Fly into the Garden Route today and you’ll land in George, whether you like it or not.
Plettenberg Bay’s airport has not had a single scheduled commercial flight for more than two years, and George — small and efficient but squeezed by limited competition and few direct routes — is the only real way in and out by air for one of South Africa’s premier tourism destinations.
That’s about to change, at least for one of the two. Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) has earmarked R310m for a major upgrade of George Airport, while 60km along the coast, Plett’s runway lies idle, waiting on a municipality that can’t seem to close a deal.
George Airport is served by three airlines. FlySafair flies to Cape Town, Joburg (OR Tambo) and Lanseria, Airlink connects to Cape Town and Joburg, and CemAir offers the only direct links to Durban, Bloemfontein and Hoedspruit, alongside regular Joburg flights. That makes George the Garden Route’s principal commercial aviation gateway — and it’s a gateway under strain.
The airport was designed to handle about 900,000 passengers a year. In 2025 it handled more than 911,000 two-way passengers, an 11% increase on 2024, with nearly 96,000 passengers passing through in December alone. It is, in other words, already over capacity.
“Passenger growth at the airport has been strong over recent years, driven by growing tourism, business travel and population growth in the Garden Route area,” says Matome Ramokgobedi, acting group executive manager of operations at Acsa.
The planned upgrade will more than double that capacity, to around 2-million passengers a year by October 2030. Construction is due to start in the next few months and will proceed in phases, with flights continuing to operate throughout. The improvements include an expanded public concourse, larger check-in and security screening areas, enhanced retail facilities, an additional commercial lounge, a bigger departure holding lounge, a dedicated food court, a public viewing deck and improved parking.
One thing won’t change: George’s status. Acsa says the airport will not be upgraded to international status. “This is a national policy matter and falls outside Acsa’s jurisdiction,” Ramokgobedi says, though he adds that Acsa will be engaging with South African airlines to explore new routes and partners.
For now, that leaves gaps. Flights to Joburg and Cape Town remain limited, and Durban can only be reached via a connection — or via CemAir’s pricier direct service. Travellers booking well ahead can sometimes find one-way fares of around R3,000, but R5,000 one-way is common closer to departure or on busy dates, with returns typically running at R5,500-R8,000. CemAir owner Miles van der Molen says the airline plans to increase the frequency of its George-Bloemfontein and George-Durban routes, aiming for daily flights within the next 12 months.
Plettenberg Bay Airport is a different story. Commercial services were suspended in July 2024 after the South African Civil Aviation Authority downgraded the airport over runway deficiencies. It now operates under a category 2 aerodrome licence, which permits private aircraft, charter flights, business aviation, flight training and emergency services — but no scheduled commercial flights.
Van der Molen, who has all but given up on Plett for now, says CemAir repeatedly tried to help. “We offered to lease the airport, buy the airport, invest in the airport at various stages [over years], but seldom received even an acknowledgement of receipt,” he says. “It’s now more than two years since we were forced to stop flights, and the condition of the airport has only worsened.”
He lays the blame on Bitou municipality, which controls the airport and, in his view, overestimates its commercial potential. “The municipality remains in control and is of the view that the airport represents an enormous commercial opportunity, which is a view we do not share. Small airports, while being an asset to the community, are not profit-making in their own right.” He also points to high turnover in key municipal positions as a further obstacle to progress.
Bitou municipality says restoring commercial flights is a priority and has re-advertised a 30-year lease tender to attract an investor to develop and operate the airport. Beyond that, though, there’s little to report: the municipality did not respond to requests for comment, and calls went unanswered. Plett Airport manager Esmaralda Barnes says she is not permitted to speak to the media.
Plett Tourism acting CEO Cindy Wilson-Trollip calls the airport a “critical tourism asset that strengthens the local economy by improving access to the destination for leisure, business and investment travellers”. Her message to the municipality is direct: “We call on the leadership at Bitou and the councillors who are responsible for the successful management of the town to get the airport opened for the benefit of all the residents of Plett — and the Garden Route.”
For now, George — 115km from Plett — is the only real option, and that distance has consequences. One architect, well known for designing homes for clients in South Africa and abroad, had based his business in Plett for several years. Limited air connectivity ultimately drove him to move back to a major city. He says he and his family had loved living in Plett, but the combination of an unreliable local airport and George’s limited flight options made frequent business travel — across the country and overseas — increasingly difficult and expensive. “We simply reached the point where the time and uncertainty involved in getting to and from the Garden Route were no longer practical for running a business that depends on regular travel,” he said.
George is getting its makeover. Plett is still waiting for someone to answer the phone.
