February 2017 - Planning a holiday abroad is an exciting prospect but can also be a bureaucratic nightmare for those on restricted passports.

The latest data on passport ranking reveals that there is some hope for South African travellers wanting to explore international frontiers without having to go through the painstaking process of applying for expensive visas.

South African travellers carrying an official passport have access to 59 countries visa-free.

According to the latest edition of the Arton Capital’s global ranking 'Passport Index', which ranks the passports from 219 countries according to the travel freedom that their citizens enjoy, South Africa's passport is ranked 48th in the top 50 most powerful passports in the world - with a total visa-free score of 94.

This impressive result means that South African travellers carrying an official passport have access to 64 countries visa-free for 90 days, with an additional 30 countries operating on the visa-on arrival or the Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) system.

(An eTA is an entry requirement for visa-exempt foreign nationals; the authorization is electronically linked to your passport).

To help you plan a stress-free international holiday, here is a handy guide to the countries that South Africans can travel to without a visa.