Money, budget and costs in South Africa for World Cup 2010
Posted on 15. Mar, 2010 by admin in Explore
South Africa is generally cheaper than most of the developed world and visitors will find costs at the South Africa World Cup 2010 extremely low. Your pounds and euros will go a lot further here and you can have a great time, especially away from the big cities, without splashing the cash. There many ATMs in South Africa for withdrawing cash 24 hours a day. Most are on Cirrus, Visa or Mastercard networks but it is a good idea to tell your bank that you will be in the country before attempting to withdraw money.
Be careful at cash points and never tell anyone your pin, there are many scams to beware of in South Africa.
The currency in South Africa is the Rand (R) and comes in denominations of R10, R20, R50, R100 and R200 notes with coins in R1, R2 and R5 and one, two, five, 10, 20 and 50 cent. Up-to-the-second exchange rates are available on the Johnny Foreigner homepage.
Food and beverage costs in South Africa
South Africans love to eat and all sorts of meat and game such as deer, goat, beef and boar can be found at extremely reasonable prices. Plus exotic food like ostrich and alligator is more readily available if you fancy organising a braai, with sumptuous seafood platters in abundance for visitors to coastal regions such as Cape Town. Costs in South Africa of traditionally expensive delicacies such as clams, oysters, abalone and stingray will make dining well hard to resist.
Fruits and vegetables are easy to find all year round and always cheap to buy. However, prices in South Africa are always much higher in the cities when value-added-tax gets brought into the occasion. If you plan to drive from city to city then it pays to stock up in the country, and the quality will probably be fresher too.
South African cuisine is an delicious mix of traditional African cooking with the best from European kitchen. And add the finest wine and organic ingredients into the equation and you have a winning combination.
As a rough guide, the cost of beer in South African can vary wildy from R5 to R20 depending on where you’re drinking. The cost of wine in South Africa is around R20 with imported liquor the same as international standards. The cost of food in South Africa differs a massive amount depending on where you are eating, but meals can cost between R25 and R200 if frequenting the really swanky hotels.
Cost of hotels and guesthouses in South Africa
Travellers on a budget in South Africa can find cheap dorm beds for around R100 per night. While visitors preferring a little more luxury will have no problem finding all manner of accommodation options available including five star city hotels to country lodges with golf courses attached.
In general the cost of lodging in South Africa for a two star hotel but with air conditioning and television is around R500, with the cream of opulent five star resorts will all modern facilities costing up to R6,000 per night.
Travel costs in South Africa
Driving
The cost of driving in South Africa is cheaper than many places although the likely distance you will need to cover is much larger. A little of petrol costs around R4 per litre and toll roads cost around R50 for a mid-sized vehicle. Car rental in South Africa will set you back from R250 per day for a small car.
Train
The cost of train travel in South Africa is relatively inexpensive with a ticket from Johannesburg to Cape Town setting you back around R400. There are some luxury services for those with deep pockets but these cost the same a five star hotels.
Bus
The cost of South African buses is very generally very low with unregistered taxi minibuses transporting customers for just a few Rand. These have poor safety records, however, so it can be wise to pay a little more for a regular service which would be more comfortable too.
Air travel
The cost of domestic flights in South Africa is again reasonably low and if you book early it is certainly preferable than many hours on the road or train. No-frills carriers such as 1Time or Kulula charge around R400 for a one-way ticket between Cape Town and Johannesburg.
For more on travel in South Africa.
