Travel to Swaziland can be a truly surprising experience. Here’s my Swaziland guide to help you plan your adventure in Africa’s smallest country.
Sandwiched between South Africa and Mozambique, the Kingdom of Swaziland (now known as Eswatini) is a tiny nation often described as ‘Africa in a nutshell’, a microcosm of the best Africa has to offer. Only after my recent trip did I realize it wasn’t just a marketing slogan.
Despite being the smallest country in Africa, Eswatini really does pack a punch with an impressive range of sights in a tiny area. In just a few days, we had some of the best wildlife experiences of our lives, witnessed colorful and lively cultural dances, and hiked several walking trails.
Plus, there are stunning scenery, adrenaline-pumping activities, affordable yet high-quality accommodation options and some of the most welcoming and proud people in the world. It truly offers the best of Africa in one small but perfectly formed country.
For those planning to travel to Swaziland, here is a complete Swaziland guide with the best things to do, best places to stay and eat, as well as my five-day itinerary in Swaziland.
Is It Swaziland or Eswatini?
In April 2018, Swaziland celebrated 50/50: 50th year since independence and King Mswati III’s 50th birthday. During the colourful celebrations, King Mswati III made an historic announcement that the country’s name would change to ‘The Kingdom of Eswatini’. Eswatini, meaning “place of the Swati people”, was actually the pre-colonial name of the Kingdom in Swazi language.
Most former colonies in Africa changed their names immediately on gaining Independence: The Gold Coast became Ghana, Basutoland became Lesotho and Nyasaland became Malawi. Although the Kingdom only made this change in 2018, 50 years after its independence, it is no less important, and marks a significant moment in the country’s history.
During our visit in June 2018, we still saw and heard the name ‘Swaziland’ everywhere. It will take time for the changes to be implemented, but I’m sure the world will get used to Eswatini’s new name very soon.
Where’s Swaziland/Eswatini?
Located in southern Africa, Swaziland (Eswatini) is completely landlocked by South Africa to the west and Mozambique to the east. It’s the smallest country in Africa, in fact in the whole of the Southern Hemisphere. At an area of 17,204 square km (6,642 square miles), it is slightly smaller than the state of Massachusetts.
Many travelers make a flying visit to Swaziland on their way to Kruger National Park, but it’s well worth lingering at least five days or a week. You can easily combine a trip to South Africa with Swaziland, like what we did. We spent 16 days in total, driving from Johannesburg to Swaziland and then continuing south into Kwazulu-Natal and onto Lesotho, then back to Johannesburg.
How to Travel to Swaziland
Traveling to Swaziland is surprisingly easy: unlike many other African countries, Swaziland allows citizens of most countries (US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, China and EU nations) to enter visa-free for up to 30 days. Check their visa policy here.
There are flights into Eswatini from Johannesburg and Durban in South Africa and Maputo, Mozambique. The only international airport of Swaziland is the new King Mswati III International Airport in Manzini. Return flights from Johannesburg to Manzini is around US$350 per person.
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The most popular way to travel into Swaziland from South Africa is overland via border crossings. Depending on season, the border crossings from South Africa to Swaziland can be crowded. The Ngwenya/Oshoek Border Post is the most popular border post — we used this crossing and were lucky enough to find it rather empty. The border crossing took only around 15 minutes in total. Other border posts, such as the one near Amsterdam and Jeppes Reef are a good alternative and easily reachable with normal sedans.
For those without your own car, the Eswatini-based bus company SiyeSwatini TransMagnific provides transport to and from Swaziland daily. Stops include the Johannesburg airport, Nelspruit and Kruger International Airport on the weekends. The TransMagnific mini-buses are more comfortable than the public transport, but you must book at least a day prior to travel.
The South African Baz Bus is an independent line hop-on-and-off targetting backpackers, also makes regular stops via South Africa to various hostels and hotels in Eswatini.
When to Travel to Swaziland
We chose to travel Swaziland (Eswatini), South Africa and Lesotho in June, mainly for the mild winter climate and better wildlife opportunities.
June to September is the winter dry season in southern Africa. During this period, there is less vegetation and animals are more concentrated around rivers and waterholes, making it easier to spot them. There are also fewer mosquitos.
However, it can get cold in the evenings at the higher-lying areas. That means you’ll need to bring a winter/down jacket for game drives at sunrise and sunset. Temperatures in the lowlands range from 12 to 25 degrees Celsius, and in the mountains from 3 to 10 degrees Celsius.
We mostly wore t-shirt and shorts or cargo pants during the day, plus a light jacket at night. The only time we wore our thick winter jacket was on the evening game drives, when the wind was lashing at us on the open safari jeeps.
How to Get Around Swaziland
The best way to travel around Swaziland (Eswatini) is by car rental. We booked our rental car online from First Car Rental, which we found by comparing prices of different rental companies on Skyscanner. For the entire two-week trip in South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho, it only cost us just US$300 including a toddler car seat and all the permits we had to pay to drive the car across borders.
Driving in Swaziland (Eswatini) is relatively easy and straightforward. The roads are good, though certain stretches may have lots of potholes. Because the country is small, you don’t have to drive far to see most sights — the longest drive we did in Swaziland without stopping was only two hours.
Check for Car Rentals here!
If you’re not renting a car, the most common mode of transport is minibuses called Kombis. In Swaziland, these vans are often driven by very young men, and most have assistants who estimate and collect fares, ask your destination, and make change. Fares typically range from R5 for short trips of around 5 minutes to R30 for longer trips.
Be prepared for crowded seats, loud radios, and sometimes reckless driving. The larger Sprinter vans are a safer and faster choice if available.
Travel to Swaziland: Our 5-Day Itinerary
As mentioned, Swaziland (Eswatini) is small enough to visit in just a few days. We spent five days in Swaziland and it was sufficient to explore almost the whole of northern and central Swaziland. We did miss some sights like the Sibebe Rock, Mbabane the administrative capital city of Swaziland, Malolotja Nature Reserve and Mkhaya Game Reserve (where kids under 8 are not allowed). I recommend spending at least one week in Swaziland to see it at a more comfortable pace. I
Day 1: Explore Ngwenya and Malolotja Nature Reserve
We chose the Oshoek/Ngwenya Border as we were driving in from Grenoble, South Africa. It’s the most popular border post, but we were surprised to find it quite empty. It took us 15 minutes to cross the border. Remember to have your permit to drive in Swaziland (which can be obtained from car rental company) and your child’s birth certificate (if you’re traveling with a kid).
From there, it was just a 5-minute drive to our first stop, Ngwenya Glass. The factory has an interesting workshop where you can actually see how workers create beautiful African animal figures from recycled glass. The area also has a nice cafe with a kids’ playground and several other craft and art shops.
Then a 10-minute drive will get you to Malolotja Nature Reserve, a true wilderness area with over 200km of hiking trails, 280 species of birds and several antelope species. There’s also an exciting canopy tour that will bring you on a zipline through the forest. Sadly, we arrived too late to visit this area, but I’ve heard it’s definitely worth visiting.
Read Tripadvisor Reviews here
Stay at: Hawane Resort
We stayed at the rustic Hawane Resort, which has traditional Swazi beehive chalets and thatch-roofed rondavels with ethnic African interiors. The whole lodge is framed by the Malolotja peaks, and the location is excellent for those who want to explore the Malolotja Reserve. Our family suite was huge and spacious, with a double bed and two singles perfect for kids. We did find a few insects in our room, but that’s common in the African countryside. The food at the lodge restaurant was excellent and it gave us a chance to try local Swazi dishes. Read Tripadvisor reviews.
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Day 2: Learn Swazi History and Culture in the Ezulwini Valley
The next morning, we drove to the Ezulwini Valley, the historical and royal heart of Swaziland. It was just a 30-minute drive. For most of Swazi history, this area has been home to the royal family. Lobamba is the main town of the valley and it’s where you’ll find all the museums, government buildings and craft markets.
We first headed to the National Museum, with interesting displays of Swazi traditional costumes, and detailed information on their history. It also has a traditional beehive village and cattle enclosure. Across the road from it is the memorial park to King Sobhuza II, the most revered of Swazi kings (and he was the one who fought for independence). Besides paintings and statues of the king, the museum here has a collection of his fancy cars as well.
Next we headed to the Mantenga Nature Reserve and Swazi Cultural Village, just a 10-minute drive away. This is the best place in Swaziland to learn about local culture, see their traditional wear, and visit traditional beehive huts where the Swazis used to live in. The guided tour wasn’t great, but we absolutely enjoyed the traditional Sibhaca dance performance (everyday at 11.15pm and 3.15pm). We watched it along with 70 high school students and the atmosphere was raving!
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After lunch in Lobamba, we drove to Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, possibly the most family-friendly reserve we visited on our entire trip (South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho). This was Swaziland’s first protected area, created by conservationist Ted Reilly on his family farm in the 1950s. The reserve is now an outdoor lover’s paradise, with lots of activities to do including cycling and horseriding safari. It’s a small reserve without big game, so young kids can wander free and self game drives are allowed. We were pleasantly surprised to find impalas and warthogs right outside our cottage and sniffing around the activity centre.
That evening, we did a sunset game drive to the Execution Rock, high up on the peaks where we wouldn’t have been able to access with our own vehicle. We got to do a short hike up to the highest point with Kaleya — sunset from there was just spectacular. It truly marked a meaningful end to our jam-packed day.
Stay at: Mlilwane Rest Camp
The rest camp at Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary has four different types of accommodations: comfortable huts, beehive villages, Shonalanga family cottage and Lontweni self-catering rondavels. They are all ensuite and located close to the shop, activity centre and restaurant area. We stayed at the Lontweni rondavel that had a fully-equipped kitchen, outdoor braai area and stunning view of the grass plains beneath. The outdoor deck was beautiful and we wished we had time to enjoy it more. Dinner at the Hippo Haunt restaurant was fantastic as we met other families and Kaleya had a good time meeting new friends. Book your stay here!
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Day 3: Head to Hlane National Park
After a lazy morning at Mlilwane, we packed up and left for the Malkerns Valley, just 20 minutes away by car. The Malandela Complex is home to House on Fire, a cultural site and performance space that hosts the famous Bushfire Music Festival. It’s a hot place for cool locals and is filled with mosaic artwork and eclectic sculptures. Kaleya really enjoyed the quirky flair of this place.
Further down the road is a collection of art and craft shops, gallery, and cafe. Swazi Candles in particular is well worth a visit — you can see how the creative candles (in every African animal shape) are made. We also spent a bit too much time at the African craft market, which sells a variety of wooden masks, sculptures and souvenirs. Prices here are much better than in South Africa.
In the afternoon, we drove to Hlane Royal National Park in eastern Swaziland, just a 1.5-hour drive away. Hlane (translates to ‘wilderness’) is Swaziland’s largest protected area, and is home to all of the Big Five except the African buffalo. Once inside the park, you can explore most of it on 2WD except for the lion section. That was what we did — we did a self game drive and chanced upon giraffes, waterbucks, impalas, zebras and even tortoises.
Read TripAdvisor Reviews here
Stay at: Ndlovu/Bhubesi Camp in Hlane National Park
Hlane has two camps and both are great. We stayed at Ndlovu Camp, located right next to the main gate, with self-catering rondavels and cottages as well as a shop and restaurant. There’s no electricity in the cottages here, but they’re surprisingly comfortable and well-designed. Our enormous cottage has four rooms and fits up to eight people. Our favorite area was the big fenced up waterhole in front of the restaurant — we saw hippos there when we were having dinner and then a huge group of rhinos next morning! Read the Tripadvisor reviews here.
Bhubesi Camp is about 10km away, overlooking a river. The stone cottages here are fancier and have electricity. If you’re booked into Bhubesi Camp, make sure to enter through the main gates and check in at Ndlovu Camp before driving there. We made the mistake of driving straight to Bhubesi and had to go to Ndlovu after, so we switched and stayed at Ndlovu instead.
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Day 4: Self-Drive at Mbuluzi Game Reserve
The next morning, we rose early for a game drive. Hlane doesn’t allow kids under 6 on their guided game drives (as jeeps are opened), so I went on it while Alberto and Kaleya stayed back to watch the rhinos from the waterhole.
My game drive at Hlane was definitely the best drive I had on this trip. We spotted a whole family of lions snoozing away, more white rhinos hanging around, a pair of elephants, wildebeests, impalas, waterbucks, kudu, baboons, jackals and crocodiles. Our guide was excellent and gave us lots of information about wildlife.
After checking out, we drove to the new Swaziland Sugarcane Museum in Tabankulu just 10 minutes away. The region is actually home to vast sugar estates that dominate the lowveld. There are endless rows of sugarcane plantations right outside Hlane. The museum shows how Swazi sugarcane is milled and sold. They have blended wall panels touch screen computers and vintage machinery on display, as well as information on the history of the sugar industry in Swaziland and how the business is transforming and uplifting rural farmers.
From there, it was another short drive to the nearby Mbuluzi Game Reserve, a small and privately owned reserve located in the fringes of Hlane. It’s bound by the beautiful Mbuluzi River and the Lubombo mountain range in the east and boasts a remarkable diversity of habitat. There are no predators here, so self game drives and hiking are allowed. That evening, we drove up to a lookout point in the northern section of the reserve, for a spectacular panorama of the river valley beneath us.
Stay at: Imfihlo Lodge
We absolutely adored this stunning bush retreat — it’s the kind of home I’ve always dreamt of owning one day: a designer home completely surrounded by nature. Imfihlo means “Secret” in siSwati, and it’s truly a hidden retreat. Utilising “green” design principles, the lodge blends into the landscape with its earth colors and features. The house has an open concept, with a huge outdoor deck, bonfire area, and a swimming pool. We had the 3-bedroom house to ourselves, where we cooked, swam, relaxed and went on self game drives.
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Day 5: Drive South to Kwazulu Natal
We spent a lazy morning cooking breakfast, reading on our deck, and listening to the sound of the Mbuluzi River flowing beneath us. On our way out of the reserve, we took a self game drive and spotted a giraffe and several waterbucks. There isn’t a lot of wildlife to see in the reserve, but it’s a nice stopover spot for those continuing on to Mozambique or South Africa.
From here, it was a two-hour drive all the way down south to Golela/Lavumisa border post. We would then continue exploring the Kwazulu-Natal province of South Africa.
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Disclaimer: Our trip was made possible by Eswatini Tourism Authority but all opinions expressed above are our own.
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