Geography, climate and people

Africa's most southern country shares its borders with Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Swaziland, and stretches to the Indian and Atlantic oceans

South Africa is 1,221,040 square kilometres in area (more than five times the size of the UK or 18 times that of Ireland) and embraces an incredible variety of landscape, from desert and rugged mountains to luxuriant forests and long, white sandy beaches.

Several high plateaus, ranging from 500 metres above sea level near the Limpopo River in the north to over 2,000 metres at their highest points, largely define South Africa’s geography and particularly its climate, which although mild all year round can be as varied as the landscape.

It is important therefore to know the best times of the year to visit South Africa, whether your passion is golf, observing wild animals — which move with the seasons — Cape Town’s cultural and night life, or choice beaches.

The highveld
The air in the highveld is dry and temperatures in summer (November to March) can top the 30s. Nonetheless the heat is rarely uncomfortable, despite the fact that this is usually the rainy season with violent thunderstorms not uncommon.

The mornings can be cold, below zero even, in the highlands in winter (June to August). On the plus side, the sky is clear and when the sun rises temperatures by mid-morning can easily reach the 20s or higher.

Humid lowveld
The air is quite humid in the more low lying lowveld and eastern coastal regions. Temperatures here range from 24 to 32 degrees centigrade although not prone to the same seasonal variations as the highlands.

Rainfall, like in the highlands and the rest of the country with the exception of south western Cape, is largely confined to the summer months.

Famous winds
Along the coast monsoon winds moderate the impact of summer’s humidity and the dry winter months are pleasantly warm.

Cape Town is famous for its wind, which blusters from the top of Table Mountain blowing dust and heat around the city. The winds can be particularly severe on summer afternoons.

The dry summers of the Western Cape
In contrast, the area from the Garden Route to Cape Town, unlike the rest of the country, enjoys dry warm summers. So, here they pray for rain to fill the reservoirs during the winter, enough to bring snow to the mountain tops around Winelands.

Population
South Africa’s population is roughly 45 million. 35 million Africans, 4,5 million of European extraction, 1 million Asians and 4 million of mixed ethnic origin.

South Africa has eleven official languages. English, Zulu, Xhosa and Afrikaans are the most widespread, with Pedi, Tswana, Sotho, Tsonga, Swati, Ndebele and Venda.

The majority of the population are Christian, Roman Catholic and Protestant including the Dutch Reformed Church. Among major African Christian communities the Pentecostal Church is quite strong. Other major religious communities include Hindus, Muslims and Jews.