Best of South Africa with optional extension to Victoria Falls

June 18th - 28th
 $4,795 with game drives, Air and 9-nights deluxe accommodations

Come with us as we explore the best of South Africa including Cape Town, Pilgrim’s Rest, Panorama Route, Elephant Plains Game Lodge and Kruger National Park - one of the best Big Game 5 viewing in the country!

ITINERARY:

June 18: Board our International Flight to Johannesburg via South African Airways from LAX. Dulles from D.C. is optional gateway.

June 19: Arrival at Johannesburg

On arrival late afternoon, you will be met by your coach and guide who will accompany you to your hotel

June 20: Johannesburg to Pilgrim’s Rest

After breakfast tour the town of Pretoria and  a lunch stop will be made at the small town of Dullstroom (lunch for own account).

Travel on to Robbers Pass and to Pilgrim’s Rest. Pilgrim’s rest dates back to the first gold rush in South Africa. You will enjoy this unique restored Victorian village. Your lodging for the night is at The Royal Hotel , one of the main features of the historic town of Pilgrim's Rest. The town was declared a gold field in 1873, soon after Alec 'Wheelbarrow' Patterson had found gold deposits in the Pilgrim's Creek and a huge gold-rush followed. Please keep in mind that although very comfortable this hotel is not supposed to be a modern day western style five star hotel - you are transformed back 200 years and experience life as the more wealthy residents of Pilgrim's Rest lived it

[Overnight: The Royal Hotel – 1 night – Dinner/Bed/Breakfast

 June 21 to 24: Pilgrim’s Rest to Elephant Plains Game Lodge

After breakfast depart for Elephant Plains Game Lodge. Travel via the beautiful Panorama route with stops to enjoy the views over the Blyde river Canyon. Elephant Plains is located in the remote northern section of the  Sabi Game Reserve - right against the northern boundary of the Reserve. The latter is a 65 000Ha game reserve that consists of various private reserves - all with open borders to each other. The greater reserve is fenced but shares a 50km open border with the huge  Kruger national Park (20 000 square kilometres). This makes it part of a huge ecosystem. The animals you will see during game drives literally have the freedom to walk hundreds of miles without interference. The Reserve is home to the  Big 5  (lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino & elephant). Of these rhino is not often observed in the northern sections of Sabi Sand, but you have a very good chance of seeing rhino at your next Lodge. Keep in mind that while a myriad of species is found in Sabi Sand, their movements are not restricted and controlled. Therefore, sighting a specific species can never be guaranteed. However, we'll be very surprised if you don't see at least four of the big five during your stay.

Elephant Plains Lodge is owned by the Swart family. The lodge consists of the original family rondavels (round thatched buildings), that now house the five spacious standard rooms (each in its own rondavel), as well a newer section that was added in 2003 and contains the boma (traditional open-roofed enclosure with fire pit), dining room, lounge & bar, wine cellar, curious shop, swimming pool and six luxury rooms. The standard rooms are very comfortable, airy and well suited to the Lowveld's hot and dry climate. The luxury rooms are also thatched, as is the rest of the lodge, but built more to modern lodge trends, e.g. access paths leads past the back for privacy, the rooms' location on the riverbank provide views over the riverbed and floodplain beyond, each chalet is glass-fronted to enhance views and bring nature inside, each has its own private deck, a lounge, air-conditioning, etc.

Game drives are normally done nine to a vehicle at this lodge, but we have made arrangements to seat you six to a vehicle.

You also have the option of going on guided game walks in-between game drives - which you can arrange with your ranger.

Spend three nights at the Game Lodge. Enjoy wonderful game viewing in an unspoilt African environment

Overnight: Elephant Plains Game Lodge – 3 nights – All meals except for soft drinks and alcoholic bev.

 June 24: Elephant Plains  to Johannesburg

Enjoy your last morning and game drive at Elephants Plains before departing by plane from Elephant Plains for Johannesburg.

24 June 2009 / Arrival in Cape Town

 Upon arrival in Cape Town, you will be met off your flight and transferred to your hotel.

 

Southern Sun Cullinan

 

Situated at the entrance to the exciting V&A Waterfront, The Cullinan offers views of Table Mountain, the bustling harbor, the Waterfront and the city. The hotel complements the rich, cultural heritage of Cape Town with a timeless architectural tradition.  Every aspect of the hotel denotes the special care that it offers in providing guests with efficient and discreet service. Elegance and style is evident in the marbled foyer, with its majestic columns and lavish decor, rich furnishings and intricate metalwork.  The guest rooms are spacious with luxury bathrooms, and offer views of either Table Mountain or the Waterfront. This hotel provides a full range of services - from the elegant breakfast room and a la carte restaurant, to the ladies' cocktail bar.  For the health conscious, the hotel has its own gym and for those who prefer a fresh water dip to the cold Atlantic Ocean, the outdoor pool is ideal. Guests who choose to stay at The Cullinan are assured of exceptionally good value and individual recognition

 Evening at leisure

 Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner (excl drinks) 

 

  25 June 2009 / Cape TownCape Town Waterfront and harbour

 Today enjoy a Cape Town City Tour, exploring the famous Table Mountain, the history with a visit to the SA Museum & Cape Castle, the culture with a visit through the Malay Quarters and to the amazing Street Wires Workshop, then to the Diamond Works and the scenic Kirstenbosch Gardens. Today experience a bit of everything, which South Africa is about.

 Cape Town with Table Mountain from Table Bay at sunsetTable Mountain - Since the first person laid eyes on Table Mountain, it has exerted its powerful and charismatic pull, enchanting and drawing any and all who fall under its spell. The best views of Cape Town are seen from the top of Table Mountain.  The Cableway summit is under 10 minutes and the cable car’s rotating floor ensures that all passengers have an aerial view of the city.

 SA Museum - The South African Museum is a window on the world of natural history, showcasing the bounty of nature, both present and past.  Exhibitions and dioramas display hundreds of different species – inhabitants of land, sea or air – enabling visitors to view, under a single roof, creatures as diverse as dinosaurs, mammals, coelacanths, bats or even the fossilized remains of species from 250 million years ago.  In the popular Discovery Room, children can discover nature by touch, feel and interaction.

 The Cape Castle is the oldest surviving building in South Africa. Built between 1666 and 1679, this pentagonal fortification replaced a small clay and timber fort built by Commander Jan van Riebeeck in 1652 upon establishing a maritime replenishment station art the Cape of Good Hope for the Dutch East India Company, better known as the VOC (Verenigde Oos-Indische Compagnie). The Cape of Good Hope houses the regional headquarters of the South African Army in the Western Cape, the famous William Fehr Collection of historic artworks, the Castle Military Museum and ceremonial facilities for traditional Cape Regiments.

 Malay Quarter - A look at the picturesque "Malay Quarter", a living cultural museum and home to the oldest mosque in the Southern Hemisphere. We discover the unique culture, lifestyle and personality of the Cape Muslim community and their contribution to South Africa's development. The Bo-Kaap, with its small, but lovingly restored houses, is home to many of Cape Town's Malay families. Here Islam is the dominant religion. Several old Mosques serve the community, and the chanting of the muezzin from the mosque tower calls the faithful to prayer five times a day.

Streetwires: Started in 2000 with two artists and three founders, Streetwires is a business with a social mission that is tackling the problems of unemployment and poverty in our country head on. Focusing on the unique and dynamic genre of wire art, our Proudly South African project is providing the skills training, support and raw materials necessary to enable over 100 formerly unemployed men and women to channel their natural creative energies into this vibrant art form. Using the core tenets of up-liftment, sustainability and innovation as our guide, we are seeking in Street wires to create a microcosm of what we are striving for in South Africa - individuals, taking responsibility for their destiny, bringing their diverse skills together and working to build their future and the future of the country we love. Street wire art, unique to Southern Africa and largely unavailable beyond our borders, is a living testimony to the industriousness and creative spirit of our people. Born in the shanty towns and dusty back roads and baptized on the streets, today this genre is a thriving and legitimate art form in its own right, with many 'wiremasters' making a living selling their creations not only on street corners and at craft markets, but also in up market shops and galleries around the world.

Like our people, each handcrafted piece is special in its own way, and each one has its own story to tell, while the scope for training, development and upliftment is enormous. In addition, most wire art lends itself readily to being branded, thereby increasing the appeal of these products for promotional purposes and corporate gifts, an area that Streetwires has pioneered.

 Cape Town Diamond Works: Established in October 2001, our vision was to create a jewellery destination at which tourists could discover the art of diamond cutting, witness the creation of individual pieces and purchase the finished product, all while in an inviting and relaxed environment. The Diamond Works is an enlightening and exciting experience for tourists both young and old. A young team of experienced, multi-lingual jewellery consultants provide a friendly and relaxed environment for customers.

 Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is world-renowned for the beauty and diversity of the Cape flora it displays and for the magnificence of its setting against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain. Kirstenbosch grows only indigenous South African plants. The estate covers 528 hectares and supports a diverse flora and natural forest. The cultivated garden (36 hectares) displays collections of South African plants, particularly those from the winter rainfall region of the country.

 Lunch can be taken in en-route (for own account)

 Return to the hotel in the late afternoon.

Welcome Dinner

This evening you will be collected from your hotel and transferred to the Victoria & Alfred Hotel, to a local but top class restaurant. Return to the hotel after dinner. Enjoy the welcome dinner, where you will also have the opportunity for the guide to take you through the itinerary or answer any questions you might have.

Services Included / Coach & guide services: Full day touring, Entrance fees to Table Mountain, SA Museum, Cape Castle, StreetWires donation, Kirstenbosch Meals 

 

  26 June 2009 / Cape Town

 This morning after breakfast, you will be collected from the hotel for an exciting full day tour to the Cape Point and surrounding areas. First you will travel to the Cape Point Nature Reserve, followed with a visit to the Cape Point Ostrich Farm including a guided tour. Then you will continue to Simonstown for lunch at an awesome seafood restaurant. Afterwards, enjoy a visit to the penguins at Boulder Beach, where you can seem them in their natural environment. Next is a scenic drive via Chapman's Peak Drive (subject to road being open) to Hout Bay. Here you will enjoy a boat trip to Seal Island. Then return to Cape Town.

 Cape Point - a highlight on our Cape Town ToursCape Point: Situated at the junction of two of earth's most contrasting water masses - the cold Benguela current on the West Coast and the warm Agulhas current on the East Coast, the Cape of Good Hope is popularly perceived as the meeting point of the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans. Guests will take the funicular to the vantage point from where they will be able to witness the “meeting of the two oceans” (legendary). Extending along 40km of coastline, this "fynbos" plateau accommodates a variety of antelope and abundant bird life.

 The "Cape Point Ostrich Farm" is a productive breeding farm. A family-run business, which in it's existing form, was acknowledged in 1996. Parts of the farm buildings have originated in the 19. Century. They were built in the well-known "Cape Dutch" style.

Being a breeding farm, everything is done to comfort and accommodate 40 Ostrich pairs. They live in 40 camps and ensure that there are always plenty of eggs to incubate.

 Continue to Simonstown. Here you will have lunch at Berthas Restaurant (or Similar), which is a delicious seafood restaurant.

Jackass penguins in SimonstownAfter lunch a special attraction is the colony of Jackass Penguins at Boulders Beach. For some years now, under the administration of Cape Nature Conservation these cute birds are quite friendly with humans, but they don't want to be touched. Jackass Penguins are the only species of penguin that colonise on the African continent. 100 years ago there were still many of them on the Cape West Coast with its cold waters. The over fishing of the sea and the loss of breeding spots resulted in near extinction of the species. The present stock is still threatened although the colony in Simon's Town has grown, in a few years, from 1500 to 3500 individuals.

Hout Bay Chapman's Peak Drive is one of the most spectacular coastal roads in South Africa. It starts at the picturesque fishing harbour of Hout Bay and then winds up to Chapman's Point, revealing breathtaking views of the sandy bays down below, until the road reaches sea level again at Noordhoek. Hout Bay is one of the most beautiful and popular places on the Cape Peninsula and a highlight of any visit to Cape Town. The access road that runs from Camps Bay, offers a beautiful drive all along the sea. The town lays picturesquely in a wind-protected bay, surrounded in the west by the Karbonkel Mountain, the famous Mount Sentinel as the outpost in the sea and in the east, by the Constantia Mountains and Chapman's Peak. Enjoy a boat ride from the harbour to Seal Island.

 Return to the hotel in the late afternoon. The evening is at your leisure.

Services Included /

Coach & guide services: Full day touring,  Entrance fees to Cape Point N.R, funicular, Ostrich Farm Tour, Boulders Beach, Chapman's Peak Dr, Seal Island

 Meals Included: Breakfast and lunch (excl drinks)

 

 27 June 2009 / Cape Town

 Today enjoy a stunning scenic tour into the Cape Winelands, which is also full of South African history, beautiful scenery and most of all of superb world-class wines.  Visit the towns of Paarl, Franschhoek and Stellenbosch and enjoy lunch on a wonderful wine estate, as well as 2 wine tasting along the way, on local wine estates.

Oude Pastorie Paarl Paarl - with its now over 75.000 inhabitants, is today the biggest town in the Cape Winelands. It is, like most of the towns in the region, a prosperous community with many well maintained mansions, pretty Cape Dutch houses, beautiful gardens and old oak trees. There are many wine estates situated in the valleys, which are among the best in the country. Paarl is also known for its culture and home to the Afrikaans language. Visit the Taal Museum.

 Franschhoek -The Gourmet Capital, surrounded by majestic mountains culminating in an awe-inspiring pass, provides added value to the food and wine experience. Visit the Huguenot monument, which is constructed from granite and was inaugurated on the 250th anniversary of the Huguenots' arrival. The three arches symbolise the Holy Trinity. The woman in front holds a bible in her hand and the torn chain symbolises the liberation from religious oppression. In the Huguenot Memorial Museum next to the monument the history of the Huguenots is documented.

Stellenbosch – the second oldest town in South Africa, was developed from a settlement of Dutch immigrants to whom arable land on the banks of the Eerste River (first river) was given. Nowadays, Stellenbosch has some 50,000 inhabitants and is the centre of the wealthy wine-growing area of the Cape. The town is home to one of the most famous universities of South Africa and consists of tree lined streets and historical architecture. Here visit the Dorps Museum.

 The Spier Tasting is a more relaxed introduction to five wines from Spier’s Discover and Classic ranges. And for the more inquisitive guest there’s the Winelands Select Tasting, which takes place in our historic tasting room. This seated experience provides an introduction to the specifics of wine tasting technique and appreciation. Selections of first reserve and/or limited release wines are tasted.

Spier has made land available to a group of hand-raised cheetahs in the care of the Cheetah Outreach Programme. Learn more about these incredible cats from a distance, or get up close and personal and even step inside an enclosure. Entrance donations help fund the Cheetah Outreach Programme. Spier is also home to Eagle Encounters Raptor Rehabilitation Centre. The long-term vision of the Eagle Encounters project is that the organisations helps to preserve the eco-environment by protecting birds of prey through the re-release of rehabilitated birds back into the wild, and through creating community awareness of birds of prey. Watch how ancient falconry techniques are used to train them to hunt. Flying demonstrations are held daily. Conferencing, school and function packages are available.

Services Included: Coach & guide services: Full day touring, Entrance fees to Taal Monument, Huguenot Memorial, Dorps Museum, 2x wine tastings, Spier Cheetah tour.

Meals Included: Breakfast and Lunch (excl drinks) 

 

 28 June 2009 / Cape Town

 Afternoon transfer to Cape Town International for Domestic flight to Johannesburg. And then your international flight home.

 Price includes:

  • ·      Luxury air conditioned coach with a driver and guide  (Johannesburg to Elephants Plains)

  • ·      Accommodation and meals as per itinerary

  • ·      Flight Elephant Plains to private airstrip to Johannesburg

·    Not included:

  • ·      Tips

  • ·      Meals not indicated

  • ·      Departure tax of $111 and fuel surcharge of aprox $388 (includes both international & domestic portions of  the flight).

Optional Extensions: CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT THE OPTIONAL EXTENSION TO VICTORIA FALLS

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