South Africa itinerary — March 2027
For the South Africa trip (Cape Town & Johannesburg), March 2027 is a comfortable month by weather. Daytime highs run from about 25°C / 77°F to 27°C / 81°F across the stops. Plan around 7–9 days for the full Cape Town & Johannesburg loop.
In this order — about 7–9 days:
- Cape Town4 nights
- Johannesburg3 nights
- Route noteReserve the longest intercity leg first and keep transfer days free of timed sights.
By TripSapien Research · Updated May 20, 2026
Cape Town
Cape Town in March
TempTemperature
78°F / 61°F
25.3°C / 16.2°C
RainPrecipitation
7d
0.6in · 14.1mm
LightDaylight
12.8h
Sea
59°F
15°C
March stays warm and mostly dry, strong for winelands, Kirstenbosch, and less crowded beaches.
City overview
Cape Town sits between Table Mountain and Table Bay, with beaches, wine valleys, apartheid-memory sites, and working port districts pressed into one of the world most dramatic city settings. The core map is City Bowl, Bo-Kaap, the V&A Waterfront, the Atlantic Seaboard, Woodstock, Observatory, and the southern peninsula.
Food & drink
Cape Town food covers Cape Malay curry, bobotie, Gatsby sandwiches, snoek, biltong, koeksisters, braai, wine-farm lunches, and seafood. Bo-Kaap kitchens, Oranjezicht City Farm Market, the Waterfront, Woodstock markets, and Constantia estates make the best first food route.
Events & festivals
- Mar 1 – Mar 31
An Ultra marathon (56 km), a half marathon (21 km) and a number of fun runs ranging from a 56m Nappy Dash to a 8 km walk or run.
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: Month Signals
- Mar 26 – Mar 27
Cape Town International Jazz Festival
The Cape Town International Jazz Festival is an annual music festival held in Cape Town, South Africa.
Planning lead · projected date · Source: TripSapien festival dataset
- Mar 26 – Mar 27
Cape Town Jazz Festival 2027
The Cape Town Jazz Festival is Africa's grandest live music experience, featuring local and international jazz artists performing over two days at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.
Planning lead · dates set closer in · Source: festival research
Holidays & observances
- Mar 21Human Rights DayPublic holiday
- Mar 22Public HolidayPublic holiday
- Mar 26Good FridayPublic holiday
- Mar 29Family DayPublic holiday
Top sights
Ranked for March suitability using weather, setting, ratings, and review volume.
- 1Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden
- 2Clifton and Camps Bay beaches
- 3Boulders Beach
- 4Robben Island
- 5District Six Museum
- 6Zeitz MOCAA
- 7Castle of Good Hope
- 8V&A Waterfront
- 9Bo-Kaap
1Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden
4.8★ · 33,980outdoorOpen dailyThe garden climbs the eastern slope of Table Mountain with fynbos, lawns, forest paths, and a canopy walkway. Summer sunset concerts make it a seasonal evening anchor.
Wikipedia
2Clifton and Camps Bay beaches
4.7★ · 760outdoorThe Atlantic beaches face cold water, white sand, boulders, and sunset views below the Twelve Apostles. Wind and parking shape the visit as much as temperature.
3Boulders Beach
4.6★ · 28,232outdoorOpen dailyThe Simonstown beach boardwalks protect a colony of African penguins on the False Bay side of the peninsula. It works best as part of a Cape Point circuit.
Wikipedia
Show 7 more sights
- 4Robben Island
- 5District Six Museum
- 6Zeitz MOCAA
- 7Castle of Good Hope
- 8Table Mountain
- 9V&A Waterfront
- 10Bo-Kaap
Neighborhoods
1City Bowl
The central basin holds Long Street, Company Gardens, museums, offices, hotels, restaurants, and fast access to Table Mountain roads.
2Bo-Kaap
Bo-Kaap is colorful and residential, with mosques, cobbled slopes, Cape Malay food history, and views over the central city.
3V&A Waterfront and Green Point
The harbor-and-stadium zone is polished and convenient, with ferries, shops, hotels, promenades, ocean views, and safer evening walking than many districts.
4Sea Point and Atlantic Seaboard
Sea Point, Clifton, and Camps Bay are ocean-facing, with promenades, sunset beaches, apartment blocks, restaurants, and windy exposed roads.
5Woodstock and Observatory
The eastern inner suburbs mix studios, markets, street art, breweries, student life, older houses, and sharper urban edges.
6Southern Suburbs and Constantia
The leafy south adds Kirstenbosch, university areas, wine estates, gardens, and routes toward Muizenberg and the peninsula.
Getting around
MyCiTi buses help with the airport, Civic Centre, Waterfront, Sea Point, and parts of the Atlantic coast, but many sights need a car, tour, taxi, or ride-hail. Plan Table Mountain, Cape Point, and beaches around wind, parking, and daylight rather than distance alone.
Johannesburg
Johannesburg in March
TempTemperature
77°F / 56°F
25°C / 13.2°C
RainPrecipitation
11d
3.5in · 90mm
LightDaylight
12.2h
March is still green and showery, good for Rosebank, Constitution Hill, and garden stops between storms.
City overview
Johannesburg is South Africa's highveld mining metropolis, built on the Witwatersrand gold reef at about 1,750 metres above sea level. The visitor map runs from the old CBD and Newtown to Braamfontein, Maboneng, Rosebank, Sandton, and Soweto, with apartheid history, township streets, corporate towers, and ridge views spread across a car-dependent city.
Food & drink
Johannesburg food is braai, township, and pan-African: shisa nyama pairs grilled meat with pap and chakalaka, boerewors coils spiced sausage onto the grill, kota sandwiches hollow out bread for chips, meat, and sauces, and mogodu brings tripe stew into home-style restaurants. Rosebank Sunday Market, Maboneng restaurants, Melville 7th Street, and Soweto chisa nyama spots add bunny chow, peri-peri chicken, Cape Malay, Durban curry, and Ethiopian plates outside the Sandton mall circuit.
Holidays & observances
- Mar 21Human Rights DayPublic holiday
- Mar 22Public HolidayPublic holiday
- Mar 26Good FridayPublic holiday
- Mar 29Family DayPublic holiday
Top sights
Ranked for March suitability using weather, setting, ratings, and review volume.
- 1Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden
- 2Apartheid Museum
- 3Market Theatre and Newtown
- 4Nelson Mandela Square and Sandton City
- 5Constitution Hill
- 6Maboneng Precinct
- 7Gold Reef City
- 8Origins Centre at Wits
- 9Johannesburg Art Gallery
- 10Soweto and Vilakazi Street
1Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden
4.7★ · 17,174mixedOpen dailyThe Roodepoort garden protects highveld grassland, cliffs, streams, and the Witpoortjie waterfall west of the city. Black eagles nest near the waterfall cliffs, and the lawns make a calmer day than the inner city.
Wikipedia
2Apartheid Museum
4.6★ · 7,181indoorClosed MonThe museum beside Gold Reef City opened in 2001 and uses separate entrance tickets, photographs, film, passbooks, and installations to document South Africa from segregation to the 1994 election. It is south of the CBD near the old Witwatersrand mine belt.
Wikipedia
3Market Theatre and Newtown
4.6★ · 1,593indoorThe Market Theatre opened in a former produce market in 1976 and became an anti-apartheid performance space. Museum Africa, Mary Fitzgerald Square, and old industrial buildings frame the Newtown cultural district.
Show 7 more sights
- 4Nelson Mandela Square and Sandton City
- 5Constitution Hill
- 6Maboneng Precinct
- 7Gold Reef City
- 8Origins Centre at Wits
- 9Johannesburg Art Gallery
- 10Soweto and Vilakazi Street
Neighborhoods
1Braamfontein
Braamfontein is student and cultural Johannesburg, with Wits University, Constitution Hill, theatres, coffee shops, and Saturday market energy near the Park Station edge.
2Maboneng and Jeppestown
Maboneng is warehouse-and-gallery Joburg, with Fox Street restaurants, Arts on Main, loft conversions, murals, and guided inner-city walking routes.
3Rosebank and Parkwood
Rosebank is a practical hotel-and-Gautrain district, with malls, the Sunday market, galleries, Keyes Art Mile, and quick rides to Sandton.
4Sandton
Sandton is corporate and polished, anchored by Sandton City, Nelson Mandela Square, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, hotels, and the Gautrain airport connection.
5Melville and Auckland Park
Melville and Auckland Park feel older and more local, with 7th Street restaurants, university housing, guesthouses, and easier nightlife than the CBD.
6Soweto
Soweto is a city-scale township zone, with Vilakazi Street, Orlando Towers, the Hector Pieterson Memorial, Kliptown history, and guided food-and-history routes.
Getting around
Gautrain links OR Tambo, Sandton, Rosebank, Park Station, and Pretoria, while Rea Vaya BRT covers selected corridors between the CBD, Braamfontein, and Soweto. For most visitor routes use Gautrain plus rideshare or arranged transfers, and do not plan casual night walking between districts.
Planning the South Africa route?
Add your dates and we'll pace all 2 cities — every place checked for closures, limited hours, and booking needs in March.
Weather by month for the South Africa trip
In March, the South Africa trip runs daytime highs from 25°C / 77°F to 27°C / 81°F, with nights down to about 13°C / 55°F at the coolest stop. Climate averages show about 11 rainy days at the rainiest stop. Weighed across both stops, March is a comfortable month by weather.
The most comfortable months across Cape Town & Johannesburg are September, June and July, based on average daytime temperatures and rainfall at every stop. March 2027 is a comfortable month.
Common questions about the South Africa trip
- When is the best time to do the South Africa trip?
- The most comfortable months across Cape Town, Johannesburg are September, June and July, based on average daytime temperatures and rainfall at each stop. March is a comfortable month by weather — see the per-stop weather below for the climate averages in March 2027.
- How many days do you need for the South Africa trip?
- A comfortable South Africa trip runs about 7–9 days, allowing roughly Cape Town 4, Johannesburg 3 nights plus travel between stops. Add a day if you want a slower pace or extra day trips.
- What's the route for the South Africa trip?
- The classic order is Cape Town & Johannesburg. Each city below has its own March weather, any available event listings, and a top-sights list.
Ready to plan the South Africa trip?
Turn this route into a day-by-day plan for March 2027, every stop checked for closures and booking needs on your exact dates.