South Africa lets adults use cannabis in private, but the moment you travel you pass through places that are anything but private. Here is how to handle flights, road trips and borders, and the easier option of ordering where you are going.
The rules that matter when you travel
Adults may possess and use cannabis in private. Airports, roads, beaches and borders are public or regulated spaces, and different rules apply to each. This is general information, not legal advice.
Read the guide to the lawSituation by situation
Flying home
Carrying cannabis out of South Africa is illegal almost everywhere you could land. Finish it or leave it behind.
Domestic flights
Airports and airlines set their own rules, and security screening is not the place to test them. Order at your destination instead.
Crossing a border
Lesotho, Eswatini, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique and Zimbabwe all prohibit it. The risk is not worth it.
Road trips
Keep it sealed and out of sight, in the boot. Never use it in a moving car, as driver or passenger.
Hire cars
Hire companies ban smoking in their cars and charge for cleaning. Keep it sealed and use it at your stop.
Staying somewhere new
Order to your next address instead of travelling with it.
Order where you are going
Rather than carrying cannabis between places, order it to your next stop.
Cape Town city
Uber delivery within 90 minutes, usually under 45, to hotels and rentals.
Cape Town deliveryThe Winelands and beyond
Breaze same-day delivery across Greater Cape Town, including Stellenbosch.
Winelands deliveryAnywhere in South Africa
The Courier Guy nationwide in two to three days, in plain packaging.
Nationwide deliveryEasy to pack, easy to finish
Small, discreet options for a short stay.
If you do carry it
- Keep only a small personal amount.
- Keep it in its sealed original pack.
- Keep it out of sight in your bag or the boot.
- Never carry it for anyone else.
Where you can use it
Private places only: your home, or your accommodation if the rules allow it. Beaches and viewpoints are public.
We advise against it, even on domestic flights. Airports and airlines set their own rules, and taking cannabis out of the country is illegal almost everywhere you could land.
No. Carrying cannabis across any border is illegal, including into South Africa’s neighbours.
Keep a small personal amount sealed and out of sight, ideally in the boot. Never use it in a moving car, and never drive after using it.
No. Cruise lines prohibit it and ships cross international borders.
Order to your next address: Uber in Cape Town, Breaze same day across Greater Cape Town, or The Courier Guy nationwide in two to three days.
Order to where you are staying
Uber delivery within 90 minutes, usually under 45, across the inner city and Atlantic Seaboard. Breaze same day across Greater Cape Town, and The Courier Guy nationwide in two to three days.
Dixie Jane De Waterkant
- Address
- 40 Chiappini Street, De Waterkant, Cape Town 8001
- Hours
- Mon to Sat 08:00 to 22:00
Sun 08:00 to 16:00 - Happy hour
- Every day, 15:00 to 18:00
- Call
- 021 013 7801
- +27 71 106 8267