WEATHER & CLIMATE
Although South Africa is classified as semi-arid, it has considerable variation in climate as well as topography.
Summer
Over
much of South Africa, summer (mid-October to mid-February) is characterized by hot, sunny weather - often with afternoon
thunderstorms that clear quickly, leaving a warm, earthy, uniquely African smell in the air. The Western Cape, with
its Mediterranean climate, is the exception, getting its rain in winter.
Autumn
Autumn
(fall) in South Africa (mid-February to April) offers in some ways the best weather. Very little rain falls over
the whole country, and it is warm but not too hot, getting colder as the season progresses. In Cape Town, autumn
is fantastic, with hot sunny days and warm, balmy nights which many people spend at outdoor cafés.
Winter
Winter
in South Africa (May to July) is characterised in the higher-lying areas of the interior plateau by dry, sunny,
crisp days and cold nights. So it's a good idea to bring warm clothes. The hot, humid KwaZulu-Natal coast, as well
as the Lowveld (lower-lying areas) of Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces, offer fantastic winter weather with sunny,
warmish days and virtually no wind or rain. The Western Cape gets most of its rain in winter, with quite a few days
of cloudy, rainy weather. However, these are always interspersed with wonderful days to rival the best of a British
summer. The high mountains of the Cape and the Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal usually get snow in winter.
Spring
Nowhere
in South Africa is spring (August to mid-October) more spectacular than in the Cape provinces. Here the grey winter
is forgotten as thousands of small, otherwise insignificant plants cover the plains in an iridescent carpet of flowers.
