Cape Town is set for a major lift in international air access next year.
Emirates has announced that it will add a third daily flight between Dubai and Cape Town starting 1 July 2026, signalling renewed confidence in South Africa’s tourism and business travel demand.
The expansion comes as Cape Town International Airport continues to recover its long-haul network and attract increased airline capacity.
Emirates boosts capacity to Cape Town
The new service, operated by a Boeing 777, increases available seats on the route by more than 600 per day, Travel News reported.
This is one of the largest single-route capacity boosts Cape Town has seen in recent years and aligns with the city’s strong growth in visitor numbers from Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
The new flight will operate accordingly:
- Flight EK778 will leave Dubai at 10:25 and land in Cape Town at 18:05.
- The return flight, EK779, will depart Cape Town at 20:00 and arrive in Dubai at 07:25 the next morning.
The timing of the new evening departure offers an additional overnight option for travellers and improves access to Emirates’ extensive long-haul network. Passengers will gain smoother connections to major destinations in Asia and Europe, including Thailand, Indonesia, France, Switzerland, the Philippines, and China.
The move also reinforces Emirates’ long-standing presence in South Africa. The airline already operates multiple daily flights to Johannesburg and a daily service to Durban, making it one of the country’s largest international carriers by seat volume.
