Flights to Richtersveld
A mountainous desert where the Nama still move with the seasons in portable reed houses — a cultural landscape, not just scenery, and about as far from Kruger's traffic as South Africa gets.
Tourism hasn't reached it yet. Here is exactly how to, and how long that's likely to last.
Open on the live mapTrack your flight thereGetting to Richtersveld
No scheduled jet service into ALJ. Fly to CPT (Cape Town International Airport) — 33 airports fly there nonstop — then drive ~94 km from ALJ.
Via CPT — Cape Town
Cape Town is the hub for Richtersveld: 33 airports fly there nonstop, then drive ~94 km from ALJ.
Show the 33 nearest as a list
| From | Airport | Airlines | Flight time |
|---|---|---|---|
| GeorgeSouth Africa | GRJ | Safair, South African Airlink | ~1h 2m |
| Port ElizabethSouth Africa | PLZ | Safair, South African Airlink | ~1h 25m |
| UpingtonSouth Africa | UTN | South African Airlink | ~1h 26m |
| KimberleySouth Africa | KIM | South African Airlink | ~1h 38m |
| East LondonSouth Africa | ELS | CemAir, Safair | ~1h 41m |
| BloemfonteinSouth Africa | BFN | Safair, South African Airlink | ~1h 45m |
| GaberoneBotswana | GBE | Air Botswana, South African Airlink | ~2h 12m |
| DurbanSouth Africa | DUR | CemAir, Rayani Air, Safair | ~2h 13m |
| JohannesburgSouth Africa | JNB | Airlink, CemAir, Safair, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways | ~2h 13m |
| WindhoekNamibia | WDH | Safair, South African Airlink | ~2h 14m |
| Walvis BayNamibia | WVB | South African Airlink | ~2h 14m |
| MpumalangaSouth Africa | MQP | Safair, South African Airlink | ~2h 33m |
| SkukuzaSouth Africa | SZK | South African Airlink | ~2h 38m |
| HoedspruitSouth Africa | HDS | CemAir, Safair, South African Airlink | ~2h 39m |
| MaputoMozambique | MPM | South African Airlink | ~2h 39m |
| MaunBotswana | MUB | South African Airlink | ~2h 40m |
| Victoria FallsZimbabwe | VFA | Kenya Airways, South African Airlink | ~3h 2m |
| LivingstoneZambia | LVI | Kenya Airways, Proflight Zambia | ~3h 4m |
| HarareZimbabwe | HRE | South African Airlink | ~3h 22m |
| Dar Es SalaamTanzania | DAR | Air Tanzania | ~5h 18m |
| NairobiKenya | NBO | Kenya Airways | ~5h 50m |
| PlaisanceMauritius | MRU | Air Mauritius, Flysafair, South African Airways | ~5h 52m |
| Addis AbabaEthiopia | ADD | Ethiopian Airlines | ~7h 17m |
| Sao PauloBrazil | GRU | LATAM Chile, South African Airways | ~8h 44m |
| DohaQatar | DOH | Qatar Airways | ~10h 8m |
| DubaiUnited Arab Emirates | DXB | Emirates | ~10h 23m |
| IstanbulTurkey | IST | Turkish Airlines | ~11h 24m |
| FrankfurtGermany | FRA | Lufthansa | ~12h 37m |
| AmsterdamNetherlands | AMS | KLM | ~13h |
| LondonUnited Kingdom | LHR | British Airways | ~13h |
| NewarkUnited States | EWR | United Airlines | ~16h 44m |
| WashingtonUnited States | IAD | United Airlines | ~16h 57m |
| AtlantaUnited States | ATL | Delta Air Lines | ~17h 22m |
Routings from major airports
| From | Stops | Via | Door to door |
|---|---|---|---|
Dallas-Fort WorthDFW
| 2 stops | ATL → CPT | ~24h 13m |
New YorkJFK
| 2 stops | IAD → CPT | ~22h 46m |
Los AngelesLAX
| 2 stops | ATL → CPT | ~26h 43m |
MiamiMIA
| 2 stops | GRU → CPT | ~22h 31m |
ChicagoORD
| 2 stops | IAD → CPT | ~23h 31m |
LondonLHR
| 1 stop | CPT | ~17h 46m |
TorontoYYZ
| 2 stops | EWR → CPT | ~22h 48m |
Why it's still quiet
A mountainous desert where the Nama still move with the seasons in portable reed houses — a cultural landscape, not just scenery, and about as far from Kruger's traffic as South Africa gets.
The friction
4x4 and self-sufficiency required; that keeps numbers tiny.
Background
The Richtersveld is a desert landscape characterised by rugged kloofs and high mountains, situated in the north-western corner of South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It is full of changing scenery from flat, sandy, coastal plains, to craggy sharp mountains of volcanic rock and the lushness of the Orange River, which forms the border with neighboring Namibia. The area ranges in altitude from sea level, to 1,377 m (4,518 ft) at Cornellberg. Located in the north-western side of the Northern Cape province in South Africa, the Richtersveld is regarded as the only arid biodiversity hotspot on earth and the majority of the area is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List due to its cultural values.
Questions
- Is there a nonstop flight to Richtersveld?
- Not by jet. The nearest airport with scheduled service is CPT (Cape Town International Airport), then drive ~94 km from ALJ.
- Which airport do you fly into for Richtersveld?
- ALJ — Alexander Bay Airport. Most travelers connect through CPT (Cape Town International Airport).
- When is the best time to visit Richtersveld?
- May–Sep. 4x4 and self-sufficiency required; that keeps numbers tiny.
- What does Richtersveld cost per day?
- Varies by season.
- Why is Richtersveld still quiet?
- A mountainous desert where the Nama still move with the seasons in portable reed houses — a cultural landscape, not just scenery, and about as far from Kruger's traffic as South Africa gets.