BootsnAll Travel Community

I was planning on spending 6 weeks in South Africa during my RTW trip - perhaps I was naive but I thought it would be a sort of "vacation" from my trip as everyone speaks English and thought I might rent an apartment in Cape town for a few weeks, do a Safari, some wine tasting, see Victoria falls and make my way to Johannesburg. However, reading this forum has made me quite worried that perhaps I should cut my time short in South Africa as it appears to have a serious crime problem (which I wasn't aware of)....I'm traveling with my partner and we're fairly experienced travelers, but it seems that violence and even murder against foreigners is prevalent (and i assume higher against gay people). Am I overreacting or is it really that bad? Should I cut back my time there? It sounds like a beautiful place, but I have to admit I don't want to spend much time in places where I will feel afraid for my safety. Many thanks.

Hey Traveller dude

Please don't let those stories worry you. yes there is a crime problem, but the chances of you encountering any are tiny. The vast majority of the statistics come from areas where tourists do not visit: "The Ghetto"

Put is this way, I have lived here a total of 15 years (compare to 6 weeks) and have not been affected by violent crime.

If you are not sure, just come for 1 or 2 weeks and leave your options open, I'll wager you a feather boa, you will stay for 6 weeks if not more , perhaps leave out Joburg, as it is a more intimidating city and just head straight to Cape Town. You will struggle to find a more Gay friendly city worldwide.

Kind regards

Philip

Hey Traveler

I spent 5mths traveling in south africa alone as a female. OK I am originally from south africa, but it had been 10yrs since I had left in '96.
Please feel free to PM me if you have any questions or need some reassurance.....
Some basic advice is:
wear older clothes
don't walk around with tons of cash or jewellery
keep your valuables out of site.

Seriously its not as bad as you think. I would recommend more time vs. less time. I have helped about 5 or 6 people plan their trip to SA and would be happy to help you guys too.

Trekker

Oh, please don't miss S Africa! You can stay in the Bo Kaap or Cape Malay Quarter in Capetown which is where a lot of gays hang out btw. See pic and story on my blog at http://blogs.bootsnall.com/nomads/?p=116

If you are interested I can look up the name and phone number of the apartment we rented in the picture. We stayed there a month. And don't miss Table Mountain and Robben Island!

See other stories about S Africa on my blog at http://blogs.bootsnall.com/nomads/?cat=53

A must do is to stay in a B&B in Soweto. I can get you that information too. It is owned by a retired school principal.
We skipped much of Joburg...except for the museum.

You can get into trouble anywhere if you don't use common sense.

Thanks for bringing this up. We are 15 months in to a multi year, open ended trip around the world and know we want to do South Africa, but it is one of the places that I go back and forth on.

We travel with a child, so that adds to our worries. We will probably go, but still not sure how long to plan for there.

You would be crazy not to go to South Africa. Probably one of the most beautiful and fascinating countries I have ever been to. Cape Town is probably the most beautiful city in the world. The United States is dangerous. Don't let all those stories worry you. Go and have a great time.

Hi,

I went to SA a few years ago, and it is one of the best places I have been to. I would definitely not miss out on it if I was you.

In every major city you are likely to face dangers, you just need to be a little smart, simple, about how you approach it for example don't walk home alone at night / keep your valuables out of sight etc.

There's so much to see in SA like mentioned above sowetto, and other things like robben island, table mountain, cape point etc.

THe Western Cape is so beautiful you must have seen it to believe it. We rented a car and drove around to Stellenbosch, Hermanus, Cape of Good Hope, Franshoek etc. Just be cautious. We did stay in a good guesthouse ran by a Dutch couple which can be found here: http://www.safarinow.com/go/shepherdslandcountryhouse/ in Sommerset West. In Cape Town we went luxury at the Radisson near the waterfront but just for two nights as it is a bit over budget but very beautiful.

traveler.dude have your fears been put to rest? I am sure you will have a fabulous time and I envy you going.

Trekker

Maybe Trekker can help me. I will be at the Kalahari Meerkat Project near Uppington from September 1 to 15, 2008. I will be flying in to Johannesburg, so I have the choice of returning to Johannesburg and going into Kruger, or staying in the Northern Cape, perhaps up into te Kgalagadi. My fears are that I will be sick of the Kalahari, but I want to see cheetahs (and I know it's a long shot). Suggestions or advice from a local would be most appreciated.

Terry in Denver

I just spent 3 months in South Africa and i think half of that was in Cape Town...kinda got stuck there on purpose...
go! stay and have a ball there. cant wait to get back. Like most people have indicated towards - use common sense and you should be fine (and hope for some luck). I was seeing a local girl and her stupidity was the reason she got her phone stolen.