16 DAY MAJESTIC SOUTH AFRICA

Travel around South Africa from the most extravagant affluence of Garden Route to the winelands and from Cape Town to the Greater Kruger

Day 1: Pretoria

Visitors are met upon arrival at O R Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg by tourAfrika guide. Pretoria, the Jacaranda city is where your 16 Day Grand South African Tour commences. Pretoria is so named the Jacaranda City due to the thousands Jacaranda trees which line its streets. In the middle of spring, the trees are in full blossom and the city is altered into a purple fairyland. The itinerary for the tour of the city’s places on interest will include a visit to the Union Buildings, which, due to its setting against the slopes of Meintjieskop, radiates an impressive view of the city. The office block presently houses the office of the South African president. The building was designed by the famous British architect Sir Herbert Baker, and is considered as one of the country’s architectural work of genius. Other areas of fascination incorporate the Voortrekker Monument, which pays tribute to a pioneering spirit and the museum commonly known as Melrose House. The importance of Melrose House is that it is the site where the Anglo-Boer War was formally concluded with the ratification of the Treaty of Vereeniging in 1902.

In the afternoon we head off east of Pretoria to Cullinan, where the world’s biggest diamond was found in 1905. This great diamond weighed in at an unbelievable 3106 carats in the rough. It was transformed by the Asscher Brothers in Amsterdam to the magnificent stones which beautify the British Crown Jewels today. A tour of the mine offers momentous understanding into the process of how these precious stones were create under immense pressure and heat, millions of years ago. The tour will also reveals the complete mining process, including the cutting and polishing process. The visit to Cullinan Diamond Mine is followed by a shuttle transfer to your overnight destination.

Overnight:  Royal Elephant
Meals:  Dinner

Day 2: Mpumalanga Highlands

From here the tour traverses east crossing the coal-rich Highveld and the sublime slopes of Mpumalanga to the settlement of Dullstroom. The region encompassing Dullstroom entails of unsheltered plains, which is governed by the 2 332m high “Intaba” (the mountain). It is the topmost feature flanked by the Limpopo and the Vaal Rivers. We make a call to the Dullstroom Bird Of Prey & Rehabilitation Center, which was founded in 1997 in order to promote awareness of indigenous raptors and their increasing dilemma as endangered species. A huge amount of diverse raptor species and their part in the ecology is underscored. Thereafter we travel on to the overnight Walkersons.

Overnight:  Walkersons
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 3: Mpumalanga Highlands

The day is dedicated to mild country quests on the splendid 1 500 hectare estate. The estate offers a lovely forest and river walks as well as walking trails into the nature reserve, where native game abide in a mountain wilderness famed for its bird life and prolific flowers. The estate is a haven for fly fishermen and, if you are so inclined, some time may be dedicated to the pursuit of rainbow and golden trout in flawless mountain streams.

Overnight:  Walkersons
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 4: Greater Kruger National Park

We depart Walkersons Estate and head off to the heavily wooded eastern escarpment, where the beautiful Long Tom Pass leads the way to the town of Sabie. The pass drives its name from the Long Tom Cannon, which still remains on a hill where the Boer forces held one of their last legs during the Anglo Boer War. The tour then makes stopover at Graskop, sightseeing some of the escarpment’s many waterfalls. A halt is made en route at Berlin Falls with its sheer 80m drop before visiting the Mac Mac Falls. The tour then transverses the escarpment and slides down into the Lowveld, South Africa’s Big Five country , where arrival into Lion Sands is during the mid-afternoon. The late afternoon is devoted to a first open 4×4 safari vehicle in the Kruger wilderness . The Greater Kruger National Park is houses to the highest variety of diverse mammal species on the African continent and it is one of the world’s biggest and utmost vital conservation areas.

Overnight:  Lion Sands River Lodge
Meals:  Full Board

Day 5: Greater Kruger National Park

The day is dedicated to early morning and late afternoon open 4×4 safari vehicle to seek out of Africa’s legendary Big Five. Voluntary environmental awareness walking safaris are undertaken after your morning safari experience. Bush walks allow guests to feel the pulse of untamed Africa through the soles of their feet. Your safaris in the Greater Kruger are headed by a skilful ranger whose in-depth knowledge of the routines and manners of the different mammals is guaranteed to enrich your experience. A game drive performed in the late afternoon and early evening may offer the prospect of sighting one of the big cats, positioning themselves for the hunt. Both the leopard and lion are nocturnal and are mostly be more active in this period of the day.

Overnight:  Lion Sands River Lodge
Meals:  Full Board

Day 6: Greater Kruger National Park

The African sunrise bursts with bird melody and the echoes of a terrain wakening to the new day, as a first open four wheel drive vehicle safari is performed by your skilled ranger and tracker. The likelihood of locating predators on a kill executed in the night, increases to the thrill. The safari heads back to camp for a late breakfast, after which visitors are allowed some time for relaxation or a bush walk before commencing with an afternoon safari in the Sabi Sand which is stretches into the evening.

Overnight:  Lion Sands River Lodge
Meals:  Full Board

Day 7: Cape Town

The final morning safari is followed by breakfast, after which guests are shuttle transferred to the Kruger Mpumalanga Airport for a flight to Cape Town. Visitors will be met on arrival at Cape Town International Airport by the tourAfrika guide and we head off to the hotel, which is located on Cape Town’s renowned V&A Waterfront. The late afternoon is spent at leisure.

Overnight:  Cape Grace
Meals:  Dinner

Day 8: Cape Town

Your Cape Town morning tour is dedicated to a cable car ride to the top of Table Mountain . The central attribute of the mountain is a level plateau of 3km, adjoined to the east by Devil’s Peak and to the west by Lion’s Head. Table Mountain is a great flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town. The cable car ride, which takes about 5 minutes, presents extraordinary viewpoints of Cape Town. On making it to the summit, you may dedicate some time to pay a visit the various vantage points, from which amazing views of the Cape Peninsula may be enjoyed. Some time is dedicated to sightseeing South Africa’s oldest city as you visit some prominent landmarks and historic locations including the Rhodes Memorial and the Cape Castle.

Overnight:  Cape Grace
Meals:  Dinner

Day 9: Cape Town

A morning visit to Robben Island presents visitors some inimitable understanding into the history of this disreputable island, which has played such an critical role in South Africa’s past. It is well known for the fact that former president Nelson Mandela spent a enormous part of his 27-year imprisonment on the island. The jail has since been converted into a museum and is the centre of the Robben Island tour. Other places of interest comprise a visit to the limestone quarry and the landscapes of Cape Town which can be enjoyed from the island. On arrival to the mainland we dedicate the afternoon to exploring the renowned Victoria and Alfred Waterfront.

Overnight:  Cape Grace
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 10: Cape Town

The remarkable Chapman’s Peak Drive, cut into the 650m high Chapman’s Peak, the tour traverses across the Noordhoek town to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. A botanic and picturesque delight, the reserve is home to numerous antelope species, as well as an abundant variety of blossoming plants and birds. The icing on the cake is bound to be the stride to the apex of Cape Point, it is said the turbulent sea waters of the Atlantic collide with the unruffle Indian Ocean.

The tour traces back to Cape Town via False Bay. Guests will make a stoppage at Boulders Beach, an appealing sheltered harbour which contains a tumble of mammoth circular rocks on a sandy shore. The rocks are perfect points for viewing the antics of the cluster of mainland-based African penguins. Some time spent being appreciative admiring these endangered flightless birds is followed by a return trip to Cape Town.

Overnight:  Cape Grace
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 11: Winelands

We voyage to the town of Somerset West located at the foot of the Helderberg Mountains, where a visit is made to Vergelegen. The estate is one of South Africa’s oldest, with a splendid setting that has abundant views of the neighbouring mountain ranges, as well as False Bay in the distance. Visitors enjoy a tour of the cellars as well as a brief overview to wine making, which is followed by tasting of some of South Africa’s finest. The tour then heads off to the town of Stellenbosch, which cover a visit to one of the wine estates close to town. After enjoying some of South Africa’s finest wines, we head for our overnight destination in Paarl.

Overnight:  Grand Roche
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 12: Winelands

The marked contrast between vineyards and harsh mountains forms the seamless backdrop to a tour of the historical town of Stellenbosch. The town is the oldest in South Africa after Cape Town and is certainly the most charming and historically-preserved town in Southern Africa. Oak-lined streets along water channels supplement the many fine examples of well designed Victorian, Cape Dutch, and Georgian architecture – all part of this distinctive “Town of Oaks”.

The town, perfectly located in a glorious mountain valley, possesses a mild Mediterranean climate. The Stellenbosch Wine Route is the oldest, biggest and perhaps the most visited of the Southwest Cape’s wine routes. Many of the estates are very old, whitewashed Cape Dutch homesteads, with their gabled, rolling vineyards and shade-dappled grounds that are extremely attractive. We visit two of these fine estates where the skill of wine-making in South Africa is witnessed. A great diversity of vascular plant can be sampled and a specific cultivar which fascinates to your taste is certain to be found.

Overnight:  Grand Roche
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 13: Garden Route

After breakfast, the tour traverses across the town of Somerset West and over Sir Lowry’s Pass to Swellendam, located at the bottom of the Langeberge. Distinctive architecture set against the backdrop of mountain scenery bestows the town with a superior character. Trailing the N2 highway in a northerly direction, we reach the town of Mossel Bay. It is commonly considered as the southern entrance location to the lovely Garden Route region. The Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Diaz first set foot on these shores in 1488 and we devote some time to visiting the museum which displays his name. The museum is not far from the Milkwood Tree and fountain, which functioned respectively as a post office and watering hole to seafarers in centuries ago. It is also home to a imitation of the vessel in which Bartholomew Diaz reached these shorelines, a gift from the Portuguese to South Africa upon the commemoration of the 500th anniversary of his voyage. We arrive at our overnight destination during the late afternoon.

Overnight:  St James of Knysna
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 14: Garden Route

After breakfast, On your Garden Route tour, we stopover at the Featherbed Nature Reserve and Knysna Elephant Park. The Featherbed Nature Reserve is an immaculate portion of wonderland that incorporates one of the Knysna Heads. This magnificent portion of seashore and forestry offers attractive hiking trails and four by four routes.  It also accommodates to endangered species i.e. blue duiker, Knysna seahorse.  The Knysna Elephant Park offers guests a complete opportunity to intermingle with one of wildlife’s most incredible beast. Learn further on these grey giants from their handlers and escort them on a walk underneath the green stare of the Outeniqua Mountains – a really cherished experienced. The tour then makes its way back to the overnight destination, after a wonderful sun-soaked afternoon.

Overnight:  St James of Knysna
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 15: Garden Route

Then we trek to Oudtshoorn by traversing the Outeniqua Mountains. Oudtshoorn is a sizable and contemporary town dependent in the main on farming and the ostrich industry. We venture to a local ostrich farm and live through an ostrich race, stand on ostrich eggs and fondle baby ostrich chicks. The close Cango Caves, a natural wonder of the world, are explored. The wide-ranging tunnel systems, a quarter of which are accessible to guests, stretches for in excess of four kilometres into the limestone hills. If cheetahs are fascinating to you, a stop at the Cango Wildlife Ranch will be a gratifying experience. The ranch is one of the prominent cheetah breeding centres in South Africa. You will be permitted to gain entry into a fenced area and intermingle with and photograph a tame cheetah. The leather is a prized raw material in the manufacture of fashion fitments. The brave can even attempt an ostrich ride before we return to the overnight destination.

Overnight:  St James of Knysna
Meals:  Breakfast & Dinner

Day 16: Departure

After breakfast, visitors will be shuttle transferred to George Airport for a flight to Johannesburg, where they will be met and assisted in transferring to a flight back to their country of origin after an impressive majestic tour of South Africa.

Overnight:  None
Meals:  Breakfast