11 Day Luxury Safari - South Africa

Day 01

Arrival in Cape Town

On arrival at the Cape Town International Airport, South Africa, you will make your way through customs and immigration, collect your luggage and be met by your driver who will transfer you to The Clarendon Bantry Bay, where you check in for (3) nights on a bed and breakfast basis.  The afternoon is yours to rest after your long flight or take a walk on one of the nearby beaches.

The Clarendon Bantry Bay is situated on the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.  The hotel has breathtaking views over the ocean and is only a stone’s throw away from some of Cape Town’s best beaches and the V&A Waterfront.  You will be staying in one of their superior suites on a bed and breakfast basis, furnished with all the amenities you would need, panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean, and 5-star service from the hotel staff

Day 02

Private Full-Day Excursion to the Cape Peninsula

After a good night’s rest and breakfast, your private guide will collect you for a full day’s adventure to explore the Cape Peninsula, including entry fees and a delightful picnic lunch.

The focus of today is to embrace the natural wonders and beauty that the Cape Peninsula offers. Your guide will assess your interests and energy and suggest what activities and destinations to aim for. Your day could include some or all of the following:

• The village of Kalk Bay and its antique shops & working harbour complete with fishing boats, seal gulls and colourful people.
• Visit the colony of African penguins and take a Stand Up Paddle, Kayak or Conservation Walk near Boulders Beach at the naval town of Simon’s Town
• Enjoy a walk in the exceptionally scenic Cape Point Nature Reserve along with a private picnic lunch with the possibility of seeing some of the local wildlife such as ostrich, baboons, mountain zebra, bontebok and tortoise.
• Drive the Chapmans Peak coastal road, easily one of the world’s most scenic coastal drives and visit the local Noordhoek Farm Village at the pass’s end.

Day 03

Full Day Excursion to the Cape Winelands

After breakfast, you will once again be collected by your guide who will discuss the exciting opportunities of the day ahead, which entails a visit to the picturesque Cape Winelands.

The day aims to expose you to the beauty, history and architecture of this wine-farming region that is responsible for many of the world’s finest wines. The day’s highlights can include:
• A visit to the small town of Stellenbosch, known for its Cape Dutch architecture, oak-lined avenues and vibrant student life on account of the Stellebosch University, and of course a wine tasting at one of the well-known estates
• A visit to the Oldenburg Vineyards, an award-winning vineyard just outside Stellenbosch surrounded by the craggy mountains that characterize the Winelands in South Africa
• We enjoy a fine dining lunch experience and then head to the charming town of Franschhoek which dates back to 1688 when it was established by the French Huguenots. We do some more tasting at one of the lesser-known family-owned wine farms, before having a chance to explore the tree-lined streets of the town centre known for its range of art galleries, boutique shops and fine restaurants
• The Huguenot Chocolate Shop is one such attraction at Franschhoek that often proves to be a strong diversion.
• Apart from the traditional wine tasting, we also do a barrel tasting … here you get to meet winemakers and gain a more unique insight into the process. In a barrel tasting you taste the wines that are still in the secondary fermentation which gives the winemaker (and you) an idea of what the wine will become
• A private guided walk through the Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden. Dylan Lewis’ work explores the male & female forms in nature and humans.

Day 04

Travel to Greater Kruger Park in the northeast part of South Africa

After your early breakfast, you will be transferred to the Airport to board your flight to Johannesburg. Here you connect with your flight to the Eastgate Airport in Hoedspruit, Limpopo. On arrival, you will be met and transferred to the Thornybush Game Reserve, where you will spend the next (3) nights on a fully inclusive basis at the Saseka Tented Camp.

At Saseka Tented Camp you will enjoy twice daily open vehicle safaris (locally known as game drives). After a late lunch, you will embark on your first safari. The safaris are punctuated with a ‘sundowner’ stop in the bush we you enjoy drinks & snacks, and after dark the drive continues as a night safari with a spotlight.

Day 05 – 06

On Safari at Saseka Tented Camp, Thornybush Game Reserve, South Africa

The Thornybush Reserve spans 12000 hectares and shares an open boundary with the Timbavati Nature Reserve & Kruger National Park. The area is classic safari country and home to the ‘big 5’ (lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo and elephant) among a rich diversity of other iconic African wildlife species like wild dog, cheetah, giraffe, zebra, kudu and the list goes on.

In between safaris in the middle of the day, you get to enjoy the luxury and serene surroundings of the camp. Don’t get misled by the word ‘tented’ in the name Saseka Tented Camp. Saseka has taken the tented experience to a new realm altogether. Equipped with air conditioning and full-length glass sliding doors, these spacious tented suites are more akin to some of the best hotel suites you can imagine. Each suite is secluded and private with its own plunge pool and a view that gazes over a treelined dry riverbed that game can often be seen from.

Day 07

Travel from Great Kruger Park to the Tswalu Kalahari, north-central South Africa

After an early morning safari and breakfast, you will be transferred to the airstrip where you head off on your Federal Air flight to OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg. From Johannesburg, you will board your next flight to Tswalu Kalahari Game Reserve. Here you will spend 4 nights at The Motse on a fully inclusive basis. You will arrive in time for mid-afternoon lunch before heading out with your private safari guide for a desert safari experience that most people don’t even know exists.

The Kalahari is a vast semi-desert (about. 900,000 sq km) spanning parts of Nambia, Botswana and South Africa. It’s big blue sky country and home to red sands, rugged mountains and vistas that reach as far as the eye can see. It’s a place that changes from a green wonderland in the summer months to a harsh, dry colour fest in the winter months, and home to many interesting (and sometimes rare) mammals including lion, cheetah, wild dog, pangolin, antbear and sable antelope.

Day 08 to 10

On Safari at Tswalu Kalahari

Your day at Tswalu is governed by both nature’s rhythms and your interests. Your guide will discuss what your options are and based on other factors will suggest what course to follow.

Your safari experiences can include:
• A private game drive on this vast tract of wilderness
• A guided nature walk experience
• A visit to a habituated meerkat colony where you get to witness these fascinating creatures up close as they get ready for the day’s foraging
• A visit to old Bushman rock engravings. The Bushmen are Southern Africa’s aboriginal people, that have a connection with nature transcending modern understanding.
• A visit to the local community projects
• A chance to get involved with conservation work that may be ongoing at the time of your visit

Day 11

Travel from Tswalu Kalahari to Johannesburg

After your early morning safari and breakfast, you will board your scheduled charter flight back to the OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, in time for your late afternoon/evening outbound flight back home.