South Africa travel health
Required is not recommended: the first is what the border asks about, the second is what a clinic would suggest. Both, for South Africa, then the number to dial and what care costs a visitor. Applies to every guide in South Africa: Kruger, Cape Town, Garden Route.
Required to enter
- Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present
Recommended
- Hepatitis A
- Typhoid
- Tetanus up to date
- Malaria prophylaxis only if you are going to Kruger or the north-east — Cape Town has no malaria
Emergency number
10177 for an ambulance, 10111 for police, 112 from a mobile
Care for visitors
Good and affordable
Private hospitals (Netcare, Mediclinic) are genuinely world-class and cost far less than Europe or the US, which is why medical tourism exists here. The public system is overloaded. Insurance is worth it, and private ambulances (ER24, Netcare 911) respond faster than the state service.
Tap water is safe in Cape Town. No malaria in the Western Cape.
The general rules — clinic timing, water, mosquitoes, insurance — are in travel health tips.
