Johannesburg
You're flying out of Johannesburg Airport, you have 90 minutes to kill, and you'd like to do better than a Pret. Good news: airport drinking has improved more in the last five years than the previous fifty. Pre-flight drinks at Johannesburg Airport range from chain reliability to surprisingly polished hotel-style bars in the airport hotels. This is barsforKings's editor-curated guide to drinking better at Johannesburg's airports.
Maboneng · $$
&Union Beer Salon draws a steady local crowd in Maboneng. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
City centre · $$$
Blind Tiger is the Parkhurst speakeasy hidden behind a bookshelf inside a coffee shop — push the right book, the shelf swings open, into a dim 45-seat 1920s-the
Linden · $$
Craft Beer Pub draws a steady local crowd in Linden. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
City centre · $$
Croft & Co opened quietly on 4th Avenue about four years ago, and Parkhurst's discerning regulars found it almost immediately. The bar seats 40 across a lon
Want a real drink before flying? The fastest play is to get to airport hotels next door — most run polished bars that beat anything post-security. We list them at the bottom. If you've got 60 spare minutes pre-airport, see our shortlist of bars in Johannesburg proper at the end.
Plays for Johannesburg Airport: post-security, pre-security, lounges, and the airport-hotel cheat code.
Pre-flight drinks, hotel-bar reviews, and the openings we're watching across 200+ cities. Friday mornings, no filler.
Looking beyond Johannesburg? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.