Blantyre: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Blantyre is a city of 902,588 people in Malawi (Southern Region), 1,041 m (3,415 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Chileka International Airport (BLZ), 13 km (8 mi) from the centre. Our booking partner lists 53 places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Blantyre runs from about 11 h 14 min a day in late June to 13 h 6 min in late December (computed for -15.78° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Blantyre is served by one airport with scheduled flights. The closest large one is Chileka International Airport (BLZ), 13 km (8 mi) from the centre, with a longest runway of 7,628 ft, which limits it to short and medium-haul aircraft.
Flights to Blantyre: every airport, routes and times
Buses to Blantyre · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 53 places to stay in Blantyre. Of the 33 with a star rating, the largest group is 3-star (20), and 2 are five-star. Guests have left 1,895 reviews in total.
Hotels in Blantyre: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Lilongwe, 241 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Tete, 158 km (Mozambique) — flights
- Quelimane, 307 km (Mozambique) — flights
- Chipata, 349 km (Zambia) — flights
- Lichinga, 276 km (Mozambique) — flights
- Mocuba, 241 km (Mozambique)
- Gurúè, 214 km (Mozambique)
- Mandimba, 174 km (Mozambique)
- Zomba, 55 km — buses · car rental · tours
Twin towns and sister cities: Hanover, Kaohsiung, Ndola.
Common questions
Which airport serves Blantyre?
Chileka International Airport (BLZ), 13 km (8 mi) from the centre.
How big is Blantyre?
About 902,588 people live in Blantyre, across 228,000,000 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Blantyre in?
Africa/Blantyre, currently UTC+2.
What currency is used in Blantyre?
The Kwacha (MWK). Traffic drives on the left.
How many hotels are there in Blantyre?
Our booking partner lists 53 places to stay in Blantyre, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Blantyre?
Lilongwe (241 km), Tete (158 km), Quelimane (307 km), Chipata (349 km), Lichinga (276 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.