South Africa

Specials / Self-drive / Family / Walking / Romance / General Tours
Horse Safaris / Camping Tours / Victoria Falls extension

Magical Mountains, Hidden Kingdom,
Cape Town and Kruger

DAY 1 - SATURDAY
Scheduled South African Airways flight from New York / Atlanta to Johannesburg

DAY 2 - SUNDAY
Arrive in Johannesburg today, where our representative meets you. Transfer to your hotel.Rosebank Hotel Accommodations in a standard room for 2 nights. Breakfast included. Situated in the bustling suburb of Rosebank. Spend the remainder of today relaxing after your international flight. Your hotel is conveniently located within easy walking distance of the Rosebank Mall, home to several boutiques, restaurants as well as an African craft market. We recommend some shopping this morning!

Later today, meet your local guide and depart on a half-day tour to the Apartheid Museum. Apartheid was dismantled a decade ago, but its full horror lives on in a stark white building in Johannesburg. It's called the Apartheid Museum, and it takes visitors on a fascinating, horrifying, humbling and ultimately inspiring journey from the dark days of 'whites only' privilege, through to Nelson Mandela's historic release from prison. Get a small idea of what it was like to have your entire life determined by your skin color. Documentary pieces of film, texts, sound clips and live accounts recapture life in the old South Africa. It's a journey you're unlikely to forget in a hurry. Return to your hotel later this afternoon.

DAY 3 - MONDAY (B) SOWETO TOUR
This morning at 8:30 AM, meet your local guide and depart on a morning tour of Soweto. We take you through the streets of the sprawling township of Soweto, scene of the tragic riots of 1976. Johannesburg's twin city populated exclusively by black people is Soweto (an acronym for southwestern Townships). It is the largest black township in the country consisting of 26 townships, each of which was designed to be independent. The township of Soweto as a whole could be called multiracial, in the sense that its residents are from all the tribes in South Africa. The type of housing ranges from shacks to large mansions and there is one street where you can find the houses of two Nobel Peace Prizewinners; Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Also located in Soweto is the Baragwanath Hospital, thought to be the largest hospital in the southern hemisphere but despite this, almost 85% of the local residents still consult traditional healers who concoct medicines in their age old tradition. After a lunch stop, return to your hotel.

DAY 4 - TUESDAY (B,D) DRAKENSBERG MOUNTAINS
Today we depart on an escorted tour - meet your local guide at your hotel after an early breakfast and check out. We leave Johannesburg at 7:00 AM and head towards the Drakensberg range of mountains. We stop at the most beautiful spot amid these 'dragon' peaks, the World Heritage Site of Giant's Castle. Spend the afternoon enjoying the stunning scenery and fresh, mountain air. Historic Giant's Castle Game Reserve, home of the eland and the majestic bearded vulture, lies in the Central Berg region of the Ukhahlamba Drakensberg Park, a World Heritage Site. Giant's Castle camp is situated on a gassy plateau among the deep valleys running down from the face of the High Drakensberg, offering glorious views for hikers and mountain climbers. Superb rock art is high among its special attractions. The renowned vulture restaurant is open in winter for visitors to watch bearded vultures and other endangered species feeding. Visit the Main Caves Museum for fascinating insight into the past lifestyle of the San people.
Giant's Castle Camp. Accommodations in a standard room for 2 nights. Dinner and Breakfast included.

DAY 5 - WEDNESDAY (B,D) BUSHMAN PAINTINGS
After breakfast, we set off on a leisurely three-kilometer roundtrip hike to the caves, which were once home to South Africa's earliest inhabitants, the San people, better known as bushmen. Enjoy a guided tour of the rock paintings, which remain on the cave walls as clues to their simple existence. (Average level of fitness required.) Spend the rest of the day at leisure or take to the mountains again for an afternoon hike

DAY 6 - THURSDAY (B,L,D) SANI PASS
Armed with our padkos (road food) we leave the camp in the early morning and head south towards the village of Underberg at the foot of the mountains. Here we transfer to 4x4 vehicles and begin climbing the highest vehicle pass in Southern Africa. The views from Sani Pass are utterly spectacular and invariably make a lasting impression on first-timers. At the top is the border post between South Africa and Lesotho, thus passports are a must. Once inside Lesotho we visit a Sotho tribal village, and interact with the local people before enjoying a hearty lunch at the highest pub in Africa. Perched right near the edge of the mountain, it has few rivals in terms of pub views. Thus fortified, we wind our way back down the mountain and spend the night in a nearby hotel.
Sani Pass Hotel Accommodations in a standard room for 1 night. Dinner and Breakfast included.

DAY 7 - FRIDAY (B) MIDLANDS MEANDER
After breakfast, we make our way to Durban via the quaint art and craft stores and farmer's markets of the Midlands Meander route, arriving late afternoon. Check in at the Edward Hotel, and spend the afternoon exploring the nearby beaches and craft markets. Durban is a city of fascinating contrasts, shaped by the early Colonial settlers, the indigenous Zulu population and the Indians who arrived as indentured laborers in the 19th Century. In Durban's CBD, for example, an imposing mosque shares the skyline with a Catholic cathedral, and a Zulu dressed in skins would attract no more attention to himself than an Indian woman resplendent in a silk sari.
Edward Hotel. Accommodations in a standard room for 2 nights. Breakfast included.

DAY 8 - SATURDAY (B) PHOENIX RISING TOUR
Meet your local guide and depart on a half-day tour. We pass the orderly, leafy suburbs, squatter camps and the monopoly-type tiny new houses of the Cato Manor housing estates en route to Inanda. Once the home of the Natal Native Congress, it then became the African National Congress base. We visit the Ghandi Settlement, where Mahatma Ghandi led his passive resistance movement, and then move on to Shembe churches, founded by the prophet Isaiah Shembe and today one of the largest churches in South Africa. Next we visit the Ohlange School, the first school started by John Dube, founding father of the African National Congress. It was here that Nelson Mandela cast his first vote in 1994 as the democratic South Africa was born. From here we travel to Inanda Seminary Girls School, which is funded by various international churches, before visiting a local shebeen to interact with the local community. We arrive back in Durban at about 1:00 PM. Spend the remainder of the afternoon at leisure.

DAY 9 - SUNDAY (B) DURBAN / CAPE TOWN
Check out after breakfast this morning, and transfer to Durban Airport.Scheduled South African Airways flight from Durban to Cape Town Upon arrival in Cape Town, our representative transfers you to your hotel, situated in scenic Bantry Bay. Cape Town is the most fabulously diverse and vibrant city; from its achingly beautiful natural attributes to its colorful culture; decadent wine farms and captivating history - it's tourist heaven! Check in, and then spend some time exploring on your own. The V&A Waterfront is easily accessible by shuttle bus. Situated between Robben Island and Table Mountain in the heart of Cape Town's working harbor, the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront has become South Africa's most visited destination. Set against a backdrop of magnificent sea and mountain views, exciting shopping and entertainment venues are intermingled with imaginative office locations, world-class hotels and luxury apartments in the residential marina.
Protea President Hotel.Accommodations in a standard room for 3 nights. Breakfast included.

DAY 10 - MONDAY (B) FULL DAY PENINSULA TOUR
Today depart on a full day tour of the Cape Peninsula. See for yourself how this spectacular southern tip of Africa became known as the 'Fairest Cape'. The tour begins with a stroll through the famous Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Then drive past the pristine beaches of Camps Bay, Clifton and Llandudno - currently the hottest real estate in the world - to Hout Bay, a functioning harbor and heart of the local crayfish industry (optional Seal Island cruise, time permitting). After a stop for lunch (own account), it's on to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve and its scenic viewing point. The spectacular sea and mountain views are reason enough to make the 66km trip from Cape Town. Amid the rocky landscape - home to mountain zebra, eland and ostriches - blooms magnificent Cape flora. Continue along the coastline to the beautiful Boulders Beach where you can sit among a colony of penguins. Our last stop is the naval port of Simon's Town, the country's third oldest European settlement.

DAY 11 - TUESDAY (B) FULL DAY WINELANDS TOUR
Escape to the beauty and tranquillity of the Paarl, Franschhoek and Stellenbosch winelands. Our first stop is the Afrikaans Language Monument, perched on Paarl Rock, which offers sweeping views of the surrounding area. We then continue onto wineries of well-known estates, to sample wines of merit, before visiting the Huguenot Monument and Museum in Franschhoek, to discover the origins of this world-renowned wine-producing region. Lunch in one of the many fine restaurants in either Franschhoek or Stellenbosch. Don't miss the world-famous 19th century-style general dealer in Stellenbosch's Dorp Street - Oom Samie se Winkel. Return to Cape Town this afternoon.

DAY 12 - WEDNESDAY (B,D) CAPE TOWN - KRUGER NATIONAL PARK
After breakfast this morning transfer to the Cape Town Airport. Scheduled South African Airways flight from Cape Town to Kruger-Mpumalanga. Upon your arrival at Kruger Airport, you will be met and transferred to Pretoriuskop Rest Camp, situated in the southern part of the World Famous Kruger National Park. This southern area of Kruger is very accessible and most visitors enter the park at one of the southern gates or visit a private reserve along the park borders. There is plenty of game to be found and fabulous colorful birds, some of which eat out of your hands at the picnic sites. But be watchful, as while you are feeding a bird, a vervet monkey might come up behind you and steal your sandwiches. There is a great diversity of habitats within Kruger National Park and it is well worth buying one of the guide books on sale at all the rest camp shops and elsewhere to enhance your game viewing experience. Check in at the rest camp and then depart on an open vehicle safari in this magnificent Park. This evening dinner is served at the local Rest Camp Restaurant.
Pretoriuskop Rest Camp Accommodations have been reserved in a standard room for 2 nights. Dinner and Breakfast included.

DAY 13 - THURSDAY (B,D) KRUGER NATIONAL PARK
This morning depart on a game drive in the Kruger National Park. The Kruger National Park is one of the top wildlife parks in the world. It is home not only to the "big five", but to 507 bird species, 336 trees, 147 mammals, 114 reptiles, 49 fish and 34 amphibian species. The density of game in the park is startling and though you will find an even distribution along the park, certain animals do seem to prefer specific regions. Return to your camp at midday for a short siesta, during the hottest part of the day. Later this afternoon, depart once again on an open vehicle safari. This evening return to your camp, and freshen up before enjoying dinner at the Rest Camp Restaurant.

DAY 14 - FRIDAY (B)
After breakfast this morning you will be met and transferred to Kruger Mpumalanga Airport. Scheduled South African Airways flight from Kruger-Mpumalanga to Johannesburg.
Scheduled South African Airways flight from Johannesburg to New York / Atlanta.

DAY 15 - FRIDAY
End of arrangements

Price per person double occupancy:
February 1 - 28, 2005 - $3,470 . single supp. = $674
March 1 - May 31, 2005- $3,526. single supp. = $674
June 1 - August 31, 2005 - $3,814. single supp = $674
September 1 - September 30, 2005- $3,767. single supp = $751
October 1 - October 31, 2005 - $3,677. single supp = $751
tax not included in prices above.

Note: Travel must start and end between the dates shown.