South Africa

Description of South Africa

Time zone: The time difference between Moscow and the South African cities is of 2 hours. For example, when in Moscow is 7:00 am, in Pretoria - 5:00 am. But this difference varies due to the transition to daylight saving time. Herewith, the seasons of "winter" and "summer" in South Africa and Russia are not the same.

Monetary unit: The monetary unit of the country is the South African rand. One rand is equal to 100 cents. There are banknotes with a face value of 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 rands in circulation. One U.S. dollar is equal to about 7 rands.

Language: In South Africa, 11 languages ​​of different nationalities and ethnic groups living in the country are approved as official: Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Xhosa, Zulu, Pedi, Sotho, Tswana, Swazi, Venda, and Tsonga. According to the statistics of 1996, the most common language is Zulu. It is spoken by about 22.9% of the population. The second most popular is the Xhosa language - 17.9%, followed by Afrikaans - 14.4%, and then by Pedi - 9.2%. English is spoken by about 8.6% of the population. However, it is the language widely used in official and business contacts.

Visa: Any foreigner going to visit South Africa as a tourist, for business purposes or for a transit through South Africa must have a valid foreign passport, travel documents and a visa to South Africa. The cost of consideration of the documents for the visa issue, regardless of whether a visa is a single or multiple, and also regardless of the type of visa, is of $ 50 U.S. In case of refusal of visa the mentioned commission is not refundable. When considering the issue of visas to persons mentioned as dependents in the passport of the visa applicant, the commission is not charged.

Customs restrictions: The order in South Africa is based on international rules and practically does not differ from that in Russia. It is permitted to import duty-free in South Africa: 400 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 250 grams of pipe tobacco, 2 liters of wine and 1 liter of other alcoholic drinks, 50 ml of perfume, 250 ml of Eau de Toilette, gifts and souvenirs with a value of about $ 100, or other goods.

South Africa is the most southern country of the African continent, which is the second largest on the planet, and the first by the number of countries located in its territory (53, including Madagascar). South Africa shares its borders with Mozambique in the north-east, with Zimbabwe and Botswana in the north, and with Namibia in the north-west. In the territory of South Africa are two independent states - the mountain kingdoms of Lesotho and Swaziland.

Some facts about South Africa

Gallery of South Africa

South Africa video guide

More information about South Africa

Top cities of South Africa