Day 1: Johannesburg
Please book your international flight into
Johannesburg to arrive in the morning in order to be able to join the tour of
Soweto and Johannesburg in the afternoon. If this is not possible, we can book
an additional night in Johannesburg for you. One of our representatives will
meet you at the airport. Depending on the time of your arrival, you may have
time to go check into your guesthouse first.
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| Neslon Mandela bridge, Johannesburg |
The tour includes a panoramic view of the city, a drive within the business district, visit to traditional African shops, the bohemian Hillbrow and the cultural district of Johannesburg. From here you explore the Apartheid Museum and the township of Soweto! A sprawling, self-sufficient home to millions, Soweto grapples with democratic change, but its spirit resonates in a plethora of shebeens.
The tour takes you past the
Barragwaneth Hospital, the biggest hospital in the Southern Hemisphere, the
Hector Pietersen Monument, the Regina Mundi Church, Kliptown and Vilakazi
street, the only street in the world where 2 Nobel Peace Prize winners used to
live!
A 3 course set menu dinner is served at the
guesthouse.
(Dinner included)
Day 2: Gauteng – Kruger Park
We depart from Johannesburg
between 06h30 – 08h00 to allow for various collection points. Our route takes
us through the wide open spaces of the Highveld, down the escarpment and
through the scenic Lowveld area. We stop for lunch en-route (own expense) and
reach the Kruger National Park and Skukuza Rest Camp in the afternoon.
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| View from the top, Kruger National Park |
After we have settled in, we head out on our first game drive! We conduct all our game drives in specially adapted 4x4 open game drive vehicles to allow our guests the best possible vantage point. On our return, we have some time to visit the Park’s shop, go for a walk & just familiarising ourselves with our surroundings.
Dinner is a three course meal,
served al fresco at our private camp within Skukuza. Wine is served with dinner
but guests are welcome to bring along additional / alternative drinks which can
be purchased at the shop.
(Breakfast & Dinner
included)
Day 3: Full day in the Park
Safaris are all about early mornings, getting
out there and seeing animals! After an early wake-up call (the time varies
according to the seasons and park gate opening times) we have tea or coffee
& a snack. We then set off on the morning safari which will take
approximately 3-4 hours. Your guide has an intimate knowledge of the park,
which contributes a great deal towards brilliant sightings!
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| Skukuza camp, |
On returning to Skukuza, breakfast/brunch will be ready at our camp. You then have time to enjoy a swim, visit the Skukuza museum, catch up on some sleep, visit the park shop which includes African curios, general food items and drinks, take a walk around the camp, or simply relax at the viewing platform in front of the restaurant, which overlooks the Sabie River.
Skukuza is also a bird watcher’s paradise! Be sure to bring along
your binoculars!
After a siesta we set off on the
afternoon game drive. We conduct all our game drives in specially adapted 4x4
open game drive vehicles to allow our guests the best possible vantage point.
We share safari stories at the camp fire
under the stars after a scrumptious dinner served at our camp.
(Breakfast & Dinner included)
Day 4: Kruger Park to Swaziland
The
sun rises over our final day in the Kruger Park and we have one last chance to
find the animals that have eluded us thus far on an open vehicle game drive.
Breakfast is served on our return to camp and we leave the Kruger Park directly
after breakfast for the landlocked Kingdom of the Swazis.
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| Game viewing in Swaziland |
It is interesting to see the variation in landscape as we move into this more mountainous region. We stop for lunch somewhere en-route (own expense).
We spend the night in one of the Swaziland Royal National Parks, where all
the animals belong to the king. Your guide will prepare dinner under the stars
and the evening is spent sharing travel stories around the fire. Note that the
two parks we use have rather different characteristics. Please let us know if
you would prefer a wildlife only camp, or a combination between wildlife and a
Swazi Cultural experience.
(Breakfast and Dinner
included)
Day 5 & 6: Swaziland to
Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve
Today we have a later start! After breakfast
we depart for KwaZulu Natal through once more changing landscapes. We will stop
for lunch (own expense) en-route to the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve, made
famous for its breeding program of both black & white rhino, which brought
these magnificent creatures back from the brink of extinction!
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| Black Rhino @ Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve |
We spend the first afternoon in search of wildlife en-route to our camp, where your guide will prepare dinner for you to enjoy under the stars (weather permitting).
Day 6
is filled with wildlife! Besides the Big 5, you can also expect to see animals
like bush buck and nyala and the area is a bird watcher’s paradise!
After dinner you join a night drive conducted
by KZN Parks. A night drive gives guests the opportunity of possibly seeing
some of the nocturnal species out and about.
(Breakfast & Dinner included)
Day 7: Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game
Reserve to Umlalazi, via St Lucia
After a final game drive and breakfast, we
continue to South Africa’s first World Heritage Site, the iSimangaliso Wetland
Park!
Upon arrival in the village of St Lucia, we
join a 2 hour Hippo & Crocodile Boat Cruise on the St Lucia Estuary. Many
crocodiles, hippos and birds make the estuary their home and you will have
ample photographic opportunities.
After lunch at one of the restaurants in the
village (own expense), we continue south along the coast to Umlalazi, near
Mtunzini. Umlalazi Nature Reserve has the rare distinction of offering two
unique and unusual attractions: it is home to the Palmnut Vulture, which is one
of the rarest birds of prey in South Africa and also home to the fascinating
Raffia Palm Monument.
You spend the afternoon on the beach or doing one of the
self-guided walking trails.
We enjoy dinner under the stars.
(Breakfast & Dinner included)
Day 8: Umlalazi to Durban
After breakfast you will have time to go for
a walk along the beach or to enjoy a swim in the warm Indian Ocean. Then we
sadly have to leave this bio-diverse area. We still have one more chance for
game viewing from our closed, air conditioned tour vehicle as we leave the park
for Durban’s King Shaka airport. We will stop en-route to enjoy lunch (own
expense). We plan to arrive around 14h00. From here you fly to Cape Town.
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| King Shaka International Airport, Durban |
On arrival at the Cape Town airport you will be met by one of our representatives who will take you to your hotel, which is ideally situated at the V & A Waterfront. The Waterfront is almost a destination on its own and offers loads of entertainment, different restaurants and shopping. Robben Island tours as well as boat cruises also depart from here.
One of the highlights of visiting South Africa is
undoubtedly going up Table Mountain! Since the weather on the mountain can
change at the drop of a hat, you should visit the mountain immediately on
arrival in Cape Town if it is open. Tickets for the cable way are not included
in the price, since we cannot guarantee that you will be able to go up. These
tickets can be bought at the ticketing office at the mountain and the hotel
concierge can arrange a cab to take you there. The cable way return ticket price
is currently R225 – R250 per adult (see http://www.tablemountain.net/content/page/rates).
(Breakfast included)
Day 9: Cape Peninsula
Today you join an awe-inspiring tour of the Cape
Peninsula to the towering headland known as Cape Point. Magnificent beaches,
breath-taking views, historic and picturesque coastal villages are to be seen
along the way. The Cape Peninsula is one of the world’s most scenic areas and
stretches from the City centre to Cape Point.
We travel along the Atlantic Seaboard via Sea Point,
Clifton and Camps Bay, stopping at a Llandudno look-out point before continuing
to Hout Bay, a quaint village and fishing harbour with magnificent mountain
views and beach. Optional: Seal Island boat trip (seasonal, weather permitting)
(not included in cost).
On through Chapman’s Peak , one of the world’s most
breathtaking coastal drives, to Cape Point and the Good Hope Nature Reserve,
which has magnificent fynbos vegetation, birdlife, endemic antelope species and
zebra, historic lighthouses and shipwrecks. Cape Point is perceived to be the
meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
After lunch at a nearby restaurant (not included in
cost), we go on to historic Simon’s Town, a village with charming Victorian
architecture, a naval base and a large penguin colony at the beautiful Boulders
Beach. Boulders Penguin Colony (included in cost) is home to a growing colony
of the vulnerable African Penguin. Wooden walkways allow visitors to view the
penguins in their natural habitat and there is also a new information centre.
We then make our way to visit the well-known
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. The Garden is one of eight National Botanical
Gardens covering five of South Africa’s six different biomes. When
Kirstenbosch, the most famous of the gardens, was founded in 1913 to preserve
the country's unique flora, it was the first botanical garden in the world with
this ethos.
The garden is world-renowned for the beauty and diversity of the
Cape Flora it displays and for the magnificence of its setting against the
eastern slopes of Table Mountain
The tour ends at ± 17:30.You have the evening at
leisure to explore the city or visit the Waterfront again.
(Breakfast
included)
Day 10: Wine Route, Cape
Town
This morning you go on a tour
of the Wine Region. Depending on your onward flight details, you may need to
check out prior to the tour departing and will then be dropped off at CPT
Airport after the tour.
This delightful drive winds its
way to the heart of the Cape Winelands, through superb mountain ranges,
vineyards and Cape Dutch homesteads. With the sheer vastness of wine estates on
offer, we are truly spoilt for choice. Enjoy two wine tastings in this
historical and picturesque region.
Return to the bustle of city
life after an enthralling day in the countryside, arriving back at the hotels
at approximately 13:30.
(Breakfast included)
Single rates are
only applicable to people traveling with others, but requiring single
accommodation. Family rates are
available on request.
Notes:
Note that families with
children under the age of 6 may be required to book a private vehicle in the
Kruger Park.
We require a copy of each
passenger’s passport in order to book the flights.
Return flights from Cape
Town to Johannesburg and additional nights before the tour in Johannesburg,
during the tour in the Kruger Park and after the tour in Cape Town or other
areas can be booked at an additional charge.
Extensions to other
destinations such as the Garden Route, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and the
Okavango Delta in Botswana are also available on request.
Included:
·
Transport
for the duration of your safari
·
Pick
up and drop off in Johannesburg/Pretoria
·
Professional
drivers/guides (FGASA registered – Field Guides Association of Southern Africa)
·
Meals
as specified per itinerary
·
All
day game drives as specified in the itinerary
·
Hippo
& Crocodile Cruise on St Lucia Estuary
·
KZN
Parks’ night drive.
·
All
entry fees and daily conservation levies
·
Accommodation
in en-suite chalets
·
Bottled
water during game drives (excl. KZN Wildlife drives)
·
Wine
with dinners while on safari (excl JNB & CPT)
·
Return airport transfers in Cape Town
·
Accommodation at a 4 star hotel located within easy
walking distance of the V & A Waterfront in Cape Town.
·
Half day tour of the Wine region including 2
tastings
·
Full day tour of the Cape Peninsula, including park
entry fees
Excluded:
- Meals not specified in itinerary
- Guests are welcome to bring their own drinks to dinner in the Kruger, which can be purchased at the Parks’ shops
Optional
extra activities:
- Items of a personal nature
- Gratuities
- International flights, Travel and medical insurance, Visas if required - Please ensure that you have enough blank pages in your passport.
Notes:
- It is important to note that this is not a private safari and more than likely there will be other guests joining you on the safari.
- Please note that Hluhluwe-Imfolozi night drive times are subject to change and availability on the day. These drives are conducted by KZN PARKS, by one of their rangers and in one of their vehicles. There will most likely be other guests on this drive. Children under 3 years of age are not allowed on KZN Parks open game drive vehicles.
- All passport and visa requirements are the guests’ responsibility. Should your passport and visas not be in order, we will assist with arrangements in any way possible to allow you to join us again on our return to South Africa, but any such arrangements will be for your own account.
