Known as “The Warm Heart of Africa”, Malawi offers very good value and its famed friendliness extends to SA passport holders. Lake Malawi is somewhere I’ve been wanting to go to for about 20 years. Riding the Inyala Ferry or its replacement is a Bucket Lister!
Visas | Getting there | Places | Costs | Highlights
Visas
South Africans do not require a visa and are allowed to stay for up to 90 days. Visit evisa.gov.mw/VisaAssistance to check for other nationalities.
Getting there
Like many African countries that aren’t all that far, flights to Malawi are unfortunately still pricey from Cape Town, but overland can work out much cheaper if you have the time.
Best times to visit:
The best times to visit are from August to November when there isn’t much rain.
Places
Lake Malawi is the Bucket Lister, but Blantyre and Lilongwe may warrant a bit of time. Mangochi is also recommended in the south. The Malunje Mountains are also worth seeing.
Costs
Malawi is very cheap, coming in 1.89 times cheaper than the global average and 167th our of 197 countries ranked on livingcost.org.
Cape Town | Blantyre comparison shows Rent Prices are 74.9% lower, Restaurant Prices are 61.9% lower and Groceries Prices are 27.8% lower
Highlights
Lake Malawi and riding the ferry. The Lake of Stars Festival will also hopefully return in late Septmeber 2024 after the 2023 one was delayed due to high running costs.