I Traveled 2 Months in Southern Africa, Here's How Much It Cost - Travel Like Anna

If you care about traveled months southern africa, this guide gets straight to the point. We break down what actually matters, skip the fluff, and show you how to put it to work today.

Key Takeaways

• How much does it GENUINELY cost to travel in Africa?
• The truth is Africa isn’t affordable, you’re either paying for safety (from crime and wildlife), complicated transportation logistics or both!
• But, yes, there are methods to trim costs.
• This trip started with a half joking WhatsApp message, “How about we road trip Namibia?”, almost two years ago.

What to Know About Traveled Months Southern Africa

Worth noting: planning a trip of this scale yourself is discombobulating and made me wonder if the zebras and giraffes were worth the effort. (Of course, they were totally worth it!) There’s nothing I love more than talking about money and being honest about the cost of travel. It’s why I tracked each peso, dollar and Boliviano I spent on a seven-month backpacking trip in Latin America in 2014.

• And, I decided to do it again for this pricier two-month Africa adventure.
• To make the trip more affordable, I went with my best friend, Becky, and we both worked while we traveled.
• More importantly, neither of us paid rent or a mortgage during this trip, Becky rented out her Lisbon condo, while I simply don’t have a lease or a mortgage by choice.
• Two other friends joined at different points, too, which helped cut costs.

How Traveled Months Southern Africa Really Works

To be clear, I have no debt and would not go into debt for travel. This trip was a grander version of a canceled 2020 trip, so the saving started a long time ago!

• Remember that this was a rare kind of trip for me.
• After hours of staring at spreadsheets, I’ve created a detailed breakdown of the cost of traveling in Africa during two-month trip to assist you plan your own adventures.
• I also share (All costs are in USD.) methods to trim costs. are used in this post.
• If you make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no cost to you, which goes toward blog maintenance costs.

Getting the Most From Traveled Months Southern Africa

As a rule, total Cost of Trip: $12,789.83 Cost per Month: $6,394.15 Cost per Day: $203/day for 63 days Excludes flights. All costs are in USD.

• Africa Travel Cost Summary When looking at the total cost above ($12,789,23 US), you either fall into two mindsets, ”That’s crazy pricey!” or “That was a solid deal.”, based on your budget and expectations.
• For context, luxury safaris range from $1-2.5k/day per person, while budget participatory camping trips cost near $166/day per person (without optional excursions), which is roughly 19% cheaper than our trip.
• In short, for instance, G Adventures offers a 40-day participatory camping trip through eight countries (Nairobi to Cape Town) for a base rate of $6,199 and says to allot an additional $470 for meals that aren’t included.
• This breaks down to $166/day but doesn’t account for optional safari drives, pointers or entry to places like Victoria Falls ($50). ( G Adventures consistently runs sales, we saved about 15% on our tours.) I tracked all my expenses in the Dollarbird app, which is a paid subscription ($34/year) and the best money management app I’ve found.

Tips That Make a Difference

Detailed Breakdown of Expenses for Africa Trip Tours and Entrance Fees: $5,779.24 (Visas: $145; Entrance Fees: $426.65; Tours: $4,810.90; Pointers: $396.69) We did two eight-day safaris with G Adventures, a company that was recommended by travel industry friends as a budget choice. These tour prices below are the base rate and don’t include the optional safari drives, some meals, pointers and airport transfers.

• Worth noting: we both genuinely enjoyed our tours and highly recommend them!
• 8-Day G Adventures$2,294.15Botswana and Victoria Falls Adventure Tour: 8-Day G Adventures$1,699Kruger National Park Tour: Some aspects you just can’t do on your own due to safety and environmental regulations, such as Sandwich Harbor Dune Driving ($175 pp) in Namibia, rhino tracking ($116 pp) and leopard spotting ($84 pp).
• We also paid for several safari drives with guides since the guides have radios and tell each other where the animals are for easier wildlife spotting.
• Since it’s a highly pointer-based society, you require to allot an added 10% minimum for pointers. (Some of the pointers were included in the tour pricing in my calculations.) The admission for foreigners to certain sites was hefty, $50 entry for the Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

More importantly, visas Costs in Africa Namibia started requiring a $90 multiple-entry visa for Americans in April 2025, and it was $55 for a multiple-entry Zimbabwe visa that we used to take a day trip to Zambia. (If you are a dual passport holder, you can’t swap near your passports in Africa just to save on visa costs. Immigration will flag you since they look previous stamps to see where you’ve been in Africa.) Twyfelfontein Adventure Camp after visiting the nearby UNESCO rock art site.

• Accommodation: $2,719.44 There are two choices for accommodation in rural Africa: camping ($20/per person in Namibia) or swanky lodges.
• Since we were working remotely, camping wasn’t an choice, so we splurged on fancy places for four nights of the entire two months, ranging from $281 pp to $143 pp per night, including two meals.
• Remember that we kept joking that we were retired since we were frequently the youngest people at these spots!
• The heat was another reason we opted for fancier accommodation.

Is Traveled Months Southern Africa Worth It?

Food: $2,164.86 (Eating Out: $1,076.33; Groceries: $925.31; Beer: $163.22) On travel days, we spent plenty of time eating sandwiches and snacks on the long drives. Anytime we were in a proper town, we ate out mostly for convenience.

• As a rule, plus, we were exhausted after the driving days.
• My most pricey meal eating out was $38.86, including pointer and wine.
• I only had eight meals that cost over $30 in two months, and the median meal price was $12.97.
• Eating out was relatively inexpensive, cute cafes in Cape Town had breakfast sandwiches for $6, etc.

Where the Real Savings Hide

In short, it’s the cost of alcohol that makes it more pricey. I just tracked beer to be funny but that also includes wine.

• The wine scene in South Africa and the craft beer choices in Cape Town was fantastic!
• Transportation: $1,539.68 (Car Rentals: $574.76; Gas: $111.06; Mechanic/Tire: $73.73; Taxis & Private Transfers: $780.13) We paid for safety when it came to transport.
• Worth noting: let me be clear: You cannot walk alone at night, even as a group, in most of Southern Africa.
• Mostly due to the chance of being robbed but also due to wild animals in the bush.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I save money on traveled months southern africa?

Compare prices across a few retailers, look for active coupon codes, and time bigger buys around sales events. It’s why I tracked each peso, dollar and Boliviano I spent on a seven-month backpacking trip in Latin America in 2014.

Is it worth shopping around for traveled months southern africa?

Usually yes. And, I decided to do it again for this pricier two-month Africa adventure.

Smart Ways to Save More on Traveled Months Southern Africa

• Check for student, military, or first order offers you may qualify for.
• Time non urgent purchases around major sale events for the deepest cuts.
• Leave items in your cart for a day; some stores send a follow up discount.
• Pair cashback with a coupon so you save twice on the same order.
• Stack a coupon code with an existing sale whenever the store allows it.

Final Thoughts

The bottom line on traveled months southern africa: a little research goes a long way. Compare your options, watch for seasonal offers, and never pay full price when a better deal is a click away.

Originally published at savingswitch.com.