Travelling throughout Southern Africa is a ‘Dream Holiday’ for many, but the distances are vast, and the international flights can soon push up the overall cost of your trip… so how do you travel from South Africa to Namibia, Botswana to Zambia, and Zimbabwe to Mozambique without blowing your budget…?

Well, you will be pleased to know that there is a cost-effective alternative, and that is to travel Southern Africa by Bus!

Surprising perhaps, but there are several safe, comfortable, reliable and affordable bus companies serving the main cities of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique, and while you can expect to spend several hours getting from one place to another, your bus journey’s will add to the overall excitement of your trip!

As promoters of “Tried and Tested” routes, we decided to try out one such bus journey from Windhoek in Namibia to Cape Town in South Africa during our recent visit below the equator, which combined the Cape Argus Cycle Tour with a 10-Day Self-Drive Safari in Namibia, and our experience was very good indeed.

Departing from Windhoek main bus station at 5pm in the evening, our 21-hour ‘Sleepliner’ journey promised to be a long one, but it was surprisingly comfortable with reclining seats and individual air conditioning, and while the bus was full, it didn’t seem overcrowded or claustrophobic.

After leaving the city walls of Windhoek, we were given a safety briefing before the hostess loaded the video system with the Sandra Bullock movie “The Blind Side”.  The audio system was good, the picture was surprisingly clear, and so the first few hours went with a breeze, and by the time the movie had finished, it was time to recline our seats and try to get some sleep.

Despite offering Tea, Coffee, Soft Drinks and Toilet facilities onboard, the bus stopped every 4-hours or so for refreshment and bathroom breaks, and of course, everyone needs to go through immigration at the border so you cannot expect a ‘good nights sleep’, but everything went smoothly, and the night seemed to fly by.

As the sun began to rise, we experienced the most beautiful South African landscapes, and after a brief breakfast stop and another movie, we were in Cape Town before we knew it!

At R780 per person (approximately £43 British Pounds), our trip from Namibia to South Africa was certainly a lot cheaper than flying, and while it is not something I would want to do every day, I would certainly recommend it to anyone travelling across Southern Africa on a budget.