Jet lag and altitude - in the case of the high veldt venues - often proved as much of an obstacle as the teams themselves.
But those factors have less of an impact now.
Experience has proved vital in preparing properly and the Highlanders should be well and truly ready to go against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday morning.
``We're feeling pretty good, actually,'' assistant coach Mark Hammett said.
``Over 20 years of coming here the expertise and medical team have got us here pretty well.
``We're acclimatising quicker than we ever have.
``When we were doing it 20 years ago you'd sort of take a week before you were feeling right, but I think the guys are pretty close to it now.''
At 1339m above sea level, the visit to Pretoria also means altitude will be a factor.
However, Hammett said the players were used to adapting and the thinner air was just another layer to the overall task.
``Every game's a challenge physically and that just adds another level to it.
``A lot of the guys have done it.
``There's some new guys that are having their first visit to altitude, that it might be a wee bit more challenging.
``But I think we do it so often nowadays that we're pretty used to it.''
The match will be the first of three against South African opposition followed by the Sharks in Durban next week and the Lions in Dunedin following that.
With five of their seven games so far against New Zealand teams, the games are something of a step into the unknown.
That made it hard to judge the strength of the South African conference at the moment, Hammett said.
He felt the next three games would give a good indication of where it was at, but for now the focus was on the Bulls.
They were coming off three consecutive wins and had an attacking dimension not so prominent in past years.
``I think their set piece and where they try to get dominance is still just as evident as it ever was,'' he said.
``I think under [new coach John] Mitchell perhaps they're throwing the ball around a wee bit more and they've got more confidence to do that.
``So that just adds another layer to the danger, but we're confident we know what they're likely to bring.
``But it's going to be a huge challenge for us, particularly our forward pack.''