Welcome to Southern Africa! This itinerary incorporates all that Southern Africa has to offer. Get up close to the wildlife at the National Parks in South Africa, Botswana and Zambia, see the great Victoria Falls, visit the sites in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and enjoy the outstanding views this region has to offer. All of this is waiting for you to enjoy.

This morning you will be gathered from Fairlawns at approximately 10h00 to visit the Apartheid Museum.    A team of curators, filmmakers,  historians,  museologists and designers was assembled to develop this extraordinarily important museum.

It is a leading tourist attraction, with large photographs, metal cages, artifacts, newspaper clippings, film footage and numerous monitors displaying emotional  Apartheid scenes and narratives.  Your guide will accompany you on your walk through the various exhibits, or you are welcome to experience the Museum on your own.

Following the visit, you will head to Nelson Mandela Square where you can enjoy some lunch (own account). Then depart for Soweto for the 15h00 Bike Tour, which is approximately 2 hours.

Experience this exciting and eco-friendly tour for a  half day cycling adventure  around the township and get to know the different communities and its history.  Go to  places such as a  former migrant  workers hostel  for men  –  continue to Meadowlands, famous for the forced removals from Sophiatown in the 1950’s. Cycle through historical landmarks of 1976 student uprisings  and visit  the memorial  site of  Hector  Pieterson.

You will  also cycle  down  Vilakazi  Street where  Nelson Mandela used to live and where Bishop Desmond  Tutu has  his home.  Finish the tour off at the local shebeen, have a drink, play pool and dance to kwaito music.

This morning you will fly to Botswana.

Welcome to Botswana! Botswana is a landlocked country,  bordered by  Zambia and Zimbabwe to the northeast,  Namibia to the north and west, and  South  Africa to the south and east.

Botswana has placed great emphasis on its deliberate  ‘high price –low impact’ policy to successfully preserve its fragile eco-systems and plentiful wildlife. It makes the country a highly sought after, truly African wildlife experience, living up to its status as the ‘Gem of Africa’.

There are an incredible variety of great National Parks to visit, the most popular being the Moremi Wildlife Reserve and the Okavango  Delta,  which is the world’s  largest inland delta,  a  seasonal wetland of channels,  palm-lined islands, and wide grassy floodplains, visible from outer space. The Chobe National Park is to the north of the country and is home to the largest elephant herds in the world.

Located in the heart of  Moremi  Game  Reserve, which lies within the  Okavango  Delta in northern  Botswana,  is one of the original, authentic bush camps,  Xakanaxa  Camp.  This will be your home for the next 3 nights. Its idyllic location on the banks of the  Khwai  River overlooking the Xakanaxa Lagoon ensures it is one of the few camps to provide guests with a year-round land and water game viewing experience.

Activities offered at  Xakanaxa include game drives in open 4  x  4  vehicles and short water game viewing excursions in mokoros in conjunction with a longer powerboat exploration. Included in your stay are two scheduled safari activities daily, and the associated park fees. Below are descriptions of the parks you will visit.

The Chobe National Park boasts four distinctly different ecosystems: Serondela with its lush plains and dense forests in the Chobe River area to the northeast, the Savute Marsh in the west and the Linyanti Swamps in the northwest, with the hot, dry hinterland in between.

The  Makgadikgadi  Pans  National  Park is situated between  Maun and  Nata,  in northern  Botswana. These great thirstlands cover some 4,900 square kilometers of lifeless land which transforms when the rains come in mid-November. They retain their water into April or May, attracting a spectacular array of water birds and stimulating dramatic migrations of wildebeest and zebra.

The Central Kalahari Game Reserve situated in the center of Botswana.    This reserve characterized by vast open plains, saltpans, ancient riverbeds and the world renowned Deception Valley. The Basarwa or San Bushmen have been resident in this region for thousands of years, surviving in a climate of sporadic rainfall, varying from 170 to 700 ml per annum.

Welcome to Livingstone!

The completion of the Victoria Falls bridge gave birth to the city of Livingstone in 1905. The town prospered as the gateway to trade between the north and south sides of the Zambezi. Some colonial buildings were erected, which still stand today, creating an atmospheric welcome to travelers using Livingstone as an entry point to explore this beautiful region.

For the next 2 nights, you will be staying at the privately owned and run, Tongabezi. It is a luxury lodge on the banks of the Zambezi River just upstream from the Victoria Falls in Zambia.  Beautifully located on a gentle sweeping bend in wild riverfront bush,  Tongabezi has superb river views, birdlife, pods of hippos and is an exclusive hideaway.

Tongabezi provides a variety of activities from a  visit to Victoria  Falls (one per stay), island lunches, Sanpan floating candle e-lit dinners and canoeing on the Zambezi, to sunrise and sunset boating, game drives, guided bush walks, fishing, and a Simonga Village excursion.

Be sure to visit and experience the Victoria Falls by foot or by air. Catch up on the local history at the Livingstone Museum as well as the Railway Museum, shop at the large craft markets, get active with white water rafting, sports fishing, and kayaking, or relax and enjoy unforgettable African sunsets on a river cruise.

The Sabi Sand Reserve is a 65 000 hectare reserve, pioneered by the landowners in the 1950’s, when the internal fences were dropped and a shared environmental management programme was put in place. Today, many of these families are now third and fourth generation land owners, their legacy being the successful conservation of the highest density of big game in South Africa.

Even though there is a 50km unfenced boundary with the Kruger National Park, the game in the Sabi Sand Reserve is well habituated resulting in unforgettable close encounters and prolific sightings, particularly of the elusive leopard. The Sabi and the Sand Rivers run through the reserve, which add further dimension to the bio-diversity of this area.

For the next 3 nights, you will be staying at the Exeter River Lodge. It is situated on the Exeter Private Game Reserve, which is in the secluded western corner of the Sabi Sands Game Reserve.  The lodge is set on the banks of the perennial  Sand and  Mabrak  Rivers.  Lazy lunches  are enjoyed  under a  huge  Sausage tree, and  sumptuous dinners  coupled with  a selection of fine South African wines are served in the dining room or the fire-lit open-air boma. Full sliding doors open out to softly shaped wooden viewing decks in line with the river’s edge, leading to private plunge pools.

Be pampered at the wellness center, with its unique open-air gym and enjoy the wonders of the African bush in open safari vehicles or walking safaris.

Welcome to Cape Town!

The old and established suburbs of Gardens, Oranjezicht, and Tamboerskloof merge into each other as they line the foothills of Table Mountain and Signal Hill. The area enjoys convenient proximity to the city, the Table Mountain Cableway, as well as the beaches.  The narrow little streets lined with  original Cape buildings, many of which had been beautifully restored, some now housing museums and art galleries, as well as lively sidewalk cafés and highly acclaimed restaurants.

Now known for its trendy and modern vibe, this region is often visited on foot, encompassing the historic parliament buildings, the Company Gardens and the lively café culture and boutiques of Kloof Street.

Kensington Place is an exclusive and “off the wall” boutique hotel, set on the slopes of Table Mountain, in the vibrant suburb of  Higgovale.

Enjoy the warm hospitality, relaxing in the garden, outdoor dining by the pool, exploring the wide variety of restaurants and cafés in the area or making use of the complimentary gym membership. Value Adds: Free Gym membership at nearby Virgin Active. Welcome drink on arrival Bottle of wine in room

Today you will explore the city of Cape Town, known affectionately as the Mother City. Your tour will take in the Houses of Parliament, the Castle (built between 1666 and 1679, this is South Africa’s oldest building), the lively Greenmarket Square with its daily market, the Company Gardens, and of course Table Mountain, which will give you spectacular views over the city and the Peninsula. The cable car  fee is  not included as it is weather dependent.

As you come back down from the mountain,  make a  stop at  Bo-Kaap,  home to the  Cape Malay community, with its cobbled streets and brightly colored houses. From here you have the choice of being dropped off at the Waterfront to experience this vibrant location at your pace, with its many shops, restaurants, and pubs  – or at your hotel to end the tour.

Today you embark on a full-day tour of the Cape Peninsula. Take in the beaches of Clifton and Camps Bay, before crossing over to Hout Bay, where you may choose to join an optional boat cruise to Seal Island.

From here you drive to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve via Chapman’s Peak, one of the world’s most breathtaking coastal drives, where you will board a funicular to get to the top of the Peninsula to witness the symbolic meeting of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans and enjoy spectacular views over False Bay.

In the afternoon, you will continue to Simonstown, the naval base, and visit the African Penguin breeding colony at Boulders Beach. Then stop at the world-renowned Kirstenbosch Gardens before arriving at your hotel for overnight.

Welcome to Little Karoo!

The wide open spaces of the Little Karoo region are spread along the famed Route 62. Stretching approximately 200km from Cape Town, this area fringes the great expanses of the Great Karoo and characterized by incredible rock formations and passes, fertile valleys and small country towns – all framed by the distant Langeberg mountains. Some of the charming country towns that make up this region include Bonnievale, Swellendam, Montagu, Barrydale, and Calitzdorp – many with excellent examples of the simple Little Karoo farm architecture and all with a common feature: the tall spire of the Dutch Reformed Church, which is the center of life here.

To this day, these communities are dependent on the agriculture of fruit, vineyards, dairy and sheep and the landscape is known for its wide range of foliage, from an Afro-montane forest and delicate fynbos to Karoo scrub and a great variety of succulent plants. There are also many well-established wine estates on the route, with sweeter grapes are grown the further east one travels, giving rise to port and muscadels.

Tonight you will be staying at Schoone Oordt. It is a Country House situated between Cape Town and the Garden Route in the picturesque farming town of Swellendam.  This much  photographed double  volume  Georgian landmark is set  on over  5000  square metres  of lush, manicured grounds. Enjoy great relaxing strolls around the manicured lawns, secret woodland glades and the vegetable/herb gardens. The tranquil fountains and rose garden will help you unwind and laze on a shaded deckchair beside the fresh saltwater swimming pool.

Welcome to Knysna!

The word Knysna comes from the Khoi-San language, and it is thought that the name refers to the Knysna heads, which guard the entrance from the lagoon to the Indian Ocean and which are perhaps the most famous feature of this naturally beautiful town. The British-born entrepreneur, Sir George Rex, founded Knysna in 1804, a gold nugget was found in 1876 and alluvial gold was found in  1885,  but even through the mini gold rush, Knysna’s  most important industries have been made up of generations of woodworkers and fishermen.

Situated at the heart of the Garden Route, the town is established on the shores of an estuary and lush indigenous forests surround it,  making  Knysna  a  wilderness  of  beaches,  lakes,  mountains,  forests  and rivers  where  the  endangered Knysna  seahorse, the famous  Knysna turaco, the endangered  dwarf chameleon, the  Brenton  Blue Butterfly and the  highly elusive Forest Elephant can be found.

The town itself is a vibrant mix of artists and craftsmen, as well as waterfront restaurants, making it one of the most appealing cities in the country.

For the next 3 nights you will be staying at Kanonkop  House. It is  situated on  the apex  of  Kanonkop  Hill; with elevated views over  Knysna and  the lagoon.  Comfy sitting areas open out via cottage pain sliding doors, to open wooden decks overlooking the lagoon.

Fill your days with all the excitement of this beautiful region. Relax beside the well-sized swimming pool, which  surrounded by wide  wooden decking and shaded loungers,  or explore the nearby indigenous forest,  which attracts wildlife and an abundance of birds.