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Accommodation
3 Night(s) | Cape Town | Protea Hotel President |
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1 Night(s) | Oudtshoorn | Queens Hotel |
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2 Night(s) | Knysna | Knysna Log Inn |
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1 Night(s) | Durban | Protea Umhlanga |
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1 Night(s) | Zululand | Protea St. Lucia |
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1 Night(s) | Swaziland | Lugogo Sun |
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2 Night(s) | Kruger National Park | Pretoriuskop Rest Camp |
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1 Night(s) | Pilgrim's Rest | Royal Hotel |
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1 Night(s) | Johannesburg | Protea Hotel Wanderers |
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ROUTE MAP
Click the thumbnail to view a map of this journey's routing
Please note that the number of nights in each location is denoted by the brown circle.
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Day: 1 - Sunday
Touch down at Cape Town International Airport, where you'll be met and transferred to your hotel. Spend the rest of the day exploring the city or famous waterfront and adjusting to the laid-back rhythms of the Mother City. Cape Town is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, strategically situated at the southwestern tip of Africa.
It has the reputation as being the most laid back city in the Southern Hemisphere with Capetonians adhering to "Africa time", somewhat slower than the average major city. This relaxed atmosphere is attributed to Table Mountain, known to be amongst the most spiritual places on earth. You only have to look up to see the quartzite granite cliffs towering over the city with a protective presence. The city is safer than most on any continent with a bustling street life of shops, cafes, market stalls and street artists. This vibrancy is set amongst historic buildings of old Cape Dutch and English architecture with the Castle of Good Hope dating back to 1666.
Protea Hotel President
Accommodation in a standard room for three nights, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 2 (B) - Monday
Escape to the beauty and tranquility of the Paarl, Franschhoek and Stellenbosch winelands. Our first stop is the Afrikaans Language Monument, perched on Paarl Rock, offering sweeping views of the surrounding area. Continue on to some well-known wine estates for some tastings before visiting the Huguenot Monument and Museum in Franschhoek where you'll discover the origins of this world-renowned wine-producing region. Enjoy lunch in one of the many fine restaurants in either Franschhoek or Stellenbosch. Don't miss the world-famous 19th century-style general dealer in Stellenbosch's Dorp Street – Oom Samie se Winkel.
Return to Cape Town this afternoon.
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Day: 3 (B) - Tuesday
Depart this morning on a full day tour of the Cape Peninsula. Find out first hand why it's called the Fairest Cape. Enjoy a leisurely walk in Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens in the morning or afternoon. Travel past Sea Point and Camps Bay, past the famous beaches of Clifton and Llandudno towards Hout Bay (Optional Seal Island Cruise – time permitting).
Drive along the Atlantic Seaboard before passing through Noordhoek and Scarborough. After a stop for lunch, continue to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. Ride the funicular (inclined railway) to the scenic viewing point at the meeting point of the Indian and Atlantic oceans. From here drive along the Indian Ocean coastline, where you'll visit the beautiful Boulders Beach and enjoy an opportunity to sit among the famous colony of Jackass Penguins that reside here. Afterwards enjoy a short stop at the naval port of Simon's Town.
Return to Cape Town late this afternoon.
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Day: 4 (B) - Wednesday
Depart by 7:30 a.m. and travel via the town of Montagu on ‘Route 62’ (South Africa’s version of the famous ‘Route 66’) to the pretty village of Barrydale where you will stop for tea (own account) at the Country Pumpkin Restaurant. Then you're off to Oudtshoorn, known as the ‘feather capital of the world’ thanks to its huge ostrich industry. After a fascinating tour of an ostrich farm, go underground to marvel at the icy formations in the Cango Caves, regarded for good reason as one of South Africa’s most spectacular natural wonders.
Queens Hotel or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for one night, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 5 (B) - Thursday
Drive via the spectacular Outeniqua Pass to the town of George before continuing on to Knysna aboard the beautiful nostalgic steam train, the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe. Upon arrival in Knysna spend the rest of the day discovering the joys of the town’s many art galleries, craft shops and coffee bars.
Knysna Log Inn
Accommodation in a standard room for two nights, inclusive of breakfast
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Day: 6 (B, L) - Friday
Cruise on the vast Knysna Lagoon and visit the spectacular Featherbed Nature Reserve. Enjoy an amazing view of the imposing sandstone 'Heads' which guard the sea entrance to Knysna's huge tidal lagoon, and the forests, marshes and pristine beaches surrounding it.
Spend the rest of your day at leisure.
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Day: 7 (B) - Saturday
Travel to Port Elizabeth via the glorious indigenous Tsitsikamma Forest and Storms River. Storms River is a tiny scattered hamlet with shady lanes situated outside the Tsitsikamma National Park. Close by is one of the best preserved forests in South Africa containing enormous trees including a 36 meter tall Yellowwood. If only passing through make sure you take a moment to stop at the bridge over the Storms River for magnificent views up and down the gorge. Arrive in Port Elizabeth later today, and board a mid-afternoon flight to Durban (not included).
Upon arrival, you will be met and transferred to your hotel.
Proteal Hotel Umhlanga or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for 1 night, inclusive of breakfast
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Day: 8 (B, L) - Sunday
Meet your tour guide this morning and depart on your escorted tour. Travel to the kingdom of the Zulus via the lush north coast of KwaZulu-Natal. Your first stop is a vibrant cultural village where Zulu residents carry out age-old manufacturing traditions including spear, shield, and clay pot-making, basket-weaving, intricate bead work and sangoma bone throwing. The cultural experience culminates in a vibrant display of Zulu dancing. Enjoy a traditional lunch, before traveling to St. Lucia, and checking in to your hotel.
Protea Hotel St. Lucia or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for one night, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 9 (B, L, D) - Monday
The day begins with a motor launch cruise amid the breathtaking wilderness of Lake St. Lucia, a World Heritage Site. Back on dry land, we drive past the traditional rural homesteads of Zululand and into the tiny Kingdom of Swaziland, a former British Protection Territory, now ruled by King Mswati III. Enjoy a visit to the Swazi Candle Factory, where waxy works of art beckon from groaning shelves. The small Kingdom of Swaziland borders South Africa and Mozambique. It is alive with culture, yet totally relaxed in an endearingly lazy way. It has all the makings of idyllic rural Africa, with friendly people, simple picturesque thatched villages, colorful crafts and everything (or nothing if you choose) to do. The vast tree plantations contrast starkly with small-time farming providing many with a subsistence living. The Royal Ezulwini Valley is where most monuments, museums, crafts and culture are to be found along with many hotels and guest houses. It is here that King Mswati III lives with his many wives and where each year he chooses another at the annual Reed Dance.
Arrive at the hotel in the late afternoon.
Lugogo Sun or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for one night, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 10 (B, D) - Tuesday
After breakfast and check out, visit the famous Ngwenya Glass Works to see master craftsmen fashion collectible figures and functional art out of molten glass. Depart Swaziland and travel to the World Famous Kruger National Park. We enter through its southern-most gate and head north to our camp in time for a welcome sundowner in the African bush. The Kruger National Park is one of the top wildlife parks in the world. It is home not only to the "Big Five", but to 507 bird species, 336 trees, 147 mammals, 114 reptiles, 49 fish and 34 amphibian species. The density of game in the park is startling and though you will find an even distribution along the park, certain animals do seem to prefer specific regions.
Pretoriuskop Rest Camp or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for two nights, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 11 (B) - Wednesday
Depart early this morning. We set off before breakfast in open safari vehicles in search of lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino and leopard, and all manners of wondrous wildlife, birds and plants besides. Savor the magic of this enormous wilderness. Game viewing at Kruger National Park has been described as a 'spine-tingling experience'. Watch in absolute awe and wonder as the Lion stalks its prey, or at the Cheetah chasing fleeing antelope at breathtaking speed. You might come across the Park's big and tall, the gigantic and stately Elephant, and gaze at the dizzying height of Africa's tallest creature, the Giraffe.
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Day: 12 (B, D) - Thursday
Explore living history in the form of Pilgrim's Rest, the old mining village where gold was first discovered. Gasp at the glory that is God's Window, a boundless view of forested mountains and fertile plains, and view the spectacular Blyde River Canyon, one of the natural wonders of Africa. We spend the night in Pilgrim's Rest. This town born during the excitement of an alluvial gold rush has been declared a National Monument.
Royal Hotel or similar.
Accommodation in a standard room for one night.
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Day: 13 (B, L) - Friday
We leave Mpumalanga rising several hundred feet into the Highveld en route to Pretoria, South Africa’s capital city. After lunch, we proceed on a tour of the capital, tracing South Africa’s extraordinary history with visits to Kruger Museum and the Voortrekker Monument. Arrive in Johannesburg in the late afternoon.
Protea Hotel Wanderers or similar
Accommodation in a standard room for one night, inclusive of breakfast.
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Day: 14 (B) - Saturday
This morning enjoy some time at leisure. We recommend an optional tour of Soweto – an acronym for SouthWestern Townships. We take you through the streets of the sprawling township, scene of the tragic riots of 1976. Despite crowded, chaotic conditions, there's a tangible sense of community in these neighborhoods, which the ordered, walled suburbs lack. Few who venture into this 'other' Johannesburg are unmoved by what they witness. Later this afternoon, you are transferred to Johannesburg International Airport, to check in for your flight home (not included).
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END OF ARRANGEMENTS
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