8 most expensive countries for South Africans to visit right now
Six currencies are currently even stronger than the US dollar, and thanks to the rand, some of the countries that trade in these currencies are among the most expensive for South Africans to travel to.
The South African rand has had a less-than-ideal start to 2024, hitting over R19/$ on a couple of occasions, thanks to geopolitical events and global economic trends such as the hawkish Fed that has yet to start its cutting cycle for interest rates.
Emerging market currencies, including the rand, have historically strengthened during US interest rate cut cycles.
However, despite expectations of a US rate-cut cycle, ongoing delays have caused the domestic currency to weaken in recent sessions.
According to Annabel Bishop, chief economist at Investec, the most probable outcome for the rand is to end the year averaging between R18.17 and R19.09, but risks remain.
Despite this volatility, the local unit managed to strengthen this month thanks to a turn in sentiment.
The rand is one of only five emerging-market currencies to strengthen this year—albiet still at over R18/$.
While a weaker rand is good news for international tourists who want to visit the country because of the lower prices, it often proves more difficult for South Africans who want to travel overseas.
Most expensive countries
Interestingly, six currencies trade even more than the US dollar, and some of the countries that trade in these currencies are among the most expensive for South Africans to travel to.
The strongest currency in the world at the moment is the Kuwaiti Dinar from Kuwait, which is among the most expensive travel destinations for South Africans.
The Bahraini Dinar and the Omani Rial of Oman follow, with the latter also being among the most expensive destinations.
The table below lists these and the other six currencies that are stronger than the US dollar (as of 20 May), and their change rate with the South African rand.
| # | Currency | USD | Rand |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuwaiti Dinar | 1/$3.26 | 1/R59.29 |
| 2 | Bahraini Dinar | 1/$2.65 | 1/R48.28 |
| 3 | Omani Rial | 1/$2.60 | 1/R47.28 |
| 4 | British Pound | 1/$1.27 | 1/R23.12 |
| 5 | Swiss Franc | 1/$1.10 | 1/R20.02 |
| 6 | Euro | 1/$1.09 | 1/R19.78 |
Because direct currency conversion does not always indicate the general cost of living, we also compared the cost of food, drinks, and travel to what you would pay locally in some of the countries that trade in these currencies- including others.
The costs of food, drinks and travel in these eight countries were done using data from Numbeo – one of the world’s largest database of user-contributed data regarding cities and countries worldwide.
The base cost of the various measures in South Africa are listed below for comparison purposes:
- Cappuccino (restaurant): R34.44
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R150.00
- 500ml Draught Beer (restaurant): R40.00
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R20.00
Note: These comparisons focus more on travel and touring rather than general living costs, and conversions were done on 20 May 2024.
Switzerland
- R1 will buy you: 0.05 Swiss Francs
- Cappuccino: R96.51 (4.82 CHF)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R498.77 (24.92 CHF)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R139.65 (6.98 CHF)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R78.82 (3.94 CHF)
Denmark
- R1 will buy you: 0.38 Danish Krones
- Cappuccino: R105.56 (39.79 kr)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R396.81 (149.58 kr)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R132.27 (49.86 kr)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R39.68 (14.96 kr)
China (Hong Kong)
- R1 will buy you: 0.43 Hong Kong Dollar
- Cappuccino: R96.38 (HK$41.28)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R160.48 (HK$68.74)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R139.54 (HK$59.77)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R23.28 (HK$9.97)
Kuwait
- R1 will buy you: 0.017 Kuwaiti Dinars (KWD)
- Cappuccino: R96.79 (1.63 KWD)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R118.31 (2 KWD)
- Draught Beer (500ml): Banned (no Alcohol)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R59.14 (1 KWD)
Oman
- R1 will buy you: 0.021 Omani Rials
- Cappuccino: R88.04 (1.86 OMR)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R94.26 (1.99 OMR)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R188.52 (3.99 OMR)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R14.15 (0.30 OMR)
United States of America (USA)
- R1 will buy you: 0.055 US dollars
- Cappuccino: R92.67 ($5.09)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R362.80 ($19.92)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R108.84 ($5.98)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R31.59 ($1.73)
Luxembourg
- R1 will buy you: 0.051 Euros
- Cappuccino: R72.56 (€3.67)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R355.28 (€17.95)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R98.69 (€4.99)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R59.22 (€2.99)
United Kingdom (UK)
- R1 will buy you: 0.043 Pounds Sterling
- Cappuccino: R73.36 (£3.17)
- Eating out at an inexpensive restaurant for one: R345.79 (£14.94)
- Draught Beer (500ml): R103.74 (£4.48)
- Average taxi trip (per kilometre): R28.58 (£1.24)
Read: South Africa voted as one of the most beautiful countries in the world
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