A Travel Price Comparison for South Africa Soweto vs. Pretoria for Vacations, Tours, and Honeymoons

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Should you visit Soweto or Pretoria?

Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?

Which city should you visit? Read on to compare the activities as well as the prices of travel for Soweto and Pretoria. We'll break down costs for accommodation, food, transportation and more to help you learn more about these two destinations. Then, you can figure out if either of these two places are accessible based on your travel budget, schedule, and interests. So, let's dig into it.

Soweto

The name Soweto is an acronym for South Western Townships, first used in 1963 to describe the groups of townships to the south west of Johannesburg. It is a city of contrasts, featuring anything from tin shanties to luxurious mansions, and is probably best known for being the home of two Nobel Prize winners.

Pretoria

Located in Gauteng Province, Pretoria is the administrative capital city of South Africa, making it home to many government buildings and three universities. It is actually one of three capital cities, being home to the executive branch, with Cape Town as the legislative capital and Bloemfontein as the judicial capital. Within South Africa, Pretoria is also known as the "Jacaranda City" due to the thousands of jacaranda trees lining its streets, parks, and gardens.

Which city is cheaper, Pretoria or Soweto?

These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.

The average daily cost (per person) in Soweto is $57, while the average daily cost in Pretoria is $45. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. What follows is a categorical breakdown of travel costs for Soweto and Pretoria in more detail.



Accommodation
  • Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one person
    Soweto $29
    Pretoria $23
  • Accommodation Typical double-occupancy room
    Soweto $58
    Pretoria $46

Local Transportation
  • Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.
    Soweto $11
    Pretoria $11

Hired Cars and Shuttles in Soweto

Also for Soweto, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:

  • Johannesburg: Airport Transfer with City & Soweto Tour: $77

Hired Cars and Shuttles in Pretoria

Also for Pretoria, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:

  • From Johannesburg Airport: 1-Way Transfer with Pretoria Tour: $96

Is it cheaper to fly into Soweto or Pretoria?

Prices for flights to both Pretoria and Soweto change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.





Food
  • Food Meals for one day
    Soweto $19
    Pretoria $14

Entertainment
  • Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.
    Soweto $15
    Pretoria $13

Tours and Activities in Soweto

For Soweto, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:

  • From Johannesburg: Pretoria, Soweto & Apartheid Museum Tour: $198
  • Half Day Soweto Tour: $57
  • Joburg/Soweto & Gold Reef City Full Day Tour: $122
  • Johannesburg, Soweto and Apartheid Museum Day Tour: $161
  • Soweto Bicycle Tour: $47
  • Soweto Pub-Crawl Tour: $55
  • Soweto half day tour: $55
  • Virtual Tour Of Soweto: $20
  • Walking Tours, Bicycle Tours: $34

Tours and Activities in Pretoria

For Pretoria, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:

  • 13-Day Kruger Swazi and Drakensberg Adventure Accommodated Tour from Pretoria: $2,399
  • 13-Day Kruger Swaziland and Drakensberg Adventure Camping Tour from Pretoria: $1,833
  • 14-Day Mozambique and Zim Explorer Adventure Camping Tour from Pretoria: $2,597
  • 20-Day Kruger to Cape Town Adventure Accommodated Tour from Pretoria: $2,866
  • 20-Day Kruger to Cape Town Adventure Camping Tour from Pretoria: $2,031
  • 23-Day Kruger, Vic Falls and Zanzibar Adventure Accommodated Tour from Pretoria: $4,521
  • 23-Day Kruger, Vic Falls and Zanzibar Adventure Camping Tour from Pretoria: $3,184
  • 3 Days/2 Nights package Tour -Kruger National Park: $359
  • 4-Day Kruger Safari Adventure Accommodated Tour from Pretoria: $708
  • 4-Day Kruger Safari Adventure Camping Tour from Pretoria: $552
  • 6-Hour Johannesburg Guided Tour from Pretoria: $154
  • 7-Day African Insight Adventure Accommodated Tour from Pretoria: $1,635

Alcohol
  • Alcohol Drinks for one day
    Soweto $7.54
    Pretoria $28

About these numbers

When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Soweto and Pretoria, we can see that Soweto is more expensive. And not only is Pretoria much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. So, traveling to Pretoria would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Pretoria and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Soweto would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Soweto than you might in Pretoria.

Budget Your Trip

Budget Your Trip has average travel costs for thousands of cities around the world, all provided by other travelers. You can also register to organize your spending by category and location with graphs, maps, charts, and tables.
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Soweto vs. Pretoria Travel Comparison

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