Safari Holidays to South Africa and Namibia for independent travellers.
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0800 981 420
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Kruger, the Garden Route and Cape Town
Safari in Kruger followed by Garden Route & Cape Town
Summary of the Route
This route starts with an unforgettable safari and continues along South Africa's popular Garden Route coastline to the Cape Winelands and ends in Cape Town.
You will start by flying into Johannesburg where you can connect with an internal flight to the Kruger area, allowing you to spend your first night in Africa on safari. After your safari, fly down to Port Elizabeth where you will begin the scenic and varied journey along the Garden Route towards Cape Town, before flying home from Cape Town.
A big influence on the cost of your trip will be the time of year you choose to travel: May to September is low season and whilst these are the cooler, wetter 'winter' months around Cape Town and the Garden Route, it is an excellent time to go on safari near Kruger -
especially as most lodges offer a 'Low Winter Season' rate, and the prices can drop quite dramatically.
For more information on the climate and seasons, click here.
Please note: Kruger is a malarial area - for malaria-free safaris see here.
On Safari in a Private Game Reserve (3 days)
On arrival at Johannesburg you will connect with a flight to the Kruger area. Depending on the safari lodge you choose, you would need to fly into one of the 2 airports which service the safari lodges of the Greater Kruger Park - either the Kruger Mpumalanga / Nelspruit Airport (MQP) or Hoedspruit Airport (HDS). We can arrange for you to be met from your flight and transferred by road to the game reserve.
The safari lodges in the private game reserves which make up the Greater Kruger Park area offer possibly the best Big 5 game viewing opportunities to be found on the continent, and provide a truly unforgettable wildlife experience, with regular sightings of lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and buffalo.
Aside from the excellent standard of accommodation, food, and service in the lodges, the main attraction for wildlife enthusiasts is that the guides and trackers who take guests out on their morning and evening game drives are permitted to take their vehicles off-road in order to get closer to the wildlife.
If you want to get within a couple of metres of lions or leopards in the wild, then these are the places to stay - and you can be certain that your safari will be utterly magical.
Private safari lodges range in price - anything from R1,400 per person per night to over R5,000 per person per night. These rates are fully inclusive of all meals and guided game drives, and the more expensive lodges include extras such as drinks, laundry, etc.
At the end of your safari we will arrange a transfer back to the airport, where you can then catch a flight down to Port Elizabeth (PLZ) via Johannesburg.
Suggested Accommodation :
Top : Singita Ebony Lodge, Lion Sands Ivory Lodge, Sabi Sabi Earth Lodge, Ulusaba Safari Lodge
Mid : Notten's, Inyati, Tanda Tula, Motswari Game Lodge
Budget : Gomo Gomo, Elephant Plains, Arathusa, Nkorho
Port Elizabeth (1 day)
Claiming to have the best climate and more sunshine than any other coastal resort in the country, Port Elizabeth is a popular holiday destination, and renowned for its long sandy beaches.
Suggested Accommodation :
Top : The Windermere, Hacklewood Hill
Middle : The Beach Hotel
Budget : Brighton Lodge
Along the Garden Route (4 days staying in one or 2 different places)
Beautiful coastlines, breathtaking mountains and valleys, tall forests, deep blue lakes and lagoons - these are the reasons why the Garden Route is one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Africa.
There are a huge number of activities to enjoy along the Garden Route - whale watching in season from the cliffs at Plettenberg Bay, hiking in the Knysna Forest or Tsitsikamma National Park, watersports, fishing, horse riding, ostrich farms at Oudtshoorn, mountain biking, long beach strolls along the beautiful Wilderness beach, golf, boat trips on the Knysna Lagoon, shopping for arts and crafts - even bungee jumping from the highest bridge in Africa!
Suggested Accommodation :
Top : Tsala Treetop Lodge, Phantom Forest, The Plettenberg
Mid : Hog Hollow, Hunter's Country House, Periwinkle Guest Lodge
Budget : Cunningham's Island Guest House, Bradach Manor, Dolphin Dunes
The Cape Winelands (2 days)
The Cape Winelands are only a short drive from Cape Town, and staying in the university town of Stellenbosch or beautiful village of Franschhoek allows you to enjoy the scenery, wines, and foods of this charming region.
Stellenbosch is South Africa's second oldest settlement (after Cape Town) and is a pretty university town, with whitewashed Cape Dutch architecture along oak-lined avenues set around a pleasant green. There is an excellent wine museum in the town, and the walking tour is also highly recommended.
Franschhoek has earned itself the title of ‘Food and Wine Capital of South Africa’, and quite rightly so. In the village itself, there are many award winning restaurants, and many of the surrounding vineyards also offer excellent lunches as well as wine tasting.
Suggested Accommodation :
Top : Mont Rochelle, Franschhoek Country House, Le Quartier Francais
Mid : Le Franschhoek, d'Ouwe Werf
Budget : La Fontaine, Residence Klein Oliphants Hoek
Cape Town (5 days)
Cape Town is one of the world's most beautiful cities - with a magnificent mountain as its centre, miles of sandy beaches, a colourful and moving history, and countless bars and restaurants, Cape Town captures the hearts of visitors from around the world.
A stay of 5 days allows time to see all the major attractions in the city (Table Mountain, Robben Island, township tour, Camps Bay, V&A Waterfront, Kirstenbosch Gardens, numerous museums and galleries) as well as allowing enough time to travel down to the Cape Peninsula and just relax and enjoy this fabulous city.
Suggested Accommodation in Cape Town :
Top : Cape Grace, Table Bay Hotel, Mount Nelson
Mid : The Cullinan, V&A Hotel, Ezard House
Budget : Table Mountain Lodge, Diamond House, Oceana Luxury Suites & Spa
Suggested 2 Night 'Add On' - During the July to November whale watching season many visitors will either take a day trip from Cape Town to join one of the whale watching boat trips from nearby Hermanus, or include a couple of nights in Hermanus on their way to the Garden Route.
Suggested Accommodation for 2 night Hermanus 'add on' :
Top : The Marine, Birkenhead House, Grootbos
Mid : Blue Gum, Ocean Eleven Guest House
Budget : Mulligans .
Getting Home
Cape Town Airport is only 30 minutes from the city center, and as most flights to Europe and North America leave in the late afternoon or evening this means that you will have time for some last minute shopping before heading back to the airport for your flight home.
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