How to travel to Lesotho on public transportation from South Africa

How to get to Lesotho on public transport

I traveled to Lesotho from South Africa on public transportation and thought I would write a post on how to do it.

I traveled alone and it was relatively straightforward and cheap. Things get a little more complicated once you cross the border, but don’t worry I will address that here!

So let’s get right to it- how to travel to Lesotho on public transportation from South Africa!

How I got to Lesotho on public transportation

I traveled to Lesotho on public transportation from Bloemfontein. You just need to take a shared taxi from the central taxi rank.

It is right by the old, painted smokestacks of the coal plant in the center of town.

As with all shared taxis in the region, it leaves when full and so you can never quite plan ahead for when you will depart.

Traveling to Lesotho on public transportation from Bloemfontein cost me 100 Rand. The ride lasted just a couple of hours.

BUT! It’s important to know that if you travel to Lesotho on public transportation from South Africa, your shared taxi will most likely NOT take you over the border.

Traveling to Lesotho from other cities in South Africa

You can get to the border from any major South African city, and if there isn’t a direct bus you will definitely be able to take public transportation to another city and connect with a shared taxi to Lesotho.

The main border crossing is the Maseru bridge. ALL shared taxis won’t bother going into the country so you walk across the border and then are pretty much on your own.

Taking the Intercape to get to Lesotho

So if you don’t already know, Intercape is South Africa’s big name long distance bus company.

The buses are comfortable and dependable and considered to be a safe option for cross country or regional travel.

You can take the Intercape from Cape Town to Bloemfontein and then connect. You can also take the Intercape from Durban to the South African town of Ladybrand, which is right next to the border with Lesotho.

Check out the Intercape website here to see the routes!

Lovely Ladybrand

So there are plenty of shared taxis traveling to the Lesotho/South Africa border from Ladybrand.

It is 20 to 30 minutes away and the easiest way to get to Lesotho on public transportation.

There are restaurants, hotels, and supermarkets there. The only thing to know is that it isn’t very easy to get around. A lot of hotels are tucked away in a residential area and difficult to get to on foot.

BUT I stayed at one of the most charming hotels I have ever been to in my ENTIRE LIFE in Ladybrand. It was called Living Life Station House and had an adorable cafe and restaurant in addition to the most luxurious rooms.

It was super cheap- even I could afford it! Check it out here.

Also, I think it is worth noting that, even if you aren’t traveling to Lesotho on public transportation, the hotels in nearby Ladybrand are MUCH cheaper than hotels in Maseru.

If you were planning on just spending a night in Maseru and then continuing on to explore the countryside in Lesotho, consider spending that night in Ladybrand if you are on a budget!

Crossing the border and entering Lesotho on public transportation

You need to take a shared taxi from the border into central Maseru. From there you can find other shared taxis to different parts of the country.

The taxi into town from the border cost me 6.5 Loti (equal to Rand…you can even pay with Rand).

Check out all of my posts about Lesotho here!

They cram the taxi full and like usual it leaves when full. It’s not a minibus but an actual car. When you finish the border formalities they should be on the street in front of you, slightly to the left.

To recap:

To travel to Lesotho on public transportation, you need to just get to a large town or city near Lesotho like Bloemfontein or Ladybrand and then take a shared taxi to the Maseru bridge border crossing.

The shared taxis leave when full throughout the day, but I recommend leaving early in the morning to avoid any unexpected surprises.

Enjoy your trip to the Kingdom in the Sky!