South Africa Cape, coast and safari holiday
| country: | South Africa |
| location: | Eastern Cape |
| departures: | Our trips are tailor made and departures can be arranged all year round. This itinerary is simply a suggestion which can be modified entirely to your personal wishes including departure date, duration, accommodation used and how long you spend in each destination |
| price: | From £3325 (15 days) including flights from the UK. The price includes 12 nights accommodation, private transfers, car hire and all flights which are overnight |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
This itinerary is a great showcase for South Africa, and ideally suited to the first-time visitor. It starts in Cape Town, one of the great cities of the world; apart from the view from the top of the iconic Table Mountain, it is also a great base to explore everything this region has to offer.
No visit is complete without a trip to Robben Island, being guided around by a former inmate of the prison there. A day can be spent touring the Cape Peninsula which takes in dramatic coastal scenery, Cape Point and the famous Boulder’s Beach Penguin colony. You can take a trip to the Winelands; explore Kirstenbosch Gardens with a gourmet picnic or our advice would be to take a half day field trip with Uthando tours to visit the grass roots projects within the townships that really give you a sense of hope for the future of this country of contrasts.
Moving onto Hermanus where, during whale season, they boast the best land based whale watching in the world! Sitting on the comfort of the cliffs with a cold glass of Chardonnay you can watch the mothers and calves breach just 20 metres away but you will also have the opportunity to take a boat trip to try and get up close and personal.
After a close encounter or two you can make your way to the heart of the Garden Route, also described as Africa’s playground. Beautiful coastal scenery, dominated by lagoons, forested hillsides and long beaches are at the heart of the region’s attractions and can be explored by car, boat, foot or air all in your own time with activities to suit everyone of all ages.
The trip concludes with a few days on safari, tracking Africa’s big game and listening to your ranger telling you about the bush, the animals and the unique and fragile eco system.
We have personally visited each of the properties we recommend and know they are perfect for the needs of our clients, in turn ensuring that their trip will be perfect for them.
No visit is complete without a trip to Robben Island, being guided around by a former inmate of the prison there. A day can be spent touring the Cape Peninsula which takes in dramatic coastal scenery, Cape Point and the famous Boulder’s Beach Penguin colony. You can take a trip to the Winelands; explore Kirstenbosch Gardens with a gourmet picnic or our advice would be to take a half day field trip with Uthando tours to visit the grass roots projects within the townships that really give you a sense of hope for the future of this country of contrasts.
Moving onto Hermanus where, during whale season, they boast the best land based whale watching in the world! Sitting on the comfort of the cliffs with a cold glass of Chardonnay you can watch the mothers and calves breach just 20 metres away but you will also have the opportunity to take a boat trip to try and get up close and personal.
After a close encounter or two you can make your way to the heart of the Garden Route, also described as Africa’s playground. Beautiful coastal scenery, dominated by lagoons, forested hillsides and long beaches are at the heart of the region’s attractions and can be explored by car, boat, foot or air all in your own time with activities to suit everyone of all ages.
The trip concludes with a few days on safari, tracking Africa’s big game and listening to your ranger telling you about the bush, the animals and the unique and fragile eco system.
We have personally visited each of the properties we recommend and know they are perfect for the needs of our clients, in turn ensuring that their trip will be perfect for them.
best time to go
This itinerary can be undertaken all year round but the best months for weather and animal sightings are considered to be September to February. The Eastern Cape offers excellent game viewing all year round but the whale season runs from around June until November, although there is plenty to do in the area outside of these months.day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly overnight from London to Cape Town. |
| Day 2: | The Cape Grace Hotel. Met on arrival and transferred to The Cape Grace Hotel in the V&A Waterfront for your 4 night stay. This afternoon can be spent at leisure. |
| Day 3: | Robben Island. A trip to Robben Island to help understand the modern history of this fascinating country and an afternoon open top bus tour to acquaint yourself with Cape Town. |
| Day 4: | Table Mountain. In the morning you can meet with your Uthando guide for your field trip to meet the people who are really making a difference at grass root level. This insight will leave you with a true understanding of how the social divides are being overcome within South Africa. After a spot of lunch you can take the cable car up Table Mountain for a breathtaking view. |
| Day 5: | Self-drive. Your hire car will be delivered to your hotel and you can spend the day self-driving along the peninsula at your own speed. |
| Day 6: | Hermanus. Drive to Hermanus stopping at the odd vineyard en route for lunch before checking in at Grootbos Nature Reserve for the next two nights. |
| Day 7: | Whale sightings. Spend the day walking along the coastal paths to watch the whales close inshore, or take a boat trip to get up close and personal. |
| Day 8: | Garden Route. Spend the day making your way along the coast to the Garden Route to your base at Hog Hollow for the next three nights. |
| Day 9: | Storms River Mouth. Take a day trip into Tsitsikamma Forest to visit Storms River Mouth (a dramatic canyon emptying into the ocean), and the Monkeyland Primate Rescue Centre. |
| Day 10: | Perhaps spend the day on the water – either a boat trip into the Plettenburg Bay on an Ocean Safari, or perhaps across the Knysna lagoon to the Featherbed Nature Reserve. |
| Day 11: | Amakhala Game Reserve. Depart for Amakhala Game Reserve on the Eastern Cape for the next two nights on your safari. |
| Day 12-13: | On safari. |
| Day 14: | Port Elizabeth. Depart to Port Elizabeth airport dropping your car hire before boarding your flight home via Johannesburg. |
| Day 15: | Arrive back into the UK. |
tailor made holidays
This trip can be tailor made to create a unique holiday for your individual requirements by travel experts with intimate knowledge of the destination. It is a more individual trip that will suit those who enjoy immersing themselves in new cultures and environments, with the flexibility to plan a trip at your own pace. Quality and value are the hallmark of these trips, with most services being provided on a private basis.how this holiday makes a difference
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Environment:
There is an opportunity to visit a large number of national parks and reserves: Table Mountain National Reserve Park, Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, De Hoop Nature Reserve, Wilderness National Park, Tsitsikamma National park, The Featherbed Nature Reserve and Amakhala Private Game Reserve. The majority of the parks and reserves in South Africa run environmental educational programmes, support research projects and many have developed their own environmental projects. For example, The De Hoop Nature Reserve is an associate of the CapeNature organisation, which aims to transform biodiversity conservation in to a key component of local economic development through eco-tourism. Your visit to this park will actively support this project. The Amakhala Private Game Reserve funds its Amakhala Conservation Centre through bed levies from commercial lodges in the park so guests staying in the reserve will directly contribute to this project, while the Conservation Centre concentrates on educational programmes, research projects and the re-introduction of species to the park. The FTTSA accredited company that we recommend for whale watching is extensively involved in marine conservation, assisting scientists in their research and supporting several conservation organisations, such as CapeNature. They are also actively involved in the rescue and care of injured birds and seals and the clearing of marine litter in the area. The company also runs educational tours for local school children to expose them to the marine environment and initiated the Nolwandle Project which takes into consideration the social, economic and environmental impact of the cruises that they operate. Monkey Land is a rescue centre where primates from zoos and private hands are allowed to return to their natural habitat after time spend in captivity. There are guides to take you on walks through the forested enclosure and introduce you to the monkeys and gibbons now living there. Community: The properties have all been selected for many reasons, the main one being that they are all accredited by Fair Trade and Tourism South Africa (FTTSA). FTTSA awards this status to qualifying guest houses as a way of signifying their commitment to Fair Trade criteria including fair wages and working conditions, fair purchasing, fair operations, equitable distribution of benefits and respect for human rights, culture and environment. By electing to stay at an FTTSA-certified establishment, tourists are assured that their travel benefits local communities and economies, and that the business is operated ethically and in a socially and environmentally responsible manner. The locals rely on tourism to sustain their economy so a visit to a township on an Uthando Tour in Cape Town, as well as Robben Island is a must. Uthando is a registered Non-profit Organisation based in Cape Town. Founded in 2007, the organisation raises funds for a broad range of community based projects which support the most vulnerable sectors of society in some of the most destitute areas of the city. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |