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There's good news for Capetonians planning a trip Down Under, with Australian airline Qantas announcing the first-ever non-stop flights between Cape Town and Sydney. The new seasonal service will launch on 19 October 2027, offering three flights a week until March 2028.
Operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, the new route will cut hours off the journey between the two cities, removing the need to connect via Johannesburg or international hubs in the Middle East and Asia.
Flights will operate three times a week, on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays, with the Cape Town departure scheduled for 4.40pm, arriving in Sydney at 1.45pm the following day. The flight from Sydney to Cape Town will take approximately 14 hours and 25 minutes.
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The new service is already on sale, with return economy fares starting from R20 499. That's not necessarily the cheapest way to reach Sydney – connecting flights via Johannesburg or the Middle East can be found for around R18 000 – but the appeal here is convenience. The new direct service will take around 12 hours, shaving several hours off the journey and removing the hassle of changing planes en route. Qantas says the route will add almost 30 000 seats between South Africa and Australia over the inaugural summer season.
“Cape Town is one of the world's great cities and Australia's appetite to visit has never been stronger,” said Qantas International CEO Cam Wallace. “Our new direct flights from Sydney to Cape Town will make it easier for more Australians to experience everything the Western Cape has to offer, bringing more visitors directly into the region and supporting its tourism economy.”
The timing is particularly good news for rugby fans, with the new flights launching during the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia, offering Springboks supporters another option for travelling to the tournament.
For local travellers, Sydney also offers onward connections across Qantas's domestic network, including Melbourne and Brisbane, as well as flights to New Zealand.
And the Qantas announcement is just the latest good news for Cape Town's booming aviation sector. This summer, airlines are adding around 250 000 international seats with 26 carriers operating 255 weekly flights to 33 destinations. Airlink has opened up new direct routes to Mauritius and Zanzibar, while KLM has ramped up Amsterdam flights to 10 a week and Turkish Airlines has done the same for Istanbul.
Add in the return of seasonal services from Air France, Norse Atlantic Airways, Condor, Edelweiss and Virgin Atlantic, and Cape Town is better connected to the world than ever.
The new service also comes 75 years after Qantas first launched scheduled flights to South Africa in 1952, when its so-called 'Wallaby Route' to Johannesburg took a rather leisurely 66 hours, with stops in Perth, the Cocos Islands and Mauritius.
The new Cape Town–Sydney service is scheduled to operate until 25 March 2028, subject to regulatory approval.
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