Last edit by: B747-437B
Guide to JNB (Oliver R. Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa)
Welcome to the guide to JNB.
If your have any further questions that have not been answered after reading through, please do not hesitate to ask.
Bear in mind that the minimum connection times given below are the shortest connections allowed for tickets on a single PNR. It would be advisable to leave more time than this, particularly if you are arriving during the busy morning period. If you are travelling on two separate PNRs, add on at least an extra hour to the MCTs to allow for whatever delays the Travel Gods may throw at you.
Do note that procedures can change so this guide may not be accurate. If you notice anything has changed or there are any errors, just let me know.
International-Domestic Connection
Minimum connection time: 90 minutes
Once you have deplaned, simply follow the crowd to the immigration hall.
After going through passport control, you will need to collect your luggage and pass through customs irrespective of whether your bags have been tagged through to your final destination.
Exit into the public area and proceed up to departures level by way of the escalators which are opposite and to the left. The escalator can take trolleys.
If your bags have already been tagged through to your destination and you have your boarding passes for the onward domestic flight, you can use fast bag drop.
Otherwise you will need to check-in as normal.
Alternatively, you can use the baggage re-check desks on the left before exiting to the public area (NOTE : These are permanently closed now - Oct 2022).
If you would prefer to avoid the porters and taxi touts in the arrivals halls, there are escalators to the left of these desks which will take you to level 1. From there you will need to go up one more level to reach domestic departures. (NOTE : These escalators are out of service now - Oct 2022).
The domestic terminal is designated as a separate terminal (Terminal B) but do not be confused by this. All the terminals at JNB are under one roof so you barely notice that you are transferring between them.
Domestic-International Connection
If you can interline baggage, you can check it through from your initial departure point to your international destination. Once you land at JNB walk out to exit (ignore signs to go downstairs to baggage reclaim), keep walking through the shops/past the food court, around the atrium and there is a security/emigration point on your front right.
Please see post #106 for an illustrated guide.
[although there is no need to go up the moving walkway and then back down again - just come out of the domestic exit and keep walking straight on that level, which will bring you to the security/emigration point]
International-International Connection
Minimum connection time: 60 minutes
This is where things become a little more tricky.
If you arrive at a jetway, you will see a corridor heading towards International Transfers on the left just before the escalators down to passport control.
If you arrive at a remote stand and are bussed to the terminal, you will see the escalators on the left heading up to International Transfers as you enter the building.
Both these paths are well signposted and there is usually a staff member shouting out "International transit" and waving a sign to direct passengers.
When you go down the corridor, there is a transit immigration point before the transfer desks. Typically the wait here is 1-3 minutes, very much quicker than 'normal' immigration.
Your passport will be stamped with a "TRANSIT" stamp here even though you do not enter the country, and you must ensure that you have the required blank pages otherwise you may not be permitted to continue your transit and instead sent back to your originating point.
A few meters beyond the immigration checkpoint is the main transit information area which have desks for all the international airlines and handling agents.
If your bags have already been tagged through to your final destination, ensure that you give your connecting airline the tag numbers at this time so that they can verify them in their system.
If the tag numbers are not re-verified, they will not be loaded without manual intervention. This is not required if connecting from SAA to SAA flights however.
If your bags have not been tagged through, you will need to find a member of staff in International Transfers from your arriving airline.
Ask them to get one of their baggage services staff to pull your bags off the belt manually and coordinate with staff from your onward airline to retag them to your final destination.
This is a rather convoluted process and can take a long time.
Therefore, if your bags cannot be tagged all the way through, it is advisable to pass through immigration, collect your bags at baggage reclaim and clear customs.
After you clear customs but before you exit to the public area (the exit is a set of sliding doors on your right), you will see a series of baggage re-check desks on your left.
Proceed to these desks since they often have smaller queues and have your bags re-tagged.
Then head up the escalators to your left (do not exit the main doors into the public area) which emerge on the departures level.
Turn right when facing the Vodacom store and the departures security checkpoint is right in front of you.
You can do the entire transit and enter/exit South Africa in less than 5 minutes if your bags come out quickly.
If time permits, the safest option is to clear customs and re-check your bags as described above rather than rely on the interlining system at JNB.
Have a look at post #9 of this thread for pictures.
Originally posted by Ambassador BA304.
Luggage storage
This is taken from the whyjoburg.com web site (April 2016):
Welcome to the guide to JNB.
If your have any further questions that have not been answered after reading through, please do not hesitate to ask.
Bear in mind that the minimum connection times given below are the shortest connections allowed for tickets on a single PNR. It would be advisable to leave more time than this, particularly if you are arriving during the busy morning period. If you are travelling on two separate PNRs, add on at least an extra hour to the MCTs to allow for whatever delays the Travel Gods may throw at you.
Do note that procedures can change so this guide may not be accurate. If you notice anything has changed or there are any errors, just let me know.
International-Domestic Connection
Minimum connection time: 90 minutes
Once you have deplaned, simply follow the crowd to the immigration hall.
After going through passport control, you will need to collect your luggage and pass through customs irrespective of whether your bags have been tagged through to your final destination.
Exit into the public area and proceed up to departures level by way of the escalators which are opposite and to the left. The escalator can take trolleys.
If your bags have already been tagged through to your destination and you have your boarding passes for the onward domestic flight, you can use fast bag drop.
Otherwise you will need to check-in as normal.
Alternatively, you can use the baggage re-check desks on the left before exiting to the public area (NOTE : These are permanently closed now - Oct 2022).
If you would prefer to avoid the porters and taxi touts in the arrivals halls, there are escalators to the left of these desks which will take you to level 1. From there you will need to go up one more level to reach domestic departures. (NOTE : These escalators are out of service now - Oct 2022).
The domestic terminal is designated as a separate terminal (Terminal B) but do not be confused by this. All the terminals at JNB are under one roof so you barely notice that you are transferring between them.
Domestic-International Connection
If you can interline baggage, you can check it through from your initial departure point to your international destination. Once you land at JNB walk out to exit (ignore signs to go downstairs to baggage reclaim), keep walking through the shops/past the food court, around the atrium and there is a security/emigration point on your front right.
Please see post #106 for an illustrated guide.
[although there is no need to go up the moving walkway and then back down again - just come out of the domestic exit and keep walking straight on that level, which will bring you to the security/emigration point]
International-International Connection
Minimum connection time: 60 minutes
This is where things become a little more tricky.
If you arrive at a jetway, you will see a corridor heading towards International Transfers on the left just before the escalators down to passport control.
If you arrive at a remote stand and are bussed to the terminal, you will see the escalators on the left heading up to International Transfers as you enter the building.
Both these paths are well signposted and there is usually a staff member shouting out "International transit" and waving a sign to direct passengers.
When you go down the corridor, there is a transit immigration point before the transfer desks. Typically the wait here is 1-3 minutes, very much quicker than 'normal' immigration.
Your passport will be stamped with a "TRANSIT" stamp here even though you do not enter the country, and you must ensure that you have the required blank pages otherwise you may not be permitted to continue your transit and instead sent back to your originating point.
A few meters beyond the immigration checkpoint is the main transit information area which have desks for all the international airlines and handling agents.
If your bags have already been tagged through to your final destination, ensure that you give your connecting airline the tag numbers at this time so that they can verify them in their system.
If the tag numbers are not re-verified, they will not be loaded without manual intervention. This is not required if connecting from SAA to SAA flights however.
If your bags have not been tagged through, you will need to find a member of staff in International Transfers from your arriving airline.
Ask them to get one of their baggage services staff to pull your bags off the belt manually and coordinate with staff from your onward airline to retag them to your final destination.
This is a rather convoluted process and can take a long time.
Therefore, if your bags cannot be tagged all the way through, it is advisable to pass through immigration, collect your bags at baggage reclaim and clear customs.
After you clear customs but before you exit to the public area (the exit is a set of sliding doors on your right), you will see a series of baggage re-check desks on your left.
Proceed to these desks since they often have smaller queues and have your bags re-tagged.
Then head up the escalators to your left (do not exit the main doors into the public area) which emerge on the departures level.
Turn right when facing the Vodacom store and the departures security checkpoint is right in front of you.
You can do the entire transit and enter/exit South Africa in less than 5 minutes if your bags come out quickly.
If time permits, the safest option is to clear customs and re-check your bags as described above rather than rely on the interlining system at JNB.
Have a look at post #9 of this thread for pictures.
Originally posted by Ambassador BA304.
Luggage storage
This is taken from the whyjoburg.com web site (April 2016):
BagPort South Africa, the original company that provided a luggage storage service at OR Tambo International Airport, has changed its name.
It now operates as Ateck - from the same premises down the escalators at the main exit of Terminal A arrivals, on Basement Level 1, going towards the Parkade 2 (South).
Costs are : (NB : CASH ONLY! No Cards Accepted.)
0-5 hours: R70.00
6-12 hours: R80.00
12-24 hours: R90.00
24 hours or more: R90.00 per day.
Open 24 hours, every day of the year.
Contact details :
Tel : +27 (11) 390 2689
http://www.a-teck.co.za/or-tambo-airport-store-teck/
It now operates as Ateck - from the same premises down the escalators at the main exit of Terminal A arrivals, on Basement Level 1, going towards the Parkade 2 (South).
Costs are : (NB : CASH ONLY! No Cards Accepted.)
0-5 hours: R70.00
6-12 hours: R80.00
12-24 hours: R90.00
24 hours or more: R90.00 per day.
Open 24 hours, every day of the year.
Contact details :
Tel : +27 (11) 390 2689
http://www.a-teck.co.za/or-tambo-airport-store-teck/
JNB / Johannesburg Airport - Connections, Facilities, Layovers, etc.
#782
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: ORD [formerly] + HKG
Programs: CX Diamond, AA exExPlat, BAEC exGold, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Starriott Titanium, GE
Posts: 2,966
Arriving on CX at 0730am connecting to Airlink (same check in counters as SA?) to HDS at 0950am.
Separate tickets but presumably even if CX can (I believe so) through-check, we still have to collect at JNB and recheck.
I would like to know more about the bag wrapping service, we won't be able to do it at HKG but I assume collecting arriving bags are not that risky? The 'risk' would mostly be our JNB-HDS leg? In this case, can we get our bags wrapped somewhere near the recheck area after bag claim or would it have to be a trip to the arrivals pickup area? (Am traveling with my parents who aren't as well traveled, I don't want them to be intimidated by the scene of touts and porters etc as a first impression of the country...)
The saving grace is the JNB-HDS ticket is a flexible one so there's no fees for noshow/rebooking, seems the later 2 SA Express/Airlink flights are still quite empty just in case. So I assume we shouldn't be panicking just yet? I've landed and smoothly went through ZA immigration twice following CX749 and didn't see the 'A380 1-2hour lines' each time...but not sure what the situation is now/recently - In fact the CX flight had been rescheduled 50 minutes later, otherwise would have been a lot more comfortable...
Separate tickets but presumably even if CX can (I believe so) through-check, we still have to collect at JNB and recheck.
I would like to know more about the bag wrapping service, we won't be able to do it at HKG but I assume collecting arriving bags are not that risky? The 'risk' would mostly be our JNB-HDS leg? In this case, can we get our bags wrapped somewhere near the recheck area after bag claim or would it have to be a trip to the arrivals pickup area? (Am traveling with my parents who aren't as well traveled, I don't want them to be intimidated by the scene of touts and porters etc as a first impression of the country...)
The saving grace is the JNB-HDS ticket is a flexible one so there's no fees for noshow/rebooking, seems the later 2 SA Express/Airlink flights are still quite empty just in case. So I assume we shouldn't be panicking just yet? I've landed and smoothly went through ZA immigration twice following CX749 and didn't see the 'A380 1-2hour lines' each time...but not sure what the situation is now/recently - In fact the CX flight had been rescheduled 50 minutes later, otherwise would have been a lot more comfortable...
#783
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
Arriving on CX at 0730am connecting to Airlink (same check in counters as SA?) to HDS at 0950am.
Separate tickets but presumably even if CX can (I believe so) through-check, we still have to collect at JNB and recheck.
I would like to know more about the bag wrapping service, we won't be able to do it at HKG but I assume collecting arriving bags are not that risky? The 'risk' would mostly be our JNB-HDS leg? In this case, can we get our bags wrapped somewhere near the recheck area after bag claim or would it have to be a trip to the arrivals pickup area? (Am traveling with my parents who aren't as well traveled, I don't want them to be intimidated by the scene of touts and porters etc as a first impression of the country...)
The saving grace is the JNB-HDS ticket is a flexible one so there's no fees for noshow/rebooking, seems the later 2 SA Express/Airlink flights are still quite empty just in case. So I assume we shouldn't be panicking just yet? I've landed and smoothly went through ZA immigration twice following CX749 and didn't see the 'A380 1-2hour lines' each time...but not sure what the situation is now/recently - In fact the CX flight had been rescheduled 50 minutes later, otherwise would have been a lot more comfortable...
Separate tickets but presumably even if CX can (I believe so) through-check, we still have to collect at JNB and recheck.
I would like to know more about the bag wrapping service, we won't be able to do it at HKG but I assume collecting arriving bags are not that risky? The 'risk' would mostly be our JNB-HDS leg? In this case, can we get our bags wrapped somewhere near the recheck area after bag claim or would it have to be a trip to the arrivals pickup area? (Am traveling with my parents who aren't as well traveled, I don't want them to be intimidated by the scene of touts and porters etc as a first impression of the country...)
The saving grace is the JNB-HDS ticket is a flexible one so there's no fees for noshow/rebooking, seems the later 2 SA Express/Airlink flights are still quite empty just in case. So I assume we shouldn't be panicking just yet? I've landed and smoothly went through ZA immigration twice following CX749 and didn't see the 'A380 1-2hour lines' each time...but not sure what the situation is now/recently - In fact the CX flight had been rescheduled 50 minutes later, otherwise would have been a lot more comfortable...
#785
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: ORD [formerly] + HKG
Programs: CX Diamond, AA exExPlat, BAEC exGold, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Starriott Titanium, GE
Posts: 2,966
Equal risk on arrival I'd say, I've never bothered with wrapping personally, but that's just me. Don't think there's wrapping at the re-check as it's still a somewhat secure area, you'd have to go to the domestic departures check-in in B, which you need to go through anyway to go to security for your onward flight. Not that many touts and porters, really...
#786
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: Seat 1A, Juice pretty much everywhere, Mucci des Coins Exotiques
Posts: 34,339
There are ATM's at the airport. For me the best way is to take the airport train to Sandton and it's a short walk to the hotel. Or if you have lots of bags you can ask the hotel to come pick you up at the station.
#787
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2000
Posts: 14,352
#789
#790
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 305
We will be arriving to JNB by Emirates in late afternoon, spending the night and leaving for Maun the next morning (by SA/Airlink flight). We are not planning to venture into the city, just have some rest in a very comfortable and very convenient hotel in the airport or next to the airport. Would Intercontinental be it? I hear they even send someone to meet you at the airport and escort to the hotel - wonder if that is true? Also - does someone know if SA/Airlink flights to Botswana (Maun) leave from their domestic terminal? Technically it's an international flight, but I hear it departs from domestic terminal, no?
#791
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
We will be arriving to JNB by Emirates in late afternoon, spending the night and leaving for Maun the next morning (by SA/Airlink flight). We are not planning to venture into the city, just have some rest in a very comfortable and very convenient hotel in the airport or next to the airport. Would Intercontinental be it? I hear they even send someone to meet you at the airport and escort to the hotel - wonder if that is true? Also - does someone know if SA/Airlink flights to Botswana (Maun) leave from their domestic terminal? Technically it's an international flight, but I hear it departs from domestic terminal, no?
#792
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,422
It's exactly as skywardhunter supposes. You check in for your regional international flight in Terminal B and then take a short walk over to Terminal A - it's all inside the same building. Keep to your right before you reach the international departure area and use the slightly quicker security and exit passport control area there.
The Intercontinental is certainly the closest hotel to the airport, they say 68 metres but not sure where that is measured from, and you can contact them directly if you have any questions:
+27 11 961 5400
[email protected]
The Intercontinental is certainly the closest hotel to the airport, they say 68 metres but not sure where that is measured from, and you can contact them directly if you have any questions:
+27 11 961 5400
[email protected]
#793
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
It's exactly as skywardhunter supposes. You check in for your regional international flight in Terminal B and then take a short walk over to Terminal A - it's all inside the same building. Keep to your right before you reach the international departure area and use the slightly quicker security and exit passport control area there.
The Intercontinental is certainly the closest hotel to the airport, they say 68 metres but not sure where that is measured from, and you can contact them directly if you have any questions:
+27 11 961 5400
[email protected]
The Intercontinental is certainly the closest hotel to the airport, they say 68 metres but not sure where that is measured from, and you can contact them directly if you have any questions:
+27 11 961 5400
[email protected]
Regarding security check, it is often quicker, but not always, depending on time of day. If the queue for security is very long (i.e. it reaches almost to where the glass walled-off area begins) it may be worth walking around the the Terminal A check-in counters, walk in between any of them to get to the hallway behind where there is another security and immigration check, which might be quieter, though it may not be, so a bit of a gamble. I've had times where it's been big enough of a difference to warrant walking back and forth.
#794
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,422
Shown on Google Maps, the IC is on the left and international arrivals is under the circular structure on the right.
#795
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Denmark
Programs: TK Elite
Posts: 11,853
Yes, Uber is about the only reliable option if you arrive past the Gautrain operational hours. Many will be going from the airport to various hotels in Sandton so you may even be able to share a Uber ride with a fellow traveler. I did that in the past (to Sandton) by approaching a guy waiting for his Uber ride - yes, he was going to Sandton and didn't mind share the ride - we just split the fare between us. Or take a Uber ride yourselves - it is not expensive.
There are ATM everywhere. Some SA banks will charge you a ATM fee of up to 50 ZAR (in addition to the fee of your own bank). Last week I used my Visa card in Standard Bank ATM - no fee charged ^
There are ATM everywhere. Some SA banks will charge you a ATM fee of up to 50 ZAR (in addition to the fee of your own bank). Last week I used my Visa card in Standard Bank ATM - no fee charged ^