What to Do in South Africa – According to Qantas Frequent Flyers

Witnessing unforgettable animal encounters in Kruger National Park, experiencing the wilderness in style at a luxury safari lodge and touring local wineries to savour South Africa’s signature wine. Qantas travellers share highlights from their recent trips to Johannesburg and beyond. 

“We stopped at several cellar doors for tastings and purchased as many bottles as we could possibly bring back to Australia.” – Lisa Schaup, Silver Frequent Flyer

My partner and I grew up in South Africa, so our recent trip there was a combination of catching up with family and sightseeing. We flew into Johannesburg and joined my family (pictured), who still live in South Africa, on the four-and-a-half hours drive west to our happy place, Kruger National Park, where we had the extraordinary luck of spotting three cheetahs from our hire car. While exploring the 300-kilometre Garden Route National Park on the south-eastern coast, we hiked the Half Collared Kingfisher Trail – an eight-kilometre round trip – in Wilderness and saw beautiful Knysna loerie birds. 

We then flew south to my old stomping ground of Cape Town, staying near Sea Point and visiting Constantia Glen – a standout winery that’s a 30-minute drive south of the city, with great handcrafted wines and picturesque views. Afterwards, we travelled 40 minutes east of Cape Town to the Stellenbosch wine region in the Western Cape province for pinotage – a South African red wine that’s a cross between pinot noir and cinsault. Along the way, we stopped at several cellar doors for tastings and purchased as many bottles as we could possibly bring back to Australia. It’s always hard to say goodbye to our family (pictured) when we leave South Africa but with direct Qantas flights from Sydney to Johannesburg, home doesn’t feel so far away anymore.

Lisa flew Sydney to Johannesburg

“One afternoon, I looked out the sliding door of my room to see a leopard chasing a buck right past the pool.” – Howard De Gee, Gold Frequent Flyer

My daughter and I have been to Kruger National Park, 415 kilometres east of Johannesberg, on previous trips but staying at Sabi Sabi Bush Lodge took the experience to a whole new level. We went on sunrise game drives, were treated to incredible service and the kitchen staff created handmade crisps for me whenever I had a craving. One afternoon I looked out the sliding door to see a leopard chasing a buck past the pool – I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! 

During our trip we flew to Cape Town and stayed near the V&A Waterfront precinct, which is near the city’s must-visit attractions such as Oranjezicht City Farm & Market, where you can try specialties such as koeksisters [South African donuts], bobotie [curried mince with a creamy topping] and melktert [milk tart] – South Africa’s take on a custard tart. We also took the cable car up to the top of Table Mountain to have breakfast at Ten67 Eatery and watched as the city stirred for the day.

Howard flew Melbourne to Cape Town via Sydney and Johannesburg

“At N’wamanzi Lookout, I watched a herd of elephants swim through the river, shielding their calves from the current.” – Christy Brown, Bronze Frequent Flyer

“Being a zookeeper, I’ve worked with lions in captivity since 2016. I wanted to learn more about their behaviour in the wild so I flew to Johannesburg from my home town of Sydney and on to Hoedspruit, where my friend Fred Berrange, founder of the Leopard Conservation Project, helped me find my feet before setting off by car into Kruger National Park.

“I started in the far north near Pafuri, a forest area where the Limpopo and Luvuvhu rivers meet. As I drove south, the landscape shifted from the mopane woodland near Letaba down to the open grasslands of Satara. On my second day, I spotted two male lions dozing by the roadside and saw eight lions resting on the banks of the Olifants River.

“At N’wamanzi Lookout, I watched a herd of elephants swim through the river, shielding their calves from the current. I didn’t leave until the last one made it safely to the other side. Another day, from the Nkumbe Viewpoint, I watched elephants, giraffes and zebras moving across the valley. It stirred a wave of emotion within me – and a renewed commitment to help protect this vast wilderness and its inhabitants.”

Christy flew Sydney to Johannesburg

“At a safari lodge, we saw elephants, lions, hippos, giraffes and cheetahs.” – Andrina Graham , Silver Frequent Flyer

“Our group of four families flew to Johannesburg to celebrate a friend’s 50th birthday. We made the 2.5-hour drive to Bakubung Bush Lodge – a safari reserve in Pilanesberg National Park – where we saw elephants, lions, hippos, giraffes and cheetahs.

“After four nights we moved on to Sun City Resort, a couple of hours from the city, which has golf courses, a waterpark, casino, shopping, restaurants and cinemas. We accidentally left the door to our hotel room at The Palace of the Lost City unlocked when we went to breakfast on our last morning at the resort – we came back to find that baboons had snuck in and eaten our popcorn and lollipops. Fortunately, they left our passports intact!” 

Andrina flew Qantas from Sydney to Johannesburg. 

“The Soweto neighbourhood is iconic – and so colourful.” – Amber Hunter, Bronze Frequent Flyer

“My husband and I make an annual pilgrimage to our South African homeland, flying Qantas from Sydney to Johannesburg and landing at 5pm, when the city has a golden glow. 

“The city’s Soweto neighbourhood is iconic and vibrant – you’ll see the colourful Orlando Towers, Vilakazi Street – known for being the home of Nelson Mandela – roadside barbers, taxis blaring music, and ladies carrying fruit on their heads and babies on their backs. 

“We always seek out a local restaurant for shisa nyama – meat cooked over coals. For a luxe experience, kick back with a drink on the terrace overlooking jacaranda trees at Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff.” 

Amber flew Qantas from Sydney to Johannesburg. 

“We loved having a game of padel at the Houghton Golf Club – it’s similar to tennis and is very popular.” – Alexis Aaron, Bronze Frequent Flyer

“We were on our way to get married in Cape Town so I was travelling with my huge wedding dress. The Qantas crew were so kind and hung it up in the cabin on the flight over. 

“After the wedding, we returned to Johannesburg before travelling on to the Molori Safari Lodge in Madikwe for a mini honeymoon. The resort was so luxurious and we saw the Big Five – lions, leopards, rhinoceros, elephants and African buffalos – which was incredible. 

“Back in Johannesburg, we loved having a game of padel at the Houghton Golf Club. It’s similar to tennis and is very popular in South Africa.”

Alexis flew Qantas from Sydney to Johannesburg.

SEE ALSO: What to Do in South Australia – According to Qantas Frequent Flyers