Cairo to Cape Town overland tours
Dispelling easy stereotypes every step of the way, on an overland tour from Cairo to Cape Town you’ll quickly learn the truth behind the saying that ‘Africa is not a country’. Naturally, exploring the big ticket locations: the Nile, the Great Rift Valley, the Sahara, will captivate you, but this is also an opportunity to really delve beneath the headlines and catch sight of the ‘real Africa’ on a continent that is often visited but rarely well explored.
Our Overland Holidays
Cape Town to Victoria Falls holiday in South Africa
A spectacular and diverse African journey
From
£2699 to £4549
22 days
inc UK flights
Namibia and Botswana camping safari
Camping safari to Namib desert, Caprivi, Etosha & Okavango
From
€2480
21 days
ex flights
The Grand Southern Africa safari
21-day tour from Cape Town to Victoria Falls
From
£2549
20 days
ex flights
Cairo to Cape Town overland tour
Safaris, beaches, pyramids and rafting
From
£3695 to £3950
17 weeks
ex flights
Nairobi to Harare overland tour, 41 days
From mountain gorillas to blue waters of Zanzibar
From
£1595
41 days
ex flights
Cape to Windhoek Namibia Desert tour
Lodge safari from Cape Town to Namibia, Sossusvlei Etosha
From
€2430
13 days
ex flights
West Africa overland expedition
Travel from the Sahara to the Ocean at Guinea Bissau
From
£6995
4 weeks
ex flights
Nairobi and Cape Town African overland truck tour
The best of Eastern and Southern Africa overland
From
£4415 to £4585
71 days
ex flights
Victoria Falls to Cape Town small group holiday
Explore the best of Southern Africa's wildlife and nature.
From
£1855 to £2075
22 days
ex flights
Addis Ababa to Cairo Ethiopia, Sudan & Egypt tour
Ethiopian highlands, deserts and coral reefs
From
£1575
38 days
ex flights
Nairobi to Dar-Es-Salaam overland tour
From mountain gorillas to blue waters of Zanzibar
From
£1375
33 days
ex flights
Ethiopia to Kenya overland truck tour
Overland through Ethiopia's remarkable tribal lands
From
£1770 to £1860
24 days
ex flights
Cape Town to Victoria Falls small group lodge tour
Classic route lodge safari to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe
From
€3530
21 days
ex flights
Safari adventure holiday, Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique
An extraordinary camping safari across South Eastern Africa
From
€2390
22 days
ex flights
Overland tour from Cape Town to Victoria Falls
Experience the incredible diversity of Southern Africa
From
£845
23 days
ex flights
South Africa and Swaziland safari
Lodge safari all encompassing South Africa & Swaziland
From
€2240
17 days
ex flights
Overland tour from Vic Falls to Cape Town
An overland adventure from Victoria Falls to Cape Town
From
£845
22 days
ex flights
Uganda and Kenya overland truck tour
Overland adventure in East Africa including Gorilla trek
From
£1360 to £1420
21 days
ex flights
Guinea Bissau to the heart of the Sahara overland tour
Travel from Guinea Bissau to the heart of the Sahara
From
£6995
4 weeks
ex flights
Western Sahara overland tour, Marrakech to Bissau
Travel from North Africa through the Sahara to the tropics
From
£6649
4 weeks
ex flights
Cape Town to Victoria Falls small group camping safari
"Overland" camping safari to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe
From
€2590
21 days
ex flights
Family overland safari in Zimbabwe, Botswana & Namibia
Family overland tour in Southern Africa
From
£2240 to £2375
19 days
ex flights
Cairo to Cape Town overland truck tour, the Nile route
Explore the length of Africa on this epic overland journey
From
£9375 to £9710
142 days
ex flights
West Africa tour, Bissau to Cotonou
Voodoo heartlands, traditional storytellers and lush islands
From
£6699
23 days
ex flights
Nairobi to Cairo overland tour
An expedition through the heart of Africa
From
£2625
9 weeks
ex flights
East African budget overland tour
3-week wildlife odyssey in the heart of East Africa
From
£2079
21 days
ex flights
Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe expedition
Expedition through the wildlife havens of Zimbabwe & Zambia
From
€3350
20 days
ex flights
East Africa adventure holiday, safari, gorillas & beach
An extensive journey through east Africa
From
£3819 to £3969
22 days
ex flights
Cairo to Cape Town itinerary & highlights
Travelling the length of a continent, some 10,400km as the crow flies, it can take up to 20 weeks to get from Cairo to Cape Town, or indeed the other way. Luckily, for those with more ambition than time, it’s easily possible to break this route up into shorter stages that you can tackle over several years if you wish.
Michael Battley from our supplier Dragoman on the flexibility of overland Africa itineraries:
“Often you can make a tour as long or as short as you wish. For example we have had passengers that have completed Cairo to Cape Town but done it over a five year period as they come back and rejoin at the point they left last time. Each individual leg is designed as a trip in its own right, which then just has the benefit of tying together with other legs to form the longer itineraries.”
“Often you can make a tour as long or as short as you wish. For example we have had passengers that have completed Cairo to Cape Town but done it over a five year period as they come back and rejoin at the point they left last time. Each individual leg is designed as a trip in its own right, which then just has the benefit of tying together with other legs to form the longer itineraries.”
Over the course of an odyssey from Egypt to South Africa you can pass through countries including Botswana, Rwanda, Zambia, Ethiopia, Namibia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Kenya. The breadth of landscapes and cultures that you will experience is immense.
In respect of activities, you might be raising your adrenaline levels with white water rafting, or scuba diving in the Red Sea. You will equally be gaining valuable insights into the realities of life in different parts of Africa, by meeting Maasai communities, taking bush walks with San tribespeople, and eye opening, ethical tours around townships.
In respect of activities, you might be raising your adrenaline levels with white water rafting, or scuba diving in the Red Sea. You will equally be gaining valuable insights into the realities of life in different parts of Africa, by meeting Maasai communities, taking bush walks with San tribespeople, and eye opening, ethical tours around townships.
Our top Overland Holiday
Cape Town to Victoria Falls holiday in South Africa
A spectacular and diverse African journey
From
£2699 to £4549
22 days
inc UK flights
Small group travel:
2019: 13 Apr, 27 Apr, 18 May, 8 Jun, 29 Jun, 6 Jul, 20 Jul, 27 Jul, 10 Aug, 17 Aug, 7 Sep, 21 Sep, 19 Oct, 26 Oct, 2 Nov, 9 Nov, 23 Nov, 12 Dec
2020: 29 Feb, 21 Mar, 25 Apr, 16 May, 6 Jun, 27 Jun, 4 Jul, 11 Jul, 18 Jul, 25 Jul, 8 Aug, 15 Aug, 29 Aug, 5 Sep, 12 Sep, 19 Sep, 26 Sep, 10 Oct, 17 Oct, 31 Oct, 7 Nov, 21 Nov, 12 Dec
2019: 13 Apr, 27 Apr, 18 May, 8 Jun, 29 Jun, 6 Jul, 20 Jul, 27 Jul, 10 Aug, 17 Aug, 7 Sep, 21 Sep, 19 Oct, 26 Oct, 2 Nov, 9 Nov, 23 Nov, 12 Dec
2020: 29 Feb, 21 Mar, 25 Apr, 16 May, 6 Jun, 27 Jun, 4 Jul, 11 Jul, 18 Jul, 25 Jul, 8 Aug, 15 Aug, 29 Aug, 5 Sep, 12 Sep, 19 Sep, 26 Sep, 10 Oct, 17 Oct, 31 Oct, 7 Nov, 21 Nov, 12 Dec
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Overland or need help finding a holiday to suit you we're very happy to help.
Practicalities
On a Cairo to Cape Town overland tour, you can definitely expect to be roughing it for the most part. Wild camping, or bush camps with limited toilet facilities are the norm, and by the time you reach the finish line, you’ll be an expert at setting up tents, collecting water, and choosing food at local markets.
Roads can be dusty, waterlogged, pitted with potholes or blocked by bad tempered buffalo, making progress slow. But travel in Africa is rarely fast, and its unpredictable nature should be embraced. The luxury comes from the experiences you’ll have as you travel, such as sleeping beneath a starry African sky every night. That is something that never, ever gets boring.
More about Overland
Jump aboard our overland holidays travel guide to find out all about what this kind of holiday involves, and get ready to unleash the explorer within.
Our exciting guide to the best overland tour routes is stuffed with useful info on what to expect, but don’t forget our helpdesk team can go into much more detail if you need it.
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All our overland guides. Find all of our overland guides in one place; includes all rail and self-drive holidays as well as trips using a combination of transport; or see our regional overland trips.
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Photo credits: [Page banner: Phil Whitehouse] [Intro: Ferran Feixas]
[Itinerary & highlights: ray rui]
[Practicalities 1: Gopal Vijayaraghavan]
[Practicalities 2: Maxim Medvedev]
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