're flying the most common route from Heathrow to OR Tambo. Booking with this carrier can save over 50% in overall carbon emissions.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight from the United Kingdom to South Africa is likely to change within 7 days, so travellers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional return ticket. You could then fly from the United Kingdom to South Africa with an airline and back with another airline.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from the United Kingdom to South Africa?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying from the United Kingdom to South Africa up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

  • What is the cheapest day to fly to South Africa?

    Based on KAYAK data, the cheapest day to fly to South Africa is Monday when return tickets can be as cheap as £721. On the other hand, the most expensive day to fly is Friday, when return prices are £809 on average.

Top tips for finding cheap flights to South Africa

  • Looking for cheap airfare to South Africa? 25% of our users found round-trip tickets to South Africa for the following prices or less: Cheap flights to South Africa from London Gatwick £744, from London Heathrow £1,940
  • Enter your preferred departure airport and travel dates into the search form above to unlock the latest South Africa flight deals.
  • There are a number of international airports in South Africa that provide onward connections to other destinations within the country. Oliver Tambo International Airport (ORT) in Johannesburg is the central hub and from here you can get flights to all other cities in South Africa. If you want to visit the south of the country, you can fly into Cape Town International Airport (CPT), while King Shaka International Airport (DUR) in Durban will give you easy access to the coastline of KwaZulu-Natal.
  • If you are travelling to South Africa with children, you will need to ensure that you are carrying full unabridged birth certificates for each child under the age of 18, especially if only one parent is travelling with the child. While this rule may not apply if both parents are travelling, the South African authorities reserve the right to ask to see the birth certificate and will turn you away at the border if you cannot produce it.
  • Visitors looking at flights to South Africa to visit the world-famous Kruger National Park in the north-east of the country should consider flying into Oliver Tambo in Johannesburg and catching an onwards domestic flight to Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (KMI) in Nelspruit. The flight takes approximately 45min. It is also possible to fly to Nelspruit from Cape Town and Durban. In Nelspruit you can hire a car or catch a brebooked transfer to travel to Kruger.
  • If you are planning on driving the Garden Route, you could book a flight to George Airport (GRJ), which is situated at one end of this drive from the Eastern Cape to Cape Town. George Airport only has a domestic terminal, so you would need to book a connecting flight from your point of entry into South Africa to George, where you can then collect a hire car for the rest of your journey along the coast.
  • There is a limit to the amount of South African currency that you can carry into the country in cash and it is advisable to check this limit before you fly as it changes frequently. You can also carry a limited amount of cash in foreign currency that you can change at a bureau du change in the airport or, alternatively, use your credit or debit card at an ATM in the airport.
  • It pays to consider African airlines when you want to find cheap flights to South Africa. These are quite numerous, and usually only make one stopover en route, typically in their home country. A good example is Kenya Airways, which flies from London Heathrow (LHR) to OR Tambo (JNB) in Johannesburg, with a single stopover at Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International (NBO).
  • South Africa is a vast country compared to the British Isles that just begs for a road trip or two. It's a really good idea to book a hire car through KAYAK when you find cheap flights to South Africa. An SUV or MPV will do you well, to handle the challenging roads through some of its major natural tourist attractions, like Namaqualand or the Karoo.
  • You can often find cheap flights to South Africa by choosing those operated by different airlines in tandem. For example, fly London Gatwick Airport (LGW) to Cape Town International (CPT) on Turkish Airlines, switching to South African Airways at Istanbul International (IST). Or fly from Edinburgh Turnhouse (EDI) to King Shaka Airport (DUR) in Durban on a combination of Turkish Airlines and Airlink, switching at OR Tambo.

Reviews of the top 5 airlines flying to South Africa

 
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from the United Kingdom to South Africa? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.1
EmiratesOverall score based on 3606 reviews
8.0Comfort
8.4Crew
7.9Food
8.1Boarding
8.2Entertainment
Airline reviews

The quality of food is going down comparing with old history of excellent food. It was cold and a bad quality. The crew is always excellent and caring.

8.0 ExcellentYaqoob, Jun 2026
LHR - DXB
Read more Emirates reviews

The quality of food is going down comparing with old history of excellent food. It was cold and a bad quality. The crew is always excellent and caring.

The journey was nice, all the crews were very good and services are excellent

Great flight - Clubhouse met our needs, and the staff provided good service. Boarding felt a little chaotic, but given the size of the aircraft, it's always going to be challenging. Whilst the crew were friendly, the number of passengers meant that we received our breakfast items, but had finished breakfast before we were served a drink. Lunch was much better organised, and throughout the flight, the crew were attentive. Found the seats and ICE to be excellent. Disembarkation was fine, and everything possible to expedite the process was being done.

We loved flying with Emirates in business class, the staff were fabulous, going above & beyond

The seating is spaced out nicely, The crew could have offer more drinks.

Excellent comfort and entertainment. Service poor..Food average with little choice.

Comfort good. Service as usual poor. Cabin temperature as usual too cold, about 15 degrees

Fresh energetic and friendly crew, great food, brand new plane and non stop entertainment

The food was pretty good and the crew were excellent. It would have been excellent all round but for screaming children. Six hours at least of a 10 hr flight. Mostly 1 child clearly on the spectrum and probably ADHD but I really felt for the parents and grandparents who were obviously struggling and doing the best they could under the circumstances. No reflection on the airline of course and we all need to be more tolerant with these challenges . Slept for 15 hrs when I got home.

On both legs of my trips (Jhb - Dxb and Dxb - Jhb) the entertainment system did not work.

The flight was 45 mins late leaving, we sat without a/c for some of this, 2nd Meal was a slice of pizza. Movies were good.

Short flight so it was okay. Nice crew, all very pleasant and professional. We were near the back in row 27 so just as we got our drinks, we started our descent so had to drink very quickly!

Our first flight was delayed so we missed our connecting flight. However it was easy to book a later flight on their app.

The flight was great, the only reason for middle scores on entertainment and food is that it was a short flight so not included (but snacks were served including alcoholic beverages free of charge). I would definitely recommend KLM.

Was trying to change a flight but told that Canadian and local klm systems do not interact so they could not access my booking. Overall I like klm a lot but if it was important to change flights I would be very frustrated.

KLM is my favourite airline. Never ever let us down.Staff are first class.

Pretty bad. Food was awful. drinks were scarce, as if drinking an extra drink would ruin the airline. attendants were not very helpful. likely Dutch "directedness" (I cannot be bothered). Crammed flight. Entertainment in very minimal dosage. Almost all old movies and series with 1-3 episodes only. Very limited number of options available. Jesus!! it seems you need to bring your own entertainment these days even of flights that are 13 hrs long!! I would and I will avoid in the future!

I travel frequently. The flight was late again... KLM should really try and be on time

The flight itself it was great nice food the crew were very nice and helpful, Checking in from Birmingham wasn't great long queues for bag dropped, And I had my hand luggage case taken away from me even though I requested to have it with me as I had breakables items. I was told I can not because of the length of the flight with no explanation at all no options was given for me to take my fragile items out of my case it was taken away with hold buggage I find the staff member who was checking me in very unpleasant !! Can we please be advise if the rules have changed about the the carry on hand luggage it will be easier to be advise on booking your tickect if we not allowed to take the hand luggage with me. Overall I had a good flight .

Amazing KLM service and brilliant economy comfort seats. Well worth the extra.

Lounge was top notch h with great variety of food and drinks. Cabin crew were great. Smooth flight.

My seat 3G did not go down fully and the buttons were not working properly

Food was the worst I’ve had on a VA flight. Normally it’s a lot better

These are one of the older seat arrangements facing away from the windows! Not particularly convenient sets. No storage spaces. NO COAT HANGING HOOKS. Inconvenient business class seat compared to any other airlines of similar class. Staff are excellent! Extremely professional, friendly. Food is good too.

The staff was not very polite but the flight was very very nice and comfortable and the entertainment was great

Premium economy more comfortable than economy, but not by much. Did was awful, do not try the omelette. Flight crew were helpful. Flight was delayed by over an hour. Overall but bad, arrived safely and thank God.

Food was excellent. Service was very good. Staff was very helpful to all passengers.

Your flight delayed at Heathrow n I almost missed my mother funeral.you idiots. I had to waste 10 hours in different airports. Thank your stars I'm not suing you.

Seats were old and dirty, for a long haul flight you expect to be able to recline and for the av to work properly. Choice for vegans was fruit….

Very good airline. There is still some room for improvement but overall I’m happy

It was a great experience for my first time flying with this airline. I will be flying with them a lot more now. Plane crew was amazing.

The following is a review for a flight from Johannesburg to Washington, DC with a connection at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and refueling landing at Rome, Italy. The flight was provided by Ethiopian Airlines. There were two of us: me and my wife on this flight. Everything was on time. Enough legroom between the seats, I was able to stretch my legs and sleep for at least some time during the 14 hour second flight (19 hours in total for both flights). Very decent meals that included two lunches and one breakfast on the flight from Addis Ababa to Washington and one lunch on the flight from Johannesburg to Addis Ababa. The lunch choices were beef, chicken and fish, I think the vegetarian option was available as well, accompanied with beans. The breakfast was a choice between egg and pancake, accompanied with a fruit salad. The egg breakfast was awesome, it came with a scrambled egg and a sausage. However, my wife mentioned unusual taste of the pancake breakfast meal, by all means those were not pancakes. What wasn't good: Externally initiated commercials on the infosystem screens, you couldn't turn the screen off. These commercials were accompanied by loud and annoying music, transmitted through the entire cabin. Obviously, there was no escape from this music as well. Additional moment: on the flight from Addis Ababa to Washington, DC, we landed at Rome for refueling. This was totally fine and it was in the flight itinerary. But, the flight attendant asked me to straighten the seat while we were at the steady position during the refueling. I can't rationalize this order except that some people just like to be a boss of some kind. Keeping the light lit in the economy cabin while keeping it dimmed in the first class also didn't improve my and my wife's feelings. Overall, the services were very good and the flight, despite its longevity, went on very smoothly.

The Boeing 737 MAX on this route, flown in the middle of the night, is an UTTER FAILURE for business travellers. The whole point of business travel is to arrive alert and recover from travel quickly, and this little aeroplane with its quarter recline uncomfortable business seats does nothing for that. It’s a small step up from economy in that you have decent legroom, but that’s it. Absolute margin at the cost of the traveller.

Lost suite case and pillow that’s used by senior and they didn’t leave it at the airport

The flight delayef for over 2 hours so my route was changed leading to arriving to my destination without my luggage

The use of a domestic carrier without entertainment was disappointing and a let down

There where no ear phones provided and the food needs to improve.

The food needs to improve especially the fish as there where only 3 fish cubes in my plate.

Am Wowed I did not ever thought African has such an amazing airline before.

The food could be better, the beef was quite tough. The crew were friendly and helpful on this flight, which has not being my experience on other Ethiopian flights.

The staff were fantastic and couldn't have been more accomodating; however, the air-conditioning was broken in our section of the aircraft, leaving us feeling extremely cold and unwell on arrival in Johannesbury. The head sets were also faulty, causing difficulty when listening to announcements and entertainment.

Terrible, We experienced massive delays and then couldn’t book a hotel through the link provided, nothing was available. We then went to the airport the next day and experienced further delays, almost no communication was given. We had dinner at lunchtime and breakfast at midnight. We then landed in Jhb at 1am and had to book another hotel as our flight to durban was at 8am. The experience was painful and very expensive.

Ok we did get an upgrade and the flight was delayed 45 minutes BUT without any bias. The crew were excellent, friendly, efficient and verging on exuberant, they all were so happy to do their jobs. Food excellent and the new safety video is fun to watch.

old seat need to go! outdated and uncomfortable. I waited 40 minutes for my bag

Flight on time. Food was poor - low quality and hard to eat due to poor layout

The crew on board were all very pleasant and happy to help. The flight had the old business class seats. The departure board in the business lounge did not update and kept on saying ' gate open' but never said boarding. When I got nervous about the departure time and walked to the gate I was told off rudely for being late.

Struggled with boarding pass on my iPhone.Suggest taking a printed copy. We sat upper deck at the rear on right hand side and best Economy flight in years. Bins below the windows made a massive difference for storage etc. inflight entertainment played up for a few pax but we were fine. Crew were first rate. Overall an excellent flight

They ran out of starter options but the alternative was okay. Just disappointed

Flight Beverly delayed and communication around that was poor. The actual boarding was lengthy and confusing.

Staff was wonderful. There was no breakfast because a cooling system had not been repaired. My luggage didn’t make it on the plane in London, so I had to wait to have my luggage delivered. I’m a long ways from home to be without items in my bag. We have to wait to be reimbursed for costs

Everything you need to know for your flight to South Africa

Cabin class types available on flights to South Africa

Cabin classes available on flights to South Africa. Prices are the lowest found on KAYAK over the last 7 days. Price and availability is not guaranteed.