ITINERARY

12 Days in South Africa

Inspiration for your next adventure

Cape Town
Simon’s Town
Vergelegen Wine Estate
Umhlanga Rocks
Phinda Private Game Reserve
Matupaland
Jesser Point
AND MORE….

Featuring:

Day One

Welcome to South Africa! You will be met at the gate of your arriving flight in Cape Town and be assisted through customs and immigration and on to meet your private transfer to your luxury hotel.

Location really is everything and your hotel in the Kloof Street Neighborhood is a place where you can immerse yourself in the heart of city living between your explorations of the Cape. Shop for hidden gems, indulge in your favorite foodie passions, or take in a show – there’s a host of experiences just a stone’s throw away.

Day Two

Explore the quirky side of Cape Town. Take the cable car for panoramic city views. Then explore Cape Town’s inner-city streets which are a treasure trove of fashion and jewelry boutiques, studios, quirky home décor, atmospheric pubs, craft beers and concept stores. We’ll touch on some of the city’s lesser known historical facts, shipwreck stories and possibly meet a few of the captivating characters behind the roasters, distilleries and workshops.

Craft beer and gin tasting at a local distillery or brewery caps a well-rounded day!

Day Three

Meet your private guide this morning and begin the day at the working fishing harbor of Kalk Bay, with its bohemian arts and crafts shops, quirky boutiques, and antiques stores. Visit the richly historic Simon’s Town, a naval town with museums and monuments paying homage colorful past and the shark diving industry. We go in search of our own splinter colony of rogue penguins, away from the crowded boardwalks, on a beach known only to locals

Later, head to the Cape Peninsula for a hike to explore the reserve’s secluded beaches and unique wildlife.

Day Four

Todays’ exceptional experience starts with helicopter flight to Vergelegen Wine Estate in Somerset West where their mystic Camphor Forest is the site of your ‘white tablecloth’ picnic. The Camphor trees on the estate are seedlings from the five trees believed to have been planted in 1700 and which are now National Monuments.

Enjoy delicious picnic fare in the magical surrounds of the camphor forest while sipping on a choice of Vergelegen’s award winning wines. The Vergelegen tasting centre overlooks a pretty, octagonal shaped herb garden and tastings can be enjoyed inside or outside on the patio.

Day Five

Today you’ll leave Cape Town and head for Umhlanga Rocks, perfectly situated on the east coast of South Africa. It is an atmospheric coastal town with the best accommodation and restaurants in the area. It is a wonderful place to stop or to use as a base for excursions throughout KwaZulu-Natal.

Check in to your hotel overlooking the historical and famous landmark, the Umhlanga lighthouse and settle in.

Day Six

Today you will make your way to Phinda Private Game Reserve. Showcasing one of the continent’s finest game viewing experiences, Phinda is home to Africa’s Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino), as well as 436 bird species. The reserve is particularly well known for close-up sightings of the elegant yet elusive cheetah, as well as the rare black rhino.

With its seven distinct habitats, Phinda is often described as ‘Seven Worlds of Wonder’, a magnificent tapestry of woodland, grassland, wetland and forest, interspersed with mountain ranges, rivers, marshes and pans.

Day Seven

Your home while in Phinda: an intimate and charming lodge with just six suites on the edge of the rare sand forest. Day and night game drives with expert guides in search of Big Five and other rare iconic wildlife encounters.

Explore the African bush and its fauna and flora on foot with an experienced guide. Assist our conservation team with a scheduled rhino, elephant or pangolin research experience. Visit nearby Zulu communities and gain insight into their daily lives.

Day Eight

Phinda is home to a magnificent variety of wildlife, including the Big Five, but is best known for its large population of cheetah and black rhino. The sand forest is home to the shy suni and the rare red duiker, two tiny antelope that are seldom encountered elsewhere.

In addition, Phinda offers many types adventures such as a specialist walking and tracking safaris, a sleep out under the stars, an infrared Night Eye drive, and other participative conservation experiences such rhino notching or pangolin tagging.

Day Nine

The vast sandy beaches of the Maputaland coastline provide a beautiful setting for this half-day beach outing to beautiful Sodwana Bay. Soak up the warm African sun and splash in the clear, temperate waters of the Indian Ocean, bordered by miles and miles of sandy beaches.

Relax with a good book, play fun filled beach games and take leisurely walks along the pristine shoreline. At low tide you can snorkel alongside Jesser Point, a protected marine reserve, and marvel at an endless abundance of diverse and colorful marine life.

Day Ten

Experience Phinda Private Game Reserve on foot, in awe of its untouched nature and allure. Tread along the very paths black rhinos roam free on and witness their lives from a careful distance. It is the perfect setting in which to appreciate the natural environment.

The slow pace of the walk and the interpretive skills of the armed guides open your eyes to a new and fascinating world. Learn how to follow rhino tracks, recognise rhino middens and scratching posts, and follow the signs of the bent trees and broken grass blades, searching for rhino in the company of wildlife professionals.

Day Eleven

Today you are invited into a traditional Zulu homestead and given the rare opportunity to witness the daily routines and lifestyle of an authentic, rural Zulu family where eons of tradition intersect with modern life.

Spend time with the respected local sangoma, a witch doctor and traditional healer and learn the significance of the ancestors in Zulu life, as well as the tribe’s spiritual beliefs and the importance of their sacred lands.

On your final night, sleep under stars.

Day Twelve

Enjoy one more morning in the African wilderness before it’s time to return by road to the Durban Airport to meet your departing flights for home.

Our theory on South Africa

If you visit during the southern hemisphere summer, don’t miss a visit to Sodwana Bay on the Indian Ocean. Enormous leatherback and loggerhead turtles emerge to lay their eggs in the sun-warmed sand, as they have done for hundreds of millions of years. With only the beam of your flashlight, the light of the moon and the distant flash of a lighthouse to guide you, search for these gentle animals as they ride the waves to shore to dig their nests at one of Africa’s last key nesting sites.

CASEY

South Africa has it all! I especially love the rolling vineyards of the Cape winelands and the proximity to wildlife as a part of an indulgent wine experience. There is so much adventure in every region, from safari to water sports to hot air ballooning and paragliding, there’s something for everyone.

KITTE