Hiring a Land Rover in South Africa

Hired a 4X4 in South Africa? Tell us where, when and how it went! SA Blog links follow.

When people picture African landscapes, there’s often a dun-colored Land Rover parked somewhere in the scene, as though it were a native species taking a quiet rest.

Surprisingly, though, it’s not that easy to get a hold of a true Land Rover here: they simply aren’t commonly available as overland rental vehicles. (This is a gap in the market crying out for an entrepreneur’s attention.)

• The best first click for the genuine article is Offroad Africa’s site, which has a few Land Rover models to offer, plus several other kinds of 4X4s and campers.

Here are some other options for getting 4X4 satisfaction in South Africa:

• Most of the international car hire companies rent out 4X4s and SUVs, as well as local niche company UVS. For these links see the related SA Blog post Hiring a Car in South Africa.
• In the Western Cape, Scorpion 4X4 hires out the Land Rover’s close cousin, the Land Cruiser, for surprisingly reasonable rates.
• Bushtrackers Africa will strap you into a growling 4X4 or bakkie (the local term for a pickup truck – pronounced BUCK-ee) for visiting anywhere in Southern Africa, as will Compass Ventures. Both are based in Johannesburg.
• For 4X4s and vehicles which make Land Rovers look like kittens, click over to Camper Rental South Africa.

Last, an interesting tidbit from Africa’s corporate annals: Land Rover’s close association with this continent is thanks, in part, to the company’s early marketing strategy of sponsorsing African travel writing, such as Laurens van der Post’s Lost World of the Kalahari (1958), in which the famous white African mystic snorts and grinds his way through swamp and desert, searching for truth and extra lug nuts.