ITINERARY
Days 1-2 DEPARTURE
Collect in Toronto or New York for overnight flight to Johannesburg on South African Airways. You’ll be met and taken to the Indaba Hotel, just north of the prosperous business district of Sandton. Rest of day at leisure.
Indaba Hotel
Day 3 JOHANNESBURG
Johannesburg is South Africa’s largest city and its financial center. Tour Soweto, see the world’s largest hospital and the former homes of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. Visit also the Apartheid Museum. Continue on to South Africa’s administrative capital, Pretoria, now called Tshwane. The city is known for its beautiful green parks and gardens. Its defining symbol is the Voortrekker Monument. Dine at Chiefs Boma Restaurant for an authentic African dinner.
Indaba Hotel BLD
Day 4 LIVINGSTONE/VICTORIA FALLS
After breakfast, fly to Livingstone in Zambia to see famed Victoria Falls on the mighty Zambezi River. The town of Livingstone retains many classic colonial buildings. You’ll have a walking tour of the Zambian side of the falls. Spend the next three nights at Zambezi Sun Resort. Dinner at the hotel.
Zambesi Sun Resort BD
Day 5 CHOBA NATIONAL PARK
Today you’ll have an excursion into Botswana to visit Chobe National Park. Your safari starts with a cruise on the Chobe River to view birds, hippos and crocodiles. After lunch at the lodge in the park, you’ll have an open safari drive to view elephant, buffalo, giraffe and, with luck, lions. Return to Livingstone. Dinner at hotel.
Zambesi Sun Resort BLD
Day 6 LIVINGSTONE
Morning visit an authentic Zambian village. In the afternoon cross to the Zimbabwe side of the Zambesi where the views are much grander. Walk through a rainforest full of ebony, ferns, figs and lianas. Visit the town of Victoria Falls with time free for shopping or sipping tea in Victoria Falls Hotel. Return to Livingstone. Dinner at hotel.
Zambesi Sun Resort BD
Day 7 LIVINGSTONE/JOHANNESBURG
Morning optional excursions in the Falls area: take an elephant ride, river cruise, canoe trip, or helicopter ride, or stroll through Livingstone. Afternoon fly to Johannesburg; stay again at Indaba Hotel. Dinner at Chiefs Boma.
Indaba Hotel BD
Day 8 CRADLE OF HUMANKIND
Today you’ll visit the Cradle of Humankind, a World Heritage Site, where fossil remains of man’s distant ancestors and other animals have been found in a number of caves. Displays, interactive exhibits will reveal much about man’s evolution and origins
Indaba Hotel BLD
Day 9 HAZYVIEW
Following breakfast you will head east by coach through beautiful Mpumalanga Province (formerly Eastern Transvaal) to Hazyview, traveling along the Long Tom Pass where you’ll stop at the Blyde River Canyon, the Three Rondavels, Wonder View, God’s Window and the Pinnacle. Stay at Hotel Numbi on the doorstep to Kruger National Park. Dinner at the hotel. Graskop, a small town in the centre of the scenic area is rated one of the top five unknown tourist attractions in the world by Hotel and Resort Insider. It's a showpiece of traditional and contemporary African culture, a place where you'll meet many African groups including Zulu, Shangaan, and Swazi.
Hotel Numbi BD
Day 10 KRUGER NATIONAL PARK
Early start for a morning safari into Kruger, South Africa’s largest game reserve. Established in 1898, the park encompasses nearly 2 million hectares. It is unrivalled in its plant and animal diversity; home to a multitude of different species: 336 of trees, 49 of fish, 34 of amphibians, 114 of reptiles, 507 of birds and 147 of mammals. Afternoon free to relax or soak up the sun or arrange own safari. Dinner at the hotel.
Hotel Numbi BD
Day 11 SWAZILAND
Travel south today into the Kingdom of Swaziland, an independent country completely landlocked by South Africa and Mozambique. Naturally fortified by mountains on its eastern border and rainforest to the northwest, Swaziland remains one of the last kingdoms in Africa. The pace of life is relaxed, the lifestyle traditional. Stay at Lugogo Sun Hotel. Dinner at the hotel.
Lugogo Sun Hotel BD
Day 12 ZULULAND
After breakfast travel back into South Africa entering Zululand, home of South Africa’s largest ethnic group. You’ll arrive at Bushlands Game Lodge, in the midst of six noted game reserves. In the afternoon thrill to another open safari ride. Dinner at the lodge.
Bushlands Game Lodge BD
Day 13 PORT ELIZABETH
Travel by coach to Durban and then fly to Port Elizabeth. Dinner on your own tonight.
Courtyard Hotel B
Day 14 GARDEN ROUTE/OUDTSHOORN
After a short city tour, travel on the world famous Garden Route to Knysna. The route runs parallel to the ocean and features lakes, mountains, beaches and steep cliffs. You’ll pass by beautiful Jeffrey’s Bay, a popular surfing beach, and the awesome Tsitsikamma Forest containing many giant Yellowwood trees, the national tree of South Africa. Knysna affords tremendous views of a lagoon and surrounding mountains. You’ll continue through the towns of Wilderness to Oudtshoorn (pronounced Oats horn) where you’ll stay at Oudtshoorn Inn. Dinner at the hotel.
Oudtshoorn Inn BD
Day 15 OUDTSHOORN/CAPE TOWN
Oudtshoorn is the ostrich capital of South Africa. You’ll have a tour of one of the large farms before continuing on to Cape Town via the Huis River Pass, with its spectacular rock formations, passing through Ladysmith and Swellendan, the latter the third oldest town in South Africa, established in 1745, then across the Hottentots Holland Mountains, South Africa’s apple growing region, arriving in Cape Town, where you’ll stay at the Southern Sun Waterfront Hotel. Dinner at the hotel.
Southern Sun Waterfront Hotel BD
Day 16 CAPE TOWN
Enjoy a tour to the House of Parliaments, Malay Quarter, Castle of Good Hope and the South African Museum. Then drive out to Cape Peninsula to visit Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. Return to Cape Town via Simonstown founded by the Dutch in 1741, the eastern slopes of Table Mountain, and the campus of the University of Cape Town.
Southern Sun Waterfront Hotel BD
Day 17 CAPE TOWN
Start the day with a gondola trip up Table Mountain, weather permitting. Then drive into the wine country stopping at Stellenbosch where you can enjoy optional wine tasting. Return to your hotel and have the rest of day free to relax or explore the surroundings on your own.
Southern Sun Waterfront Hotel BD
Days 18/19 CAPE TOWN/HOME
Enjoy a full English breakfast. Transfer to the airport for your flight home OR extend your stay in Cape Town. Ask us for details.
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