Hi All,

This was asked on the JNB Airport board, but got no response, so I figured I would post a similar questrion here to see if we can have more luck.
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What are the options/prices for transfer from JNB to Pretoria and back. Cab fares, safety, etc.?

Also, about how long should it take? I will be staying at the Sheraton Pretoria hotel.

I've done this several times and have always rented a car as it was cheap and I enjoy the drive (and know how to drive there). The Sheraton has a limo service using Volvos which will meet you at the airport and take you to the Sheraton, cost was about USD 20 then (probably USD 30 now with inflation and the rising Rand). That is a high quality service. Slighly lower quality is what can be booked at JNB (the cars are shabbier and the drivers are less professional -- the Sheraton has some great drivers). Given the recent incidents in Pretoria I wouldn't recommend using a bus or regular taxi unless you were street savvy and used to the conditions. Safety is a much bigger concern now than it was a few months ago. Today I would use the Sheraton's car service and forgo the other alternatives.

Driving is fairly easy, and the roads are great, although getting the right exit can be a bit of a challenge. There are plenty of car services that are just fine. Sixt has both combi's (vans) and Mercedes sedans for around 600 or 700 Rand. (a bit less than $100) with driver. Not sure if the Happy Bus goes to Pretoria or not. If so, it is a great economical option. Lastly, Jimmy's Face to Face tours also does chauffered combi runs. www.face2face.co.za (http://www.face2face.co.za)
They are wonderful.

Am wondering about the comment about safety in/around Pretoria. I am not aware of anything out of the ordinary. One always has to be 'street smart' and aware in SA, but I have been more than a dozen times without any incident of any kind. Am back again next month. Have I missed something?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by SOMA1K:
One always has to be 'street smart' and aware in SA, but I have been more than a dozen times without any incident of any kind. Am back again next month. Have I missed something?</font>The rules appear to have changed. The Pretoria event is complex but indicates that it is different than last year (the hijack victims were completely co-operative and in the past would not have been harmed). See http://allafrica.com/stories/200308140691.html though that doesn't really describe the event.

Here is a partial quote: "The police probe into the hijacking, rapes and murders that shook Pretoria two weeks ago, has taken a new turn as police battle to link the arrested men to the case.

Two weeks after the hijacking in Sunnyside, and a string of gruesome crimes - including the murder of one-year-old Kayla Rawstone, the rape and murder of her mother, Janine Drennen, 24, the murder of her grandmother, Heyster Rawstone, 52, and the rape and shooting of a 16-year-old girl - the police can still not explain the roles of the four arrested men in the crimes."

I don't want to discourage anyone from visiting there, but I do think the risk is different from a year ago and that this incident is not atypical. A sad change, but one which will affect some visitors and they need to be aware of it.

It appears the serious problem No.6 mentioned has been solved. http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20030815030209576C428469

Cop's son arrested for Kayla hijack horror
August 15 2003 at 03:02AM

By Fana Peete THE STAR

The police have apparently made a breakthrough in the probe into the horror ordeal of the Rawstone-Drennen family, who were hijacked two weeks ago.


This one looks like some very sick people not unlike we occasionally have here in the US. There is also a serial killer on the loose in the Durban area, again, just like we have here from time to time. I am much less worried about this type of crime than the more common type, one of which is 'regular' car jacking.

Car jacking in South Africa is very serious. It happens much, much more often than here. It happens all to often in the driveways of people in the better neighborhoods, and one cannot possibly be too vigilant. Always keep doors locked, windows up and no valuables, purses etc visible from the outside, even when you are in the car. It is perfectly acceptable to not stop a traffic light, even a red one, assuming no traffic is coming, especially at night.

I would never say it won't happen to a tourist, but it is more common in wealthier residential neighborhoods than at well light and guarded hotels.

SA is different. It looks like California, has anything we have here, but it also has a population nearly half of whom have no employment or regular income. I find it a facinating and wonderful place, and have been going regularly since 1996, and would recommend it any time. But it clearly is not as safe as here. For those going, I recommend renting a cell phone, and being hyper alert. For the majority of people there will not be a problem but the chances are higher.