GoTravel24.com | South Africa's annual migration

Flights

return one way

Leaving From

Leaving on

Flying to

Returning on

Adults	Children	Infants

> 12 yrs	2-11 yrs	< 2 yrs
Important note: Don't forget kids under 12 must have an adult over the age of 16 travelling with them.

Hotels

By Region
By Date & Region
By Keyword

Check-in

Check-out

City

Rooms		Adults		Children

Cars

Pickup from

Pickup Date

Pickup Time

Deliver vehicle to me

Dropoff at

Dropoff Date

Dropoff Time

Collect vehicle from me

Optional Flight Details

Arrival flight no.

Departure flight no.

Package Deals »

South Africa's annual migration

Durban's beach strip. Photo: durbanaccommodation.net.

Simon Williamson
November 16th, 2009

Come the end of every year, the annual migration of Johannesburgers to the East Coast in search of sandy holidays begins. Some are lucky enough to journey by plane, but most will pack fishing rods and the braai into the trailer, three weeks' worth of clothing into the boot, the toy-laden kids into the back and begin the great trek down the N3.

You join the throngs of GP number plates pulling onto the highway as if they are being lured by the Pied Piper. Durban, Umhlanga, Ballito, Margate, Ramsgate, Leisure Bay, Southbroom, San Lameer, Zinkwazi, Amanzimtoti - all the populations of these cities, towns and resorts are going to double for the next few weeks and the annual guaranteed cash cow means the economies of these destinations can survive another year.

Photo (L): Skyscrapercity.com. Photo (R): Harmsenad.wordpress.com.

After an hour you still aren't out of the city - the actual size of Johannesburg and its traffic are unparalleled in South Africa - and by now you're already in a road-ragey mood, the kids are bored, the radio DJ seems to be playing anything but decent music - and you haven't even reached Heidelberg.

Into the Free State you go past the notable town of Warden: notable for many people because it hosts one of the largest Dutch Reformed churches in South Africa (seating 1750 people). It is notable for me because I have never seen a person walking around or driving there. Ever.

Most people stop at Harrismith -considered the halfway point between the two cities, which is kind of true in terms of kilometres, but van Reenen's pass and the winding roads of KZN lie ahead which makes the second part of the journey longer in terms of time. The popular service station there has a Wimpy and a Nando's, which means that every South African in existence can find something to eat.

The pass at van Reenen's has an annoyingly slow speed limit of 80kph (enforced by a plethora of cameras and trucks in first gear), but the views either side of the road are incredible. Don't gaze too long though, or you might go off the road and fall a very long way.

Photo (L): Wikipedia.org. Photo (R): Howzattravel.co.uk.

The Mooi River toll is the commencement of a gradual descent into Pietermaritzburg and the glide through the Natal Midlands - thick forests line each side of the road and the wet climate means everything is constantly green. It is at this point that you need to keep your wits about you as yet more trucks join the road, and the famed varying speed and lack of adherence to the highway code of KwaZulu-Natal drivers becomes a feature for the rest of the journey.

While avoiding trucks in the left lane, speeders in the far right lane and people driving at 70kph in the middle lane, the busy road from Pietermaritzburg is the last stretch of highway before rounding the long bend near The Pavillion shopping centre, which is the first point at which you can see the sea.

And you'll see it on your family's faces: the stresses and strains of the long trip are all worth it.

Have any advice to share with your fellow great trekkers, why not post a comment below?

Browse our packages to Durban from all major cities in South Africa.

Add new comment

Bookmark/Search this post with:

User Comments

Thank you for sharing this,

Submitted by Anonymous on Sun, 02/07/2010 - 12:23.

Thank you for sharing this, really appreciate you shared this with followers like me.
Nicole
medela symphony

Johansburg's East Coast is

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 01/08/2010 - 07:49.

Johansburg's East Coast is one of the most beautiful place in the earth. I spent many holidays there especially the November and December. People come from all over the world and enjoy there. I love going Johansberg and staying nights there. This year I was busy with my seo work and could not visit the beaches of South Africa, but hopefully I'll be there next year.

Holidays!

Submitted by Jo on Wed, 11/25/2009 - 09:45.

We love having the holiday makers in Amanzimtoti! Yes, parking etc becomes a bit of an issue for everyone, but so what, they bring with them a Christmas holiday spirit and a vibe not present at other times of the year! We love you, we love your money, and we love your exuberance! Please don't forget to visit our stunning new shopping/entertainment centre, the Galleria! We're very excited to show it off! Have a fantastic holiday!

Pissed off!!

Submitted by Charlie Mingas on Wed, 11/25/2009 - 09:42.

@S-F Everyone on this comments page is jolly about going on holiday. You are the only bitter, racist and filthy pig who thinks he's clever. Why don't you stay in Orania? PS There's no beach there. The place doesn't even exist and never will. You're an animal who belongs in a zoo. You should be locked up in a sty, jou swine!!

Im a proud GP-er and LOVE

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 11/25/2009 - 09:31.

Im a proud GP-er and LOVE making the trek to KZN!!! Thats what holiday is all about!

What's a good time to leave Joeys?

Submitted by Charlie Mingas on Wed, 11/25/2009 - 07:56.

Can somebody tell me if it's better to leave in the very early hours of the morning? Say at around 3am... Will I be able to avoid the traffic then?

Show me the money!!!

Submitted by cj-kzn south coast on Wed, 11/25/2009 - 07:43.

Love the holidaymakers, love their money. This is bonus time for me. It's only for a few weeks so who cares about traffic and taking an extra 10 minutes to get home. Besides, we locals know all the shortcuts and make good use of them. I work hard (24/7 if needed) and take a break when they have all left. Welcome to our shores and have a ball!!!

Holidays have got to be enjoyed!

Submitted by Diezel on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 23:01.

Being a Durbanite, overcrowding in the City of Durban can be so annoying in December, however, holidays have got to be enjoyed, so to all the Gautengers and other provinces, you are all welcome to Durban during the festive season.

hmmm....

Submitted by SC local on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 19:01.

I live on the KZN South Coast and I think that there are only a few GP people that give all of them a bad name... these are the ones that wear bikinis and sarongs (with bellies hanging over the sides) to our restaurants and shops and generally act as if they own the place. We just get cranky because the 20 minute drive from Port Shepstone to Shelly Centre becomes over an hour long in December because of the GP traffic jam :) so locals, get to know the shortcuts!

Fellow Great Trekkers

Submitted by Maureen on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 18:44.

PLEASE brush up your spelling, Simon, advice is spelt with a "C", not an "S" !!

Very pleased to see them go.

Submitted by Shorts on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 18:15.

Very pleased to see them go. Johannesburg and surrounding areas are an absolute pleasure to live in when all these guys have gone away. Why do they not stay away for longer ? Do they really have to come back ???

Heading to Zim

Submitted by Joseph on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 16:53.

I will be heading the opposite direction to Zim.I hate the beitbridge border .Last time I spend the whole day there.The roads from there to harare is full of pothole if not boreholes.

@Godfrey

Submitted by Baron v on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 15:09.

Hello Godfrey - yes, I notice also that GPers tend to get the short end of the "nice" stick when outside GP. Ok, that is definitely not nice of people - though I suspect a large part of the reason is the group of GPers who do drive very aggressively and perhaps even negligently when off on holiday. Whatever a person's driving habits when commuting in Joburg or Centurion or wherever ... the same "kill or be killed" approach is not especially welcome elsewhere. I am certainly not ant-GP - and I don't condone rudeness to visitors. Merely suggesting there may be some cause. I have lived in Europe, the US, SA (and now Europe again) - and my observation is that the GPers (generalisation, I am sorry!) and natives of NY share a lot of unnecessary aggression in driving habits. That is not to confuse decisiveness with aggression (not the same!). I drive in Germany these days & although Autobahn speeds can be high, urban crawl is well-regulated/obeyed and raw aggression seems to be limited to a few eejits on the road.

So, GPers. please come to KZN, WC etc etc ... just chill a bit and leave the aggro at home (those who are thus!). A year or three and you can show the coastal peeps that you are also Human and really quite nice too.

Enjoy the hols and spend lots :-)

All welcome to Margate

Submitted by Carol on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 15:04.

Quiet Joburg: Here in Margate our usually 10 minutes drive becomes 30 minutes drive.

But we love the holiday makers. They wake up our little sleepy town and spend loads of money here.

Gautengers, we just cant wait for the holidays to begin.

Groot trek to the coast

Submitted by Willow on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 15:03.

I welcome all Vaallies to our home town - - Mossel Bay. Just on request! ! We all know that traffic is a real nightmare around here during high season.
Just 2 favors. (1) Please remember some locals still have the priviledge to work and need to get from A to B asap. So ! ! give way if you can. (2) When some time after the season you might notice any WP or CBS car in your highway up there wher you come from ...... Please do not push us of the roads or keep us from changing lanes as some of you have done to me earlier this year. We , sometimes, have to humiliate ourselves to go up country , even if it is just for the sake of passing through.

Shame poor Dbn

Submitted by S-F on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 14:51.

Shame poor Durban. I love the city , its like my second home but come December i stay far far far away........Why becuse every year there is a oil slick that washes up on the beach!!! Black dirty oil!!!

KZN South Coast

Submitted by Carol on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 14:19.

Watch out for our fabulous new shopping mall 'Galleria' just as you get over the hill into Amanzimtoti... Great shopping and movies. Have a lovely holiday!

Nothing to say except come

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 14:04.

Nothing to say except come on holidays and "advise"(verb) above should be spelled "advice" (noun)!

Speed cameras

Submitted by Blackie Black on Mon, 11/23/2009 - 07:00.

Watch out for cameras by the Ulrtra city between Warden and Harrismith

Sunny South Coast ... :)

Submitted by Mrs Beckham on Sun, 11/22/2009 - 20:48.

I am an ex Johannesburger and have lived in Cape Town for 2 years and Durban for a year. Then back to JHB and now I have been in Umtentweni on the South Coast of KZN for almost 3 years. It's difficult adjusting to the influx of people but I know for a fact that most locals down here are friendly and grateful for the holidaymakers ... Drive safe, everyone -- THAT'S THE most important thing, isn't it?!

They'll still your money

Submitted by Lou on Fri, 11/20/2009 - 17:16.

If 'locals' hate the visiting tourists then please don't try to sell them anything. Otherwise, suck it up.

@Migration

Submitted by Godfrey on Tue, 11/17/2009 - 08:39.

I agree with you, why is it that people from Gauteng are treated so badly in other cities? I have found myself having to be extra courteous to avoid being victimised by both the locals and the police when driving into areas outside Gauteng. In fact the only provinces that seem to be 'Gauteng friendly are North West, Limpopo and Mpumalanga, maybe because of their close proximity to GP. Come on people we're all South Africans!

South Africa's Annual Migration

Submitted by glenbok@24.com on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 15:18.

Does anyone remember that hilarious banner strung over one Durban's many bridges? "Welcome to Durban now f*ck off."

Having lived in our three major cities, I couldn't possibly take offence!

migration

Submitted by Julie on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 14:55.

My only embarressment is that I am one of those migrators and that is why I licence my cars in Stanger so that I have NT number plates. The locals SO hate the Gautengers and that is why I prefer to disguise my car and pretend that I love being part of the dozzey mob living on the North Coast.

Quiet Joburg

Submitted by Macavity on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:51.

Best of all, Joburg is transformed into quiet and peaceful bliss once everyone has left for their destinations.
Instead of taking 20 minutes to get to work, it takes 5

Thank god i live by the coast

Submitted by Freddy van der Merwe on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:32.

Thank god i live by the coast,that just sounds exhausting!Damm good story though

ah yes...

Submitted by Sunshine on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:28.

that just about sums it up - and as soon as you open the windows to let the humid durban air in, you realise you're there and the stress of the trip really does melt away.

... no politics on this one

we're ALL bad drivers

Submitted by sunday drive on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:26.

Funny article, i love the metaphor. we really are like a bunch of thick animals on the roads! I know us capetonians always moan about the GP's, but when it's GP time in December I constantly see them getting mowed out the way by our lakka Kaapstad drivers, shoved out of the fast lane, bullied out of their right or way and other such gems. I feel sorry for them when they get here! Poor buggers!

Music on the great trek

Submitted by Jax on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:04.

Best solution for the music was to allow each passenger (6 on the last trip) to choose 20 songs from the pc to burn onto a CD. With the 6 shuttle CD player each one got to hear "their" music and sang along to all the other choices too - no annoying DJ's or fighting with the radio to find a station and one that plays decent music.

Cool article, thanks!

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 10:42.

Cool article, thanks!

Speed limits

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 09:50.

the Cash Cow is now being milked by the towns along the way, by as you say a multitude of speed cameras. some municipalities unhappy with the income from regular speeders have started to adjust the speed limit for no apparent reason so watch out.

PS be esp careful approaching toll plaza's

annual trek to kzn

Submitted by Dianne on Mon, 11/16/2009 - 09:42.

I wish to take huge issue with your statement: "and lack of adherence to the highway code of KwaZulu-Natal drivers". I lived in KZN and thought they were the worst drivers in the world until holiday time when every GP-registered vehicle would go speeding past at almost double the 80kmh speed limit down Town Hill outside PMBurg. And now I live in Gauteng and they are definitely the rudest and most arrogant drivers in the country (that is until you get to cape town and they drive like 105yr old geriatrics or loonies on speed!) Let's face it, South Africans are appalling on the road, so please don't single out the drivers in KZN.