Travel by bus and taxis in South Africa

Inter-city bus services in South Africa 

There is a huge network of luxury inter-city bus services such as Greyhound, Intercape and Translux as well as the backpackers’ Baz Bus. These buses offer a variety of national routes and are an excellent way of seeing the country without the stress of driving.  

Though it’s possible to travel by public transportation like buses in South Africa, they are usually overcrowded and it does not travel to many destinations. Cities like Cape Town and Johannesburg do offer city sightseeing hop-on-hop-off bus tours. A one day ticket on a Red City Tour in Cape Town will cost R110 (R120 offline) for adults and children aged 5-15, R60. 

Travel by Taxis in South Africa 

The taxi service in South Africa are categorised to two sector; metered taxis and minibus taxis. Unlike in most countries where you can hail a taxi from a street corner, you have to telephone for taxi service. However, it is possible to hail a metered taxi from places of interest such as at the visitor’s entrance of Table Top Mountain or at designated taxi bay. Always asked for the taxi meter to be switch on and do not accept any other way of charging. Use metered taxis only for short distance travel.  

Minibus taxis usually comes in the form of 16-seater kombi commuter buses. They are usually not very well maintained and the drivers usually rush their fares to their destinations without regards to the passenger safety.  Minibus taxis serve the general population, their fares are cheaper and they are able to pick up and drop off passengers in remote areas. If you want to have an authentic South African travel experience on a minibus taxi, take short trip and it might be worthwhile to hire an experience guide who understand the system.