Slow food tour in South Africa

country:

South Africa

departures:

Guided tour departures can be arranged at any time throughout the year depending on availability

price:

From R 84,900 (approx £5,186) (25 days) excluding flights, based on two people sharing. Price includes accommodation in B&Bs; dinner, bed and breakfasts (DBBs) and guest houses

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vouchers:

Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday

Cape Town holidays here

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the amazing things you'll be doing

Go slow - experience more. Guided and hosted by local charm, this slow food theme focuses on 11 different regional, local menus optimising the use of locally produced ingredients. Interact with local people and their environment while participating in the production and preparation in a practical way.

The local place–plate experience produces an authentic, content of the global planet–plate concept. The global eco–gastronomy concept is now converted into an authentic, local kontreikos experience. Taking part in a local slow food (kontreikos) experience will add new meaning because you will be enlightened whereby you will become native to a local home by being in harmony with both its special gifts and its restrictions.

The itinerary is designed to go slow and experience more. Stay at least 48 hours per destination, and maximum group number is 10, transported in a luxury mini bus with driver/guide.

best time to go

November - February. Summers (December - January) are hot and dry; winters (June - August) are cool and intermittent rain. "Secret season" (May - September) has fewer tourists and is greener and cooler.

day-by-day itinerary

Day 1-2:	Fairest Cape. Arrive Cape Town International and transferred to Cape Town accommodation – charming DBB. Cape Malay Cuisine, Bo-Kaap experiences and Cape Peninsula set amongst Cape Mountain Fynbos.
Day 3-4:	West Coast. Cape Town to Saldanha Bay guest house accommodation – charming DBB. Sea food and mussels. Semi desert and endless white beaches along the cold Benguella sea current home of the South African fish industry.
Day 5-6:	West Coast. North along the West Coast to Lamberts Bay. Accommodation on West Coast working farm and nature reserve - functional to charming DBB. Local farm food and seafood.
Day 7-8:	Namaqualand Coast. North along the Namaqualand coast into diamond mining security area. Accommodation at Namaqualand sheep farm – charming DBB. Sheep meat and crayfish in season.
Day 9-10:	Namaqualand inland. South to southern Namaqualand on the Knersvlakte on farm Ratelgat- property of the Griekwa trust - among the Griekwa people. Accommodation in traditional huts - Matjies houses or modern chalets – functional to charming. Full board. Traditional Griekwa food.
Day 11-12:	Bokkeveld escarpment. From the low level flat land up to the Bokkeveld plateau. Although part of the karoo, Nieuwoudtville is a piece of land with winter rainfall, Mediterranean climate. Combined to the renosterveld area, it is home to the highest concentration and variation of bulbous plants in the world. Accommodation on a working sheep and guest farm, charming DBB. Potjiekos.
Day 13-14:	Hantam Karoo. East to the Hantam Karoo for overnight in the town of Calvinia. Your hostess is on record for stating that the slow fooders can to come and learn from her, let us put her to the test! Accommodation in restored local Hantam houses – champagne. DBB.
Day 15-16:	Koup Karoo. Passing Sutherland in the Roggeveld karoo, home of Astronomical Research in South Africa. Sutherland is also the coldest place in South Africa. Driving from the high plateau to Laingsburg in the Koup Karoo. Accommodation in a collection of old buildings built in 1889 in the London style. Hotel accommodation – Champagne B&B English with locally produced recipes.
Day 17-18:	Klein Karoo. From the Koup Karoo to the Klein Karoo in Oudtshoorn. Accommodation on a working ostrich farm and nature reserve – champagne DBB. Meat used comes from our own organic produced ostriches, springbok and sheep. Be enlightened on the local organic process by the owner and the chef on the farm!
Day 19-20:	Breede River Valley. From Oudtshoorn in the Klein Karoo to Bonnievale in the Breede River Valley, fruit and wine producing area of the Boland Kontrei. Accommodation on a working fruit and wine farm – champagne DBB. Locally produced food.
Day 21-22:	Overberg. South into the Overberg kontrei to Arniston-Waenhuiskrans and the Southern tip of Africa. Explore the unique coastal Fynbos area and join the fisher women to prepare and share what the sea produces. Accommodation in hotel – champagne - or guest house – functional to charming DBB.
Day 23-24:	Boland. Along the south Cape coast to Paarl Winelands in the Boland kontrei. Stay in a guest house in the historic centre of Paarl – charming DBB. Explore historic Paarl with a conducted walkabout. Learn about the founding and the development of latest language from Africa – Afrikaans. Enjoy Paarl Rock Brandy, a product of the previous owners of the house. Only produced specially and in limited quantities for your guest house. Taste the wine of our own garagiste winemaker on the property while enjoying food from the house in a participating way.
Day 1:	Fairest Cape farewell. Transfer to Cape Town International Airport to fly back home

travelling with a local operator

This holiday is operated by a company based in the holiday destination and they will be able to provide expert local knowledge. They will be able to tailor make your holiday to suit your requirements not only concerning the dates of travel but also typically the standard of accommodation, and thus price. It is rare for local operators to be able to help with the booking of your flights.

how this holiday makes a difference

What you can expect are hosts who think globally about sustainability. What you can experience is what they do locally.

About places we support:
Bo-Kaap is the home of the Cape Malay people originally from Dutch East India. A special cultural experience of architecture, food, music, stories and religion in and next to the well known city of Cape Town. Explore the deepest natural harbour in the world and the sea food from the nutrition rich cold Benguella current. Learn about the struggle for sustainable harvesting from these waters from ship building and community involved people like Diane and Robert Schaafsma.

Working West Coast farm where you can share in the production processes of meat and potatoes whilst experiencing the close knit social dynamics of farming communities. Experience the good and the bad of a farmer having diamond mines as your neighbour where “Mining” is not shaft sinking but actually an earth moving operation. Be enlightened by the good community projects and the “Bad” about mining and rehabilitation of the earth.

Live among the Griekwas - living cultural representatives of the Khoi in South Africa - in their own holy environment on the unique and harsh Namakwaland Knersvlakte. How do this community express their culture in terms of beliefs, music, food and social structure. Your money will make a substantial contribution. Stay in Van Zijl’s Guest houses. Hendrik went to Nieuwoudtville to be close to the plants he love. He bought and start restoring old stone houses and revitalised the industry to the extent that artisans can again live from their local stone cutting masonry work.

Be a guest in “the Lord Milner Hotel, the last authentic vestige of Victoriana, in South Africa. The Lord Milner's 58 guest rooms have been well maintained over the years and a high standard of service upheld.” (Quote from their website). Stay on a working ostrich farm in Oudtshoorn where the owner stopped farming in one paddock to make room for Meerkat research and a walking with Meerkats experience. Local people involved in the Meerkat and hospitality section using own farm produce for meats and salads.

Stay with Heidi van der Merwe from Bonnievale and meet someone who got international support for her social upliftment programmes among farmworkers in the Breede Vallei region. In Arniston Waenhuiskrans, supporting the women’s club of local Kassiesbaai fishing community in their efforts to create additional income. Learn about the local social problems from the people who work pro actively to improve the community life.

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