Just Landed: Non-Stop, Direct Flights from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban

There are many reasons to choose non-stop flights. Most importantly, you save time, avoid missed or delayed connections, lost luggage, added bureaucracy and lost time spent waiting in airports. For the traveller with limited downtime, the nonzero-stop flight is the way forward. The only downside is that these flight tickets can sometimes be more expensive than their connecting flights. layover counterparts.

Everything unpleasant and annoying about modern air travel is basically eliminated through a non-stop flight. You get on the flight, have a drink, eat something, go to sleep and wake up while landing at your destination of choice with no time for your luggage to have gone missing. The best thing about a non-stop flight is that you get to enjoy a drink and meal, take a nap, and wake up at your destination feeling more refreshed than most, with all your luggage intact.

South Africa is quite far from a number of popular international destinations, however, there are a surprising number of exciting non-stop direct flights from South Africa non-stop flight destinations for the traveller travellers with limited holiday time. This is travel at its most efficient and enjoyable. There is no better way to maximise your holiday time than by reaching your destination as quickly as possible.

Currently, Singapore Airlines holds the title for the longest non-stop flight in the world, flying from Singapore to Newark in just under 19 hours. The longest non-stop direct flight from South Africa is from Johannesburg to Atlanta in 16 hours and 30 minutes, via Delta Airlines.  

What is the difference between a non-stop flight and a direct flight?

A direct flight may stop in another city for passengers to disembark and others to join the flight or to refuel, however, the flight code stays the same for the entirety of the journey. Sometimes you’ll need to disembark the plane with your hand luggage; other times you can stay on the plane.

A non-stop flight means just that. You fly from one airport to another airport without a single stop. While international non-stop flights from South Africa are difficult to come by, more recently, many airlines have launched non-stop flights from South Africa to popular countries like China, Germany, France, Italy, Australia, the UK and the UAE. Some of these flights are seasonal, only operating during peak travel seasons.

What is a connecting flight?

A connecting flight involves two flights with different flight numbers to reach your final destination. While waiting for your connecting flight you may have a layover which typically lasts as short as 30 minutes or as long as 23 hours. Or you may experience a stopover if you have to wait longer than 24 hours in any given city when travelling internationally. Some airlines, like Turkish Airlines and Etihad, offer free stopover deals where you can enjoy the sights and sounds of the city without needing a visa!

Find out how to make long layovers more enjoyable, and get clued up on what to do if you miss your connecting flight.

Non-stop, direct flights from Johannesburg

There are 24 international non-stop direct flights from Johannesburg, meaning you can travel to some amazing places around the world without needing a single stopover!

Destination	Airline	Duration
Abu Dhabi	Etihad Airlines	8h20
Amsterdam	KLM	11h10
Atlanta	Delta Airlines	16h30
Doha	Qatar	8h50
Dubai	Emirates	8h
Frankfurt	Lufthansa, SAA	10h40
Guangzhou	SAA	13h40
Hong Kong	Cathay Pacific, SAA	12h45
Istanbul	Turkish Airlines	9h50
Jeddah	Saudia Airlines	6h50
London	Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, SAA	11h10
Madrid	Iberia	10h35
Mauritius	SAA, BA Comair, Air Mauritius	3h50
Munich	SAA	10h50
New York	SAA	15h40
Paris	Air France	10h45
Perth	SAA	9h
Reunion	Air Austral	3h50
Rome	Alitalia	10h15
Sao Paulo	SAA, LATAM	10h30
Seychelles	Air Seychelles	4h55
Singapore	Singapore Airlines	10h25
Sydney	Qantas	11h45
Tel Aviv	El Al Israel Airlines	8h45
Zurich	SWISS	10h45

If you’re thinking of travelling locally, there are more than 35 regional direct flights from Johannesburg to wonderful destinations around Africa.

Destination	Airline	Duration
Accra	SAA	6h15
Addis Ababa	Ethiopian Airways	5h15
Antananarivo	Airlink, Air Madagascar	3h
Beira	Airlink	1h40
Bulawayo	SAA, Airlink	1h20
Cairo	EgyptAir	7h50
Dakar	SAA	8h25
Dar Es Salam	SAA, Air Tanzania	3h20
Entebbe	SAA	4h
Gaborone	Airlink, SA Express, Air Botswana	1h
Harare	SAA, BA Comair, Fastjet, Airlink	1h35
Kasane	Airlink	1h45
Kigali	RwandAir	3h40
Kinshasa	SAA	3h50
Lagos	SAA, ASKY Airlines	6h10
Libreville	Ethiopian Airways, ASKY Airlines	5h
Lilongwe	SAA, Malawi Airlines	2h20
Livingstone	BA Comair, SAA	1h40
Luanda	SAA, TAAG	3h30
Lubumbashi	SAA	2h20
Lusaka	SAA, RwandAir, Airlink	2h
Manzini	Airlink	0h50
Maputo	LAM Mozambique Airlines, SAA	1h
Maseru	SAA	0h55
Maun	Airlink, Air Botswana	1h40
Nairobi	Kenya, SAA	4h
Nampula	Airlink	2h30
Ndola	Airlink	2h10
Nosy Be	Airlink	3h30
Pemba	Airlink	2h50
St Helena	Airlink	TBC
Tete	Airlink, LAM Mozambique Airlines	2h10
Victoria Falls	BA Comair, SAA	1h40
Vilanculos	Airlink	1h40
Walvis Bay	Airlink	2h20
Windhoek	BA Comair, SAA, Air Namibia	2h
Zanzibar	Mango	3h35

Non-stop direct flights from Cape Town

Capetonians also have their fair share of 14 international destinations with non-stop, direct flights from Cape Town.

Destination	Airline	Duration
Amsterdam	KLM	11h40
Doha	Qatar	10h15
Dubai	Emirates	9h25
Frankfurt	*Lufthansa	11h55
Hong Kong	Cathay Pacific	13h50
Istanbul	Turkish Airlines	11h
London	British Airways	12h
Mauritius	Air Mauritius	5h15
Munich	SAA, *Lufthansa	11h30
New York	**United Airlines	16h
Paris	Air France	11h55
Vienna	*Austrian Airlines	11h30
Zurich	*Edelweiss Air	11h25

*Flights are season dependent.

**Flights to New York on United Airlines are available from 15 December.

Keep it local and choose between these 12 regional routes with non-stop flights from Cape Town.

Destination	Airline	Duration
Addis Ababa	Ethiopian	6h25
Gaborone	Air Botswana	2h
Harare	RwandAir	3h20
Livingstone	Kenya Airways	2h50
Luanda	TAAG, SAA	4h
Maun	Air Botswana, Airlink, SAA	2h45
Nairobi	Kenya Airways	5h45
St Helena	*Airlink	TBC
Victoria Falls	Kenya Airways, Airlink	2h45
Walvis Bay	Air Namibia, SA Express	2h10
Windhoek	Air Namibia, Airlink, SA Express	2h5

* Flights to St Helena on Airlink are season dependent.

Non-stop direct flights from Durban

While there aren’t many non-stop direct flights from Durban, the most popular routes include:

Destination	Airline	Duration
Doha	Qatar	11h
Dubai	Emirates, SAA	8h20
Gaborone	Air Namibia	1h20
Istanbul	Turkish Airlines	12h20
London	British Airways	12h10
Lusaka	Proflight Zambia	2h30
Mauritius	Air Mauritius	3h50
Windhoek	Air Namibia	3h20

Next time you think about booking a flight from South Africa, consider these non-stop direct flights from Cape Town, Johannesburg or Durban. While they might cost you a bit extra, just think about how much time you’ll save sitting on an aeroplane, when you could be sitting on the beach in Mauritius, or wandering around the gorgeous streets of Paris.

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