Durban: 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.
Durban is a city of 3.3 million people in South Africa (KwaZulu-Natal), 21 m (69 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is King Shaka International Airport (DUR), 28 km (17 mi) from the centre. It is a port city: Port of Durban. Our booking partner lists 1,285+ places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Durban runs from about 10 h 16 min a day in late June to 14 h 7 min in late December (computed for -29.86° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Durban is served by 2 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is King Shaka International Airport (DUR), 28 km (17 mi) from the centre, whose 12,139-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft. The alternatives are Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB, 65 km).
Flights to Durban: every airport, routes and times
Buses to Durban · Driving and car hire · Ferries
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 1,285+ places to stay in Durban (statistics below are from the first 1,000). Of the 667 with a star rating, the largest group is 4-star (404), and 18 are five-star. Across 563 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.2 out of 10. Guests have left 320,890 reviews in total.
Hotels in Durban: the full picture, and book
Our booking partner lists 7 hostels in Durban, out of 1,285 places to stay of every kind — 0.5% of everywhere it lists in the city, a small share: this is a city where nearly everything on offer is a hotel or an apartment. Guests have left 261 reviews across them.
Hostels in Durban: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Pietermaritzburg, 67 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Newcastle, 257 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Maseru, 348 km (Lesotho) — flights
- Richards Bay, 154 km — flights · buses · car rental · ferries · tours
- Mthatha, 288 km — flights · buses · car rental · tours
- KwaDukuza, 64 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Vryheid, 233 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Pinetown, 14 km
- Ladysmith, 189 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Mpumalanga, 38 km — buses · car rental · tours
Twin towns and sister cities: New Orleans, Leeds, Eilat, Guangzhou, Oran, Bulawayo, Daejeon, Maputo, Libreville, Maracaibo, Alexandria, Chicago, Curitiba, Rio de Janeiro.
Common questions
Which airport serves Durban?
King Shaka International Airport (DUR), 28 km (17 mi) from the centre, plus 1 other airport with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Durban?
About 3.3 million people live in Durban, across 226 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Durban in?
Africa/Johannesburg, currently UTC+2.
What currency is used in Durban?
The Rand (ZAR). Traffic drives on the left.
Are there hostels in Durban?
7 of them, bookable on this site. Hostels in Durban.
How many hotels are there in Durban?
Our booking partner lists 1,285 or more places to stay in Durban, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Durban?
Pietermaritzburg (67 km), Newcastle (257 km), Maseru (348 km), Richards Bay (154 km), Mthatha (288 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 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel 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.