Affordable Travel to Cape Town: Air Tanzania’s New Direct Route Benefits Regional Tourism

Published on November 24, 2025

In December of 2025, Air Tanzania will begin offering flights between Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Cape Town, South Africa, a major destination for tourists and business travelers alike. These flights will take place 3 times a week, and tickets will start at $499. Cape Town attracts tourists for its mountainous landscape, exotic beaches, world-class restaurants, and impressive wineries. These flights will improve business relationships and tourism between South Africa and East Africa.

Air Tanzania greatly improves accessibility between East Africa with its direct flights to Cape Town. Now East African travellers will have direct access to Cape Town’s world-class restaurants, and South African travellers will have direct access to East Africa’s Tanzania wildlife, Zanzibar beaches, and other great coastal resorts. With Air Tanzania offering very low prices, these flights will be great for travellers hoping to visit multiple African countries.

Enhancing Regional Connectivity for Travel and Tourism

This new route also provides an opening to improve the Regional Connectivity across the African Continent. Direct flights from the East to Sothern Africa have been very cutback over the years. Most travellers have had to fly to south Africa through their connecting hubs of Jo’burg or Nairobi, and then take a connecting flight to their East African Destination. Traveling to multiple destinations in the East African Region has now been made easier because there is no longer the need for very costly and time-consuming connectors.

Potential for the new service is being recognized by tourism professionals in both South Africa and Tanzania. Travel professionals now have the opportunity to market combined itineraries which include one of Tanzania’s amazing wildlife safari’s and a sophisticated urban Cape Town. A good direct flight for a traveller is affordable. Direct flights of USD 499 now makes it easier for travelers budget conscious to partake in both countries’ amazing, diverse tourism offerings.

Timing and Market Opportunity

Air Tanzania’s starting flights to Cape Town at the beginning of December 2025 aligns with the high summer season in Cape Town and the beginning of the holiday travel rush. This travel season is popular among tourists with the warm Mediterranean weather and numerous beach activities. Cape Town also hosts holiday festivals and has a lively cultural scene. This is a wonderful opportunity for Air Tanzania to make its mark in the competitive marketplace as holiday and business travelers flock to the city for its peak tourism season.

There has also been a historical demand for direct flights between East Africa and Southern Africa’s CAPE TOWN. From Air Tanzania’s hub in Dar Es Salaam, travelers have been forced to connect in either Johannesburg or Nairobi, complicating travel plans and increasing travel costs. This new, affordable direct flight enables travelers to easily plan a trip to both South Africa and Tanzania.

Potential Benefits to South African Tourism

The commencement of the Dar es Salaam to Cape Town Flight Route opens the door for South African tourism to expand into East Africa, particularly Tanzania, which has some of the best safari attractions, including the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater, as well as Zanzibar, best known for its beaches. Tanzania also has a variety of cultural and adventure activities for tourists.

South African Tourism Authorities were able to access a new and growing market of Tanzanian and East African tourists who have not been able to travel to South Africa as a consequence of the lack of direct flights. South African businesses as a result of the new segment of the market will be able to increase their tourist footfall, and will, especially, be able to benefit from the new segment in the hospitality, retail, and tourism services. The footfall will also benefit the integration of business and conference tourism.

Effects of Intra-African Flights

The new service also demonstrates the dedication of African carriers to address the continent’s dismal air travel connectivity. For decades, the African aviation industry has been straddled by the lack of direct flights between regions in the industry. Air Tanzania has released a new flight to be added to the growing list of services in Africa. The flight will address the dismal connectivity of the African aviation industry and will, for the first time in decades, provide a seamless travel experience for business and holiday tourists.

With Air Tanzania opening new flight routes, tourism professionals will have the option of offering more cross-border travel packages that integrate multiple destinations in Africa. For example, a traveler could combine a South African beach holiday with a safari in Tanzania, or a cultural tour in Cape Town with a visit to Tanzania’s famed wildlife parks. Such packages are increasingly in demand as Africa’s tourism market becomes more sophisticated and interconnected.

The Future of Aviation in Africa and Tourism

Air Tanzania’s flight route expansion also mirrors a larger phenomenon in African aviation; regional carriers are beginning to modernise their fleets and expand routes. The ability to get reliable and affordable flights to Africa’s tourism hotspots will be vital to the progress of the continent’s aviation and tourism industries.

For the Tanzanian tourism market, this route will result in South Africa’s Cape Town being a new portal for tourists from East Africa. Southern Africa will be more accessible for new tourists. There is also likely to be increased travel from South Africa to Tanzania, which both nations will benefit from as their regional travel connections become more fluid.

Conclusion

In the long term, the outcome of this route will depend on sustained demand, on-time performance, and solid collaboration between Air Tanzania and the local tourism players. For now, this relatively cheap direct service is a boon addition to the African tourism industry and its impact will be felt by both business and leisure travellers on the continent.