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 176 cities. Friday mornings, no filler.
Looking beyond Johannesburg? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.