Cheap Flights to Nelspruit

When you book cheap flights to Nelspruit, you will have taken the first step to a dream holiday. Once you land at Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (NLP), you are just a short distance from Nelspruit and from there, the world-famous Kruger Park, one of the largest and oldest national parks in Africa. Dreams of seeing the ‘’Big Five’’ may be realised in the next days. Nelspruit is also a great location for golfers.

Airlink is the main airline operating out of Nelspruit, others being Comair in conjunction with British Airways, SA Express and Fedair. There are links to several domestic airports, including Johannesburg from where international travellers can use many of the world’s top airlines to foreign destinations; South African Airlines, Emirates, British Airways and Lufthansa are just a few examples. You can fly directly to and from Cape Town, Durban and one international location, Victoria Falls.

When you land at Nelspruit, it is likely you will be immediately impressed by its appearance. There is a thatched roof and fine stone floors. It is though you were already in a lodge in a game park.

The airport is a modern facility with ATMs, shops and cafes with car rental companies for those who decide to drive for themselves. The roads of South Africa are excellent and petrol cheap. You can talk to tour desks if you have yet to plan your time in Nelspruit.

The town is 23 kilometers away and taxis are available outside arrivals if you need them.

Unless you have hired a car, the best way to get around Nelspruit is by taxi. There is plenty of shopping and good restaurants but the real reason to be in Nelspruit is to use it as a base, especially for trips into Kruger Park where you can drive yourself and call into the various lodges to see the latest sightings or take a tour with an experienced guide. The closest gate to Nelspruit is Malelane and once inside the roads are good so you are free to explore; obviously taking a map makes sense.

Cheap flights to Nelspruit allow you to experience a beautiful part of South Africa.

Nelspruit is in Mpumalanga Province which is home to a number of tribes with siSwati and isiZulu by far the two largest. English is the common language that will be understood everywhere even though it is the first tongue of only a relatively small proportion of South Africans.

Prices in Nelspruit may be higher than in some other parts of South Africa due to the number of tourists visiting the region. The US Dollar has strengthened against the South African Rand in recent years and the current exchange rate is around 13 Rand to US$1.

A meal is an inexpensive restaurant will be around R 110 while a mid-range restaurant is likely to cost R 217 a head. Local beer, 0.5 litres, will be R 22.50 with imported bottled beer (0.33 litres) R 29. Cappuccino is R 23.40 a cup.

Marlboro cigarettes are R 38.20 a packet once you have finished your duty free supply.
Once you set foot in a taxi, there is a standard charge of R 32.50 then a further R 10.25 a kilometer. Incidentally, petrol is likely to cost you R 13.10 if you choose to hire a car so travelling around is fairly inexpensive, especially compared with Europe.

Nelspruit’s climate is classified as humid sub-tropical. That means hot summers, humid with rainfall, and mild winters. There is less than 700 mm annually with the vast majority in the summer months. The four months between May and August inclusive each have less than 20 mm. During those months, temperatures rarely reach 20C but equally will not fall below 6 or 7C. The average in winter is around 14C which is perfectly comfortable.

It certainly makes sense to have some warm clothing, especially if you are going for game drives because the best time to view animals is early in the morning or late in the day.

The best time for game viewing is the dry season because the animals are more reliant upon the waterholes than normal. Likewise, there may be less vegetation.

It follows that winter is a good time to book cheap flights to Nelspruit. Kruger is a vast park with many types of terrain and vegetation, a well-managed park where there is every likelihood of your seeing some of the most iconic animals in the world. Everyone has their favourite; lion, elephants, hippo or the rare rhino. If you are really lucky you may even see the elusive leopard.

Golf is the other main activity locally and courses remain in good condition throughout the year.