What is the sea-freight transit time from China to major African ports?
Transit time from Chinese ports ranges from 25-32 days to Durban, ~35-42 days to Lagos and Luanda, ~28-35 days to Mombasa and Dar es Salaam, and ~38-45 days to West African ports like Abidjan and Tema.
Indicative sailing times from Shanghai / Ningbo / Qingdao (main export ports for steel and construction materials):
| Destination port | Country | Typical transit (days) |
|---|---|---|
| Durban | South Africa | 25-32 |
| Cape Town | South Africa | 28-35 |
| Walvis Bay | Namibia | 30-37 |
| Maputo | Mozambique | 28-35 |
| Beira | Mozambique | 30-37 |
| Dar es Salaam | Tanzania | 28-35 |
| Mombasa | Kenya | 28-35 |
| Djibouti | Djibouti | 25-32 |
| Port Sudan | Sudan | 28-35 |
| Luanda | Angola | 35-42 |
| Pointe-Noire | Congo | 35-42 |
| Douala | Cameroon | 38-45 |
| Lagos / Apapa / Tin Can | Nigeria | 35-42 |
| Cotonou | Benin | 38-45 |
| Lomé | Togo | 38-45 |
| Tema / Takoradi | Ghana | 38-45 |
| Abidjan / San Pedro | Côte d'Ivoire | 38-45 |
| Dakar | Senegal | 38-48 |
| Casablanca / Tanger Med | Morocco | 30-38 |
| Alexandria / Damietta | Egypt | 22-28 |
| Jebel Ali | UAE | 18-24 |
| Dammam | Saudi Arabia | 20-26 |
**Factors that extend transit:**
- Transhipment (most West African and East African ports involve a transhipment via Singapore, Tanger Med, or Jebel Ali)
- Red Sea / Bab-el-Mandeb disruptions force routing via Cape of Good Hope (add 10-14 days)
- Chinese New Year and Golden Week reduce sailings; bookings made just before these periods may push to the next vessel
For full destination details see [Logistics: Africa & Middle East](/logistics/africa-middle-east).