Highest Pub in Africa

highest pub in africa sani pass lesotho south africa

When you have made it all the way (from Durban, maybe, as me) to the Sani Pass, you have to stop at the highest pub in Africa. Even if it’s just for the hype. It lies on top of the South African pass, but it is in Lesotho, so bring your passport! The pub is actually the breakfast, lunch, early dinner option for the guests staying at the Sani Mountain Lodge (chalets out front). It is a lot bigger than I had imagined it to be. Room for lots of people, and there were quite a few when we arrived. We had only seen a couple of people until then, but here they were all congregating. From the road the pub is very anonymous looking, but the place is quite cozy, with writings on the wall (I have been here scribblings on every little square mm) and lots of “memorabilia”. There were skies on the walls, and coming from a skiing nation I had to ask my guide if it was so much snow in winter that it was possible to ski. No… He had no idea why they had put skis up 🙂 Views from the pub are of course stunning. Food not so much…

This was a stop on a Lesotho day trip with daytours KNZ. When I researched online to figure out how to go about this trip, I realised there are a bunch of companies that offer to take you into Lesotho, but in most cases you are brought to Underberg (South Africa), and once there, handed over to another tour company which take you further, in a group with others. As it was hard to find a company who already had bookings with a Durban departure, going with any of them would mean that I had to pay for two people, even though it was just me, as they all had a 2 person minimum requirement. Even though it is a bit more expensive going with daytours KNZ, it means you are on a private, personalised tour, and therefore I was able to do tweaks, meaning I was able to not stop at the Lesotho villages for souvenirs, but instead head over to the highest point in Lesotho. On the way to the Sani Pass, where our adventure started, we stopped a couple of times for refreshments, and lunch in Underberg. The drive from Durban was around 4 hours one way, but with a great and knowledgeable guide/driver, time passes by pretty quickly 🙂

Website: sanimountain.co.za

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16 thoughts on “Highest Pub in Africa

  1. I love quirky places like this full of the imprint of previous guests! Too bad the food didn’t live up to the kitsch. The skis outside are killing me! Too funny. Thanks for sharing with #FarawayFiles, Erin

    1. Me too! Yes, would have loved a tastier meal, considering it was a long day out with only two meal breaks. Could be I chose the wrong dish. Anyway, sometimes I tell myself food is food, and just eat what’s in front of me, even though it is not the best I’ve had.

  2. Love to read about these places that are remote. The skiis look pretty old – there must be a story there somewhere :). #farawayfiles

    1. I like remote, but stil accessible 🙂 Yes, was surprised to see the skis. They look like something you would find in Norway 🙂

    1. Wish I could tell you, but I don’t drink (much). And beer is definitely not on that short list 🙂

  3. I’m glad that the views made up for the food! How funny that they have skis on the walls but you can’t actually ski there. Great catch with the tour as well, although I don’t think that I’m a good enough conversationalist to be able to spend a whole day on my own private tour. #FarawayFiles

    1. Yes, glad I didn’t come for the pub/food only 🙂 Oh, I can talk 🙂 But I don’t feel uncomfortable with silence either. My guide was knowledgeable, so he had a lot of interesting things to tell.

  4. You had me a “highest pub in South Africa” haha Definitely made a note of this! #FarawayFiles

    1. A curiosity, but going up the Sani Pass (South Africa) and cross into Lesotho (the pub) is a really nice day out!

  5. I went pony trekking Lesotho about 30 years ago! Oh what memories – it was freezing but what a fantastic experience! We didn’t make it to the highest pub – I don’t think so anyway! #farawayfiles

  6. Oooh, I visited there too a couple of years ago. Had a rather good lunch, too. The views I will never forget!!
    #FarawayFiles

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