Exploring Rorkes Drift on a Day Tour From Durban

Tours to Rorkes Drift operate as booking are made – so I don’t run a tour everyday. To book, simply email me your desired dates and I’ll do the rest.

There are two separate routes you can take from Durban, it doesn’t matter which, the drive is 4,5 hours to Rorkes Drift itself. Personally I prefer taking the coastal route since that takes us past some interesting sites relating to the Anglo Zulu War, such at the Ultimatum Tree, the Battle of Gingindlovu site, Battle of Nyezane site and much more.

My Rorkes Drift day tour includes a stop at the battlefield of iSandlwana which is our first stop – so from Durban you are looking at a 4 hour drive to the general area.

It’s a long drive in a comfortable car along scenic routes. Throughout the drive there your guide, either myself or one of my colleagues, will talk about how the war came about in the first place. I will also chat about the Zulu people, their culture and traditions. So usually the drive there goes by quickly.

Being a 4 hour drive there, we do stop along the way for a comfort break and coffee. You can also get to a bite to eat etc. But again, it’s a 4 hour drive one way.

There is another way, it’s wildly expensive but I’m told it’s loads of fun (I’ve never done it), that is, you fly by helicoptor!

You can book a charter from Virginia Airport and fly to iSandlwana, I believe it’s around a 2 hour flight. Once you land at iSandlwana you get met by a local expert guide who does the tours at both sites, and then you fly back. Shorter day but you do have to pay for the privilege.

This is quite a common question and is usually from those planning to self drive. It is safe – in over 20 years of doing these tours I have not had one incident on the roads.

If you are doing a Rorkes Drift day tour with me or one of my colleagues, you can rest assured we take your safety and comfort very serious and would never deliberately put you in harms way.

If you are self driving you just need to know that one the secondary roads there are often potholes (some big enough to need a postcode of their own) and the are often goats and cattle on the roads. So don’t speed and pay attention!

One thing I would warm you about is punctures. If you are driving a smaller hire car with those skinny wheels on, definitely take it easy on the dirt roads as punctures are a thing. It’s worth taking along a puncture repair kit with an electronic compressor – jut in case.

On a day tour to Rorkes Drift from Durban, it’s around 90 min. However, if you wish to spend more time there, that’s perfectly fine, after all, it’s your tour!

Basically the day breaks down into departing at 6 am and driving 4 hours to iSandlwana, spending 90 min there and then driving 30 min to Rorkes Drift,and then spending 90 min there and then driving back 4,5 hours to Durban.

At the Rorkes Drift site there is a community cafe – typically I will stop there and you can order toasted sandwiches. I do this so that both you and I can support the local community since without their buy-in, sites like these wouldn’t exist.You pay for your own lunch.

I can also provide a lunch pack at no extra cost which is a sandwich, a piece of fruit, some biltong (you’ll love it), a rusk (delicious) and a few bits and bobs – kinda like a picnic lunch. The options will be communicated when you book.

Yes, there are public bathrooms at both iSandlwana and Rorkes Drift, and we do stop on the way to the sites and back at public rest rooms, so no problem there.

The Rorkes Drift day tour from Durban is a fairly niche type tour, so we only conduct the tour when we have bookings – so provided it is not a cruise ship shore excursion, it’s more than likely going to be a private tour. If however, we do get more queries for the same day, we’ll let you know.

Yes you can. If I have a tour going on the same day, I would encourage you to join it as it is more affordable, but if there are no tours going I am still happy to take you, but you will end up paying a bit more. At the time of publishing, the single rate is R3600.00 which includes entry fees, transfers and a lunch pack.

This is a question that I get asked more than I would ever have thought! So essentially, one of the following; a 10-seat Toyota Quantum, a 4-seat Mahindra TUV300, a 7-seat Nissan X-Trail and 4-seat a Renault Duster.

Regardless of vehicle, all have legally licensed and permitted, all have air-con and all are serviced and maintained regularly.

Absolutely none. The cost of the tour includes everything except lunch – and as previously explained, I can include a packed lunch at no extra charge. Now you may want to purchase a book, a hat, a t-shirt or something like as a souvenir, that you pay for, but apart from that, everything is included.

Provided you are booked into accommodation in the Durban or Greater Durban area (Umhlanga, Ballito, Zimbali etc) then I will happily collect you and drop you off at your accommodation – it’s all part of the service.

Pickup is at 6am from Durban and 6:15am from Umhlanga. When you book and supply me the details, I’ll let you know what time pickup is.

Pickup is at 6:00 am from Durban, 6;15am from Umhlanga. Apart from those times, I’ll let you know when you book.

Usually we are back in Durban around 6:30 pm depending on the traffic.

Absolutely, I can arrange for a large coach, lunch packs, water, pretty much everything to make your day out to Rorkes Drift something to remember.

Just contact me with dates and number and I’ll provide a group quotation for you to look at.

No problem at all. I offer a 2 day tour and a 3 day tour to Rorkes Drift and iSandlwana. If you want more info just contact me and supply you with the details.