Lesotho to Jo'burg

I will be in Maseru and planing to drive to Jo'burg. Timewise, would it be better to head back to Bloemfontein and take the N1, or take the R26 from Ladybrand to the R708 and hop on the N1 in Winburg? Thanks

I would drive north through Lesotho, exit at Butha Buthe and then take the R26 route via Bethlehem, Reitz, Frankfort to join the N3 at Villiers. Bloemfontein is a long way round, and last time we drove through Harrismith it was a mess with all the roadworks. However, I have not done the trip all the way from Maseru for some years. Other TT'ers could well feel the N3 from Harrismith would be better, but there should not be much in it time-wise.

Hi,
The quickest route from Maseru to Jo'burg is , as you suggest, via Winburg, taking the R26 to the R708, normally takes about 4 hours. Only drive north through Lesotho if you want to see it and only use the N3 if your destination was east of Joburg.
J

Many thanks for the info! Actually, my destination is either Swazi or Kruger, not sure if it's drivable in one day, so I would stop in Jo’burg and continue the next day. If however you think I could avoid Jo’burg all together and do directly, I'd very much appreciate that. Thanks again.

Nelspruit (base for Kruger) and Mbabane are doable in a day - probably looking at between 9-11 hours. The scenic route from Maseru is cross the border, then Ladybrand to Clarens, through the Golden Gate national park and over to Harrismith, then cut across to Newcastle and up to Ermelo. From Ermelo either continue north via Carolina and join the N4 to Nelspruit or head east for Mbabane.

Going via Joburg would not be much quicker, if at all, and it certainly isn't as pretty a route. If you're going between Swaziland and Nelspruit and you have a vehicle with reasonably high clearance, there is a great route from Pigg's Peak in northern Swaziland, crossing at Bulembu, then Barberton to Nelspruit. The road isn't too bad, just highly corrugated and would be tough on a regular car but fine in something slightly more sturdy. Otherwise the crossing at Jeppe's Reef/Matsomo is sealed and more direct if going straight to the Park (via southern gates).

Good luck!