Travel Guide To Lesotho

Travel Guide to Lesotho: The Kingdom of the Sky

Lesotho is a mountainous kingdom in southern Africa, home to the hospitable Basotho people. It covers an area of 30,355 square kilometers, about the size of Belgium.

Lesotho offers raw beauty that attracts hikers, horseback (Basotho pony) riders and even snow sport junkies, because yes, it snows in Lesotho. If you're planning to visit Lesotho, the following safety tips can be very helpful, especially if it’s your first time traveling to South Africa.

Most people travel to Lesotho as part of their southern African itinerary, and they get to Lesotho via South Africa by either a bus or a plane. Flights come into Lesotho's Moshowshoe International Airportin its capital city of Maseru from Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg. If you are flying in from the US, Europe or Asia, you'll change planes in Johannesburg. Flights from Johannesburg to Maseru take around an hour. There are also luxury interstate buses. Although you can easily drive into Lesotho from South Africa, it’s only advisable if you have a 4x4 car as roads can be a bit bumpy. If you don’t know where to leave your car, there are various car parking services available. You can find on and off-airport parking services, including valet and hotel parking options. You can find the best deals here, especially for on-airport parking.

Once you reach Lesotho, or even the South African territory, be sure to be extra cautious on your belongings. In central Maseru, muggers frequently target foreign nationals. When visiting urban centers, be sure to bring along enough money with you and avoid flashing your expensive items such as jewelries, cash and gadgets. It’s best to leave them in hotel safes, where practicable. Speaking of hotels, it is also ideal to check out online hotel booking sites to make sure you stay in the most credible and safest hotels in the area. Keep photo copies of important documents, including passports, in a separate place.

As a traveler, it is your responsibility to contact your general physician around eight weeks before your trip to check whether you need any vaccinations or other preventive measures. Lesotho has only very basic medical facilities. Foreign visitors who need medical assistance would have to visit and use the medical facilities in Bloemfontein, South Africa which is a 90-minute (140km) drive from the capital city. So make sure you have all the adequate travel health insurance and accessible funds, in case of emergency.

Lesotho offers its visitors natural beauty and rich cultural tradition like no other. However, its best to take some safety measures considering it’s an unfamiliar territory for us. With the following safety tips above, you can be certain that you’ll have one memorable and fun vacation in the kingdom of the sky.