Allow me to intoduce you to one of the newest and exciting destinations in my portfolio - South Africa.
Whilst the direct flight time is 7 hours, the time zone is just 2 hours difference from the UK so jet lag will be non existent!
Johannesburg to Cape Town (incl Table Mountain ) * Multi Centre Trekking *
Drakensberg Mountains * Kruger National Park *
Coffee Bay * Big 5 Game * Max Group size 8
Johannesburg - Blyde River Canyon - Kruger National Park - Swaziland - St Lucia Wetlands Reserve - Drakensberg - Coffee Bay - Storms River Mouth - Cape Town
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Cape of Good Hope |
Male Lion |
Classic sunset |
Young elephant |
Knysna Trail |
Details
14 Apr - 3 May 08
5 - 24 May 08
20 Oct - 8 Nov 08
Price: £1,695
No of Days: 20 (UK - UK)
Min/Max Group Size: 4/8
Tour Begins: Johannesburg
Tour Ends: Cape Town
Includes: Guide/Tour Leader, 3 Meals per day, Transport and Accommodation along the entire route, selected cool drinks and snacks, scheduled activities, goodie bag, Airport pick up and drop off.
Excludes: International flights, travel insurance, items of a personal nature (snacks, drinks, souvenirs, curios etc), tips.
Note, UK Nationals do not require a visa for entry into SA. |
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This fantastic 20 day (UK - UK) all encompassing journey South African experience from Johannesburg to Cape Town has lots of trekking in the itinerary including the Kruger National Park and the famous Drakensberg Mountains. Guided throughout, I have deliberately kept the group sizes to between 4 and 8 to ensure that you get the maximum benefit from your time in the National Parks where there is Big Game involved.
Starting in Jo'burg, this trip initially heads north east and to the Kruger National Park, which borders Mozambique. Here you spend 3 days trekking on foot in search of the ‘Big 5' Game. Your trip also includes two night drives looking for the nocturnal mammals. We then transit south to Swaziland (it is the smallest country in the southern hemisphere!) and spend some time there before reaching the St Lucia Wetlands Reserve just off the Indian Ocean. Both are huge Parks that have numerous wild animals in them.
Next is the magnificent Drakensberg Mountains. We lodge here for 4 days, trekking daily deep into the best trekking area in SA. There are numerous opportunities to do some extra walking, horse riding (incl safaris), quad biking and even abseiling.
We then head for something completely different – Storms River Mouth. Right on the coast, it is time to spot the dolphins and whales as we spend 4 days exploring the coastline and making full use of the warm waters of the ocean.
Finally onto Cape Town, 2 days of the classic vineyards, Table Mountain and final shopping opportunities before heading to the airport for your journey home.
This is a superb trip, fully guided with all meals included and a good standard of accommodation. Far too many highlights but here's a few....Blyde River Canyon, trekking in the Kruger National Park, Big 5 Hiking Trails, Big 5 Game Drives, Swazi Cultural Village Tour, St Lucia Wetlands Reserve, trekking through the Drakensberg Mountains, trekking along the Garden Route coastline, Table Mountain, Cape of Good Hope, The British Castle and Robben Island Prison......keep breathing!
| Day 1 |
Depart UK |
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| Day 2 |
Arrive Johannesburg
Johannesburg to Blyde River Canyon
We travel down the escarpment to the Lowveld, whilst enjoying the magnificent views of the rivers, valleys and mountains of the surreal landscape. We overnight at Pilgrims Rest, a living monument established in 1873, where we will explore the surrounding area as well as the wonderful sites of Gods Window and the Mac-Mac falls. |
Scheduled Activities: Self Guided Hike
Optional Activities: Quad Biking, Horse back Safaris, Tree Top Tour |
| Day 3 - 6 |
Kruger National Park
We have 3 full days to enjoy the wonders of this amazing wildlife sanctuary, home to over 500 bird species and 140 mammals. We will spend our days trekking in areas where there are Big Game in abundance. The evenings will be spent around a warm fire, enjoying each others company and or on an evening game drive searching for the ever elusive nocturnal animals of the area. |
Scheduled Activities: Self Guided Game Drives, Guided Bush Hikes and 2 Night Drives
Optional Activities: Extra Guided Drives or Walks |
| Day 7 |
Swaziland : Mololotje Nature Reserve & Enzulwini Valley
Swaziland is one of only 3 monarchies in Africa, led by King Moswati III; they are a people proud of their cultures and heritage. The first night is spent in Mololotje Nature Reserve, were we will experience the true wildness of the area through a leisurely afternoon hike to all-inspiring Mololotje falls. The second day is spent in the Enzulwini valley meeting locals and experiencing local traditions at a Swazi cultural village. |
Scheduled Activities: Cultural Village Tour
Optional Activities: Self Guided trekking, Quad Biking, Horse back Safaris, Abseiling |
| Day 8 |
St Lucia Wetlands Reserve
An early start will ensure that we arrive in St Lucia with ample time to explore this magnificent world heritage site. We will hop onto the river barge for an afternoon cruise on the St. Lucia Wetland, providing us with a chance to view hippos, crocodiles and several endemic water bird species. |
Scheduled Activities: Self Guided trekking, Guided Boat Trip
Optional Activities: Community School Visit |
| Day 9- 12 |
Drakensberg
Today, we travel to the Drakensberg Mountain Range, this beautiful area named after the similarity between its undulating peaks and that of a Dragons back ( Draken is Dragon in Afrikaans, while Berg is Mountain). This area is known as a trekker's paradise with several trails along the slopes and ridges of the Mountain. We will spend our nights in the foothills of this awe-inspiring Mountain and benefit from 3 full days of guided trekking in the area. |
Scheduled Activities: 3 Guided Day treks
Optional Activities: Quad Biking, Horse back Safaris, Abseiling |
| Day 13 |
Coffee Bay
Back to the coast we travel, through Umtata – the home town of Nelson Mandela – where we will stop for a tour of the Nelson Mandela Museum . The wild coast is home to the Xhosa Tribe, their beautifully designed mud huts a conspicuous feature of the rolling hills in the area. Our day will be spent lazing on the beach or meeting Xhosa tribesmen while enjoying the hospitality of the locals. |
Scheduled Activities: Nelson Mandela Museum Tour
Optional Activities: None |
| Days 14 - 17 |
Storms River Mouth
We travel down to Storms River Mouth, were we will setup camp for 4 nights. Our Days will be spent exploring the scenic coastline of the area, catching glimpses of the bottle-nosed dolphins playing in the sea or the almighty Southern Right Whale cruising along to his arctic destination. Hikes often include dips into the ocean to enjoy the warm waters of the Indian Ocean , so it would be wise to bring along your swimming costume! |
Scheduled Activities: Day treks along the coast
Optional Activities: Shark Cage Diving, Tree Top Canopy Tours, Bungee Jumping, Bridge Swinging |
| Day 18 |
Cape Town
The penultimate day of our expedition will be spent in the Mother City of South Africa , Cape Town . We will travel through Franshoek where we will try out local delicacies, visit a wine farm (or 2?) to enjoy some local wines and explore the wonders of Cape Town . |
Scheduled Activities: Excursion to Franshoek and Wine Tasting
Optional Activities: Visits to local Night clubs and entertainment venues |
| Day 19 |
Final Day
We trek up Table Mountain to witness the spectacular views and reflect on our awesome journey. The rest of the day is spent at your own leisure where you can choose to visit Robben Island or either absorb the last few rays of African sunshine on a local beach or do some last minute curio shopping. The group is then dropped off at Cape Town International Airport . |
Scheduled Activities: Guided trek up Table Mountain , Visit to Robben Island Optional Activities: Shopping Excursion, Beach Excursion |
| Day 20 |
Arrive UK |
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Details
24 Apr - 3 May 08
8 - 17 May 08
23 Oct - 1 Nov 08
Price: £995
No of Days: 10
Min/Max Group Size: 4/8
Tour Begins/ends: Durban
Includes: Guide/Tour Leader, 3 Meals per day, Transport and Accommodation along the entire route, selected cool drinks and snacks, scheduled activities, goodie bag, Airport pick up and drop off.
Excludes: International flights, travel Insurance, items of a personal nature (snacks, drinks, souvenirs, curios etc), tips
Note, UK Nationals do not require a visa for entry into SA. |
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Drakensberg Mountains * Big 5 Game * Max Group size 8 *
* Kwa-Zulu Natal * 3 Bases
The Drakensberg Mountain region is considered by many to be the best trekking area in SA, after all it is a World Heritage Site. Access is very conveniently out of Durban on the southern coast.
Based out of lodges in two areas, we first head to the central part of the Drakensberg range to spend 5 full days trekking (day treks) in some superb terrain as well as getting the chance to see some of the Big 5 Game into the bargain. This really is a stunning area of natural beauty and not overly trekked either. There are numerous opportunities to do some extra walking, horse riding, quad biking and even abseiling.
After Drakensberg, it's off to Shaka Rock down by the Indian Ocean and time to relax in the warm waters. You spend two glorious evenings here enjoying the beaches and general quietness.
Finally, off to the capital of the Zulu Kingdom, Kwa-Zulu Natal. Entertainment galore here so you can spend your time as you wish prior to your flight back to the UK.
| Day 1 |
Depart UK |
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| Day 2 |
Arrive Durban
Durban to Drakensberg
We travel up to the Drakensberg Mountain Range taking in the beautiful landscapes and vistas. Along route, we will stop to view the Howick Falls and the Midmar Dam. Arriving in the Drakensberg in the afternoon, we will have enough time to go through our briefings before tucking into a scrumptious dinner under the African sky. |
Scheduled Activities: Visits to Howick Falls and Midmar Dam
Optional Activities: None |
| Days 3 - 7 |
Drakensberg Area
We have 5 full days to enjoy the wonders of this amazing wildlife sanctuary and World Heritage site. Many trekkers believe the “berg” to be the best trekking in southern Africa . We will spend our days trekking along the slopes of the “berg” on 5 scheduled full day trekking expeditions. This will give us a chance to view ancient rock art, amazing landscapes. Our tour will be based at 2 different Camps (central and southern regions), giving us a chance to view the full spectrum of this awe-inspiring area. The evenings will be spent around a warm fire, enjoying each others company in beautiful chalets on the foot slopes of the Drakensberg. |
Scheduled Activities: Daily Guided treks
Optional Activities: Extra Walks, Horse Back Safaris, Quad Biking, Abseiling |
| Days 8/9 |
Shaka Rock
After traveling through the land of 1000 hills (landscape beyond description and beauty), we will overnight at Shakas Rock for 2 splendid evenings, a sleepy Indian Ocean town. This will give us an opportunity to enjoy the beach and South Africa 's fantastic climate, while soothing aching legs and bodies in the warm Indian Ocean . |
Scheduled Activities: Zulu Cultural Tour
Optional Activities: Wide Variety of Beach and Sea Activities |
| Days 10/11 |
Durban
The last 2 days of our tour will be spent in the capital of Zulu Kingdom – Kwa-Zulu Natal. This relaxed metropolis has an extensive variety of activities and opportunities for the intrepid traveler. Here we will visit uShaka Marine and Entertainment World to get close and personal with big and scary of the underworld. Depart Durban |
Scheduled Activities: None
Optional Activities: To be announced |
| Day 12 |
Arrive UK |
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