What it costs to fly between Cape Town and Durban right now
South Africans looking to travel from coast to coast sometime soon can expect to pay at least R2,520 to fly between Cape Town and Durban over the next few weeks, according to flight price research by TopAuto.
Naturally, several factors can affect flight prices, including your choice of airline, ticket classes, and even the date and time you choose to fly, as more convenient travel times typically come at a premium.
The cheapest air fares in South Africa
TopAuto used Google Flights data to compare the best rates for flights with every major airline in South Africa for a flight booked around a week in advance.
When booking flights on Monday, 15 June 2026, the cheapest available were for Monday, 22 June.
It must be noted that flight prices tend to be cheaper during the week, increasing slightly over the weekend, when it is ideal for travellers to fly.
While flying from Cape Town to Durban is not the most popular flight in South Africa, enough tickets sell to keep the route alive for several domestic carriers.
Our search was filtered for a single adult travelling one-way in economy class from Cape Town to Durban.
Below is a list of the best results for FlySafair, Lift, South African Airways (SAA), CemAir, and Airlink.
Note that these figures are accurate at the time of writing and are subject to change based on the time and day you book:
| Airline | Departing Flight time (1 June) | Price |
|---|---|---|
| FlySafair | 19:40 – 21:45 | R1,199 |
| Lift | 15:00 – 17:05 | R1,391 |
| Cemair | 06:10 – 08:10 | R2,072 |
| South African Airways | 18:10 – 08:40 | R2,564 |
| Airlink | 06:05 – 16:20 | R3,609 |
It must be noted that SAA and Airlink’s flights include a “quick” stop in Johannesburg before heading towards Durban, which is also the case for return flights.
That being said, the cheapest ticket on a direct flight from the Western Cape to KwaZulu-Natal costs R1,199 aboard FlySafair and is around R200 cheaper than the next-best option with Lift.
Airlink, with its Johannesburg detour, is the most expensive airline to fly coast-to-coast with, with tickets more than R2,400 more expensive than the cheapest option.
For return flights, TopAuto looked at options leaving a week later, Monday, 29 June.
This time around, the cheapest option was with Lift, which beat FlySafair by around R250 for economy class flights.
These were the cheapest return ticket results for each airline on Monday, 29 June:
| Airline | Departing Flight time (6 June) | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Lift | 18:05 – 20:20 | R1,321 |
| FlySafair | 07:15 – 09:35 | R1,574 |
| CemAir | 08:40 – 10:50 | R 2,052 |
| South African Airways | 07:00 – 11:40 | R2,683 |
| Airlink | 17:00 – 22:50 | R3,002 |
Once again, flying with SAA or Airlink will require a stop-off at O.R. Tambo International Airport, which adds to the cost and travel time.
Choosing the cheapest tickets available in either direction, you can expect to pay R2,520, which, despite being a less-popular route, is less than flying from Johannesburg to Cape Town right now.
Unless you are in a hurry to escape the cold and make the most of the near-tropical beaches of Durban, holding out on booking your flight may save you significantly.
A ceasefire and peace deal have been struck between the USA and Iran, which may lead to lower jet fuel prices and could lead to airlines dropping their fuel surcharges.
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