Travelling in Africa can often be frustrating and unpredictable. Given Lonrho operates businesses in many African counties we may be able to assist to make your trip a little easier or at least advise you on how to best prepare before your depart. You will find within each of the Hotel sections advice on what to expect at their respective counties arrivals and how best to transfer to the Hotel.
Credit cards are accepted at all Lonrho Hotels, however it is sensible to travel with some US dollars and we do recommend you take the opportunity to exchange some cash to local currency as taxis and local service providers will often assume your “in the know” if you’re carrying local currency, therefore less likely to over-charge.
Be aware that few restaurants accept credit cards – so either exchange sufficient cash or opt for the convenience of the hotel restaurant.
Travel clinics are available in most first world countries, so our advice would be to visit one before you depart and take the advice. Hepatitis B, Typhoid, Polio and Diphtheria are real risks in Africa. Yellow Fever is a must with many countries including South Africa and Democratic Republic of Congo insisting on seeing your Yellow Fever card on arrival.
Malaria is a real risk in many parts of the continent, however through the use of air-conditioning and spraying we attempt to considerably reduce the risk when you’re staying at a Lonrho Hotel. The risk is early evening and at sunset when the female mosquitoes are most likely to bite, so either stay in-doors at these times or when you go out ensure you cover-up skin as much as possible and ideally take an anti-malarial tablet as instructed – malaria is the biggest killer in Africa today. If you are travelling through a malarial area you will need to take the necessary anti-malarial pills.
Travel in Africa, like anywhere has risks. As a Lonrho Hotels guest we’ll happily advise you on the current local risks as well as where in any of our destinations it may be wise to take additional precautions if you need to visit there.
You need to take particular precautions. As with any large city it there may be petty criminals on the streets, so be alert all of the time. Don’t make yourself a target by wearing jewellery, watches, and generally be discrete, don’t display your wealth. Each Lonrho Hotel room contains a safe deposit box - please use it, particularly for credit cards, large amounts of cash and your passport.
Visa requirements vary from country to country and regulations do change so always check before you travel. Check the Hotel section to see the specfics for each country with a Lonrho Hotel, otherwise we recommend visiting a visa agency web site such as www.visazone.co.za who maintain a record of all visa requirements and nearly all the necessary forms can be down loaded from their site.
If you do anticipate travelling through numerous counties during a trip we would recommend you carry a stock of passport pictures in case you do need to submit via applications.
Africa still suffers from insufficient flight access. Most major destinations are serviced from Europe via the respective colonial link; i.e. BA in to Ghana and Nigeria, Brussels Airways into Democratic Republic of Congo, Air Portugal into Angola and Mozambique and Air France to Gabon and Cote d’Ivore.
United has a daily service from Atlanta into Johannesburg – conveniently connecting the US and Africa’s biggest airport hubs.
Kenya Airways and South African Airways have a tapestry of routes across the continent serviced out of their hubs Nairobi and Johannesburg respectively. But be aware their scheduled can frequently change and many destinations are not serviced daily.
