Popular Airport | Samana El Catey Intl. Airport |
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Popular Airlines | |
Approximate Flight Duration | 15 hour |
Approximate Travel Distance | 12024 Km |
Taking a taxi in the morning or evening outside of rush hours is probably the most reliable method of transport to the airport in densely populated Durban. It’s also possible to reach the airport with rented cars or shuttle company buses.
You can reach the airport by taxi from the city centre in around 30 to 50 minutes depending on traffic conditions. It might be a good idea to speak with the taxi driver beforehand and let them know your time of departure to not have any bad surprises for your journey.
The shuttle buses that leave for the airport depart from Durban Station in the city centre, depart once every day at 8:00, 11:00, and 16:00 and reach the airport in around half an hour.
The traffic flows on the left side in Durban, so if you come from a country where you drive on the right it might be a better idea to hire a car with a driver rather than getting behind the steering wheel yourself. If you come from country where cars drive on the left side, you might be more at home with this option.
There is only one terminal in King Shaka Airport where there is an ABSA bank, which opens half an hour before the first flight and closes half an hour after the last flight. In addition, you can find financial services from the ATMs of First National Bank, Nedbank, and Standard Bank. There is a prayer room for Muslims, and a post office that offers services depending on the first and last flights of the day. There are baby and childcare rooms that mothers can use.
In addition to these services, the airport has many lounges. The most exclusive ones are the South African Airways Business Class Lounge, found near the entrance of the terminal, and BIDVest Premier Lounge. In these lounges you can order some food and rest on comfortable seating areas to read books or newspapers.
Airport restaurants include; Cape Town Fish Market, Cosmic Candy, Big Five Duty Free, Fego Coffee Shop, Kauai, KFC, Milky Lane, Mugg&Bean, Panarottis, Rhapsody’s, Spur, Steers, Sweet Treat, The Airport Cellar, and Wimpy. There is also a Yemaya Nail Express, Woolworts, Vodashop, Tie Stop, The Urban Retreat, The Scoin Shop, NWJ Fine Jewellery, Sneakers, Sunglass Hunt, Nike, MTN, Moda Luggage&Leather, Khasav, Jeep, EM Native, and Electro Electronics for your shopping needs.
You can take a taxi, the most practical method, take the bus, rent a car, ot a transfer service to get from Samana El Catey Airport to Samana city centre. You can reach Las Galeras in 1 hour, Samana city centre in 40 minutes, Las Terranas in 30 minutes, and Sanchez in 10.
Even though there aren’t direct buses to Samana city centre to Samana El Catey Airport, the buses leaving to Sanchez, which is 8km away, might save you some time. You can first go to Sanchez from Samana El Catey Airport in 10 minutes if you take a taxi, and then take the bus to Samana, which should take you 1 or 1.5 hours. These buses operate under Caribe Tours and the price for the ticket as of 2017 is 1-3 dollars. These buses leave from Sanchez every hour and it’s possible to make a reservation by calling (809) 221 44 22.
If your arrival time is in the late hours or if you prefer the quickest and least hassle free method then you can take one of the taxis that are available 24/7 outside Samana El Catey Airport. If your hotel is at Sanchez then you can reach it in 10-12 minutes. The cost for this should vary between 30-40 dollars. To reach Samana city centre with a taxi on the other hand takes around 100 dollars. It might be a good idea to share the taxi with some other passengers to split the fare.
There are many local and international car rental agencies in Samana El Catey Airport and so you will have some good alternatives regarding price so you can pick the agency that is the most suitable for your budget. If you make a reservation before your arrival then you can get even better deals. To reach Samana city centre from Samana El Catey Airport by car we recommend taking the Turistico del Atlantico/133 road from Aeropuerto El Catey.