#1 CLOSEST OPTIONPZB
Pietermaritzburg Airport
Serves Pietermaritzburg · KwaZulu-Natal · ICAO FAPM
Straight-line distance
4 km
(3.6 km exact)
Passenger flights · check dates
KwaZulu-Natal-29.6168° S, 30.3928° E
Airports near Pietermaritzburg
Pietermaritzburg lies in the Msunduzi River basin of the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands along the N3 corridor, with Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB) located 4 km away by straight line. For most trips to Pietermaritzburg, PZB is the immediate commercial arrival point to check first.
#1 CLOSEST IN PASSENGER COMPARISON
Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB)
KwaZulu-NatalREVIEWED PASSENGER COMPARISON
Three closest passenger airports to Pietermaritzburg
Ordered by unrounded Haversine distance from the Pietermaritzburg reference coordinate (-29.6168° S, 30.3928° E) and displayed to the nearest integer kilometer.
#2 ALTERNATIVEDUR
King Shaka International Airport
Serves Durban · KwaZulu-Natal · ICAO FALE
Straight-line distance
70 km
(70.3 km exact)
Passenger flights · check dates
#3 ALTERNATIVERCB
Richards Bay Airport
Serves Richards Bay · KwaZulu-Natal · ICAO FARB
Straight-line distance
192 km
(191.6 km exact)
Passenger flights · check dates
Comparing PZB (4 km) with regional alternatives
Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB) is the local passenger airport for Pietermaritzburg, positioned 4 km in a straight line from the city’s mapped reference coordinate. Confirm live flights for your travel date before booking, as airline schedules at regional and domestic terminals vary by day of the week.
The second airport in the passenger comparison—King Shaka International Airport (DUR) at 70 km (67 km farther from Pietermaritzburg than PZB)—is still within regional driving range and is worth checking when a carrier or flight time is not available into PZB. By contrast, Richards Bay Airport (RCB) at 192 km serves a separate regional corridor much farther away.
Onward road connections and regional stops near Pietermaritzburg
Pietermaritzburg is the provincial capital of KwaZulu-Natal in the Msunduzi valley, linking Durban with the Midlands Meander, Howick, and the central Drakensberg along the N3 corridor.
For the onward drive between PZB and Pietermaritzburg, travellers typically use local Oribi roads to the municipal terminal or the N3 and N2 freeways down to King Shaka north of Durban. If your itinerary also covers nearby towns in the region, compare the airport distance profiles for Durban, Port Shepstone, Ladysmith.
GEOGRAPHIC REFERENCE
Pietermaritzburg, on the map
Distances on this page use one GeoNames reference point for Pietermaritzburg, rather than a wider municipal boundary or your accommodation address.
- Place name
- Pietermaritzburg
- Recorded aliases
- Maritzburg, Mokokotlofo, PZB, Petromaritzburgum
- Province
- KwaZulu-Natal (ZA-NL)
- GeoNames ID
- 965301
- Reference coordinates
- -29.6168° S, 30.3928° E
- Terrain elevation (DEM)
- 636 m
- Timezone
- Africa/Johannesburg
- Map link
- Open in Google Maps ↗
NEARBY DESTINATIONS
Compare related South African cities
Compare straight-line airport access for other South African towns and cities in our dataset.
PROVENANCE & VERIFICATION
Updated & sources
Dataset snapshot: 2026-11-06 · GeoNames record modified: 2026-11-06 · Editorial review: 2026-11-06
- GeoNames record 965301 — Pietermaritzburg ↗ (snapshot 2026-11-06)
- OurAirports — South Africa airport records ↗ (snapshot 2026-11-06)
- OurAirports — Pietermaritzburg Airport (FAPM) ↗ (closest passenger comparison airport record)
- Tourism KwaZulu-Natal — Official Destination Guide ↗ (regional tourism and destination reference for KwaZulu-Natal)
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons (Public domain) — Source file ↗