2027 Southern Africa, Zimbabwe & Botswana inc. Chobe National Park – September

An early morning departure for Sydney from Auckland. On arrival in Sydney, we transfer to our flight to Johannesburg, arriving late afternoon. After clearing Customs and Immigration formalities, we are met and transferred to our hotel, located in the exclusive Rosebank area for a 2-night stay.

Enjoy a day tour of Johannesburg city and the South-Western Townships, otherwise known as Soweto. On this day tour, we are treated to various sights and sounds of Soweto including Nelson Mandela House, the Apartheid Museum, as well as enjoying our first dinner together this evening.

After breakfast, we are transferred by coach back to the airport in time to join a short flight to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. We are met on arrival and transferred to our hotel for a two-night stay. This evening enjoy a Dinner & Drum Show at The Boma.

This morning, we enjoy a guided tour of Victoria Falls. Our local guide enlightens us on the facts and history along the way, as we are guided around the falls. It is a truly awe-inspiring experience – we are able to view the largest falling sheet of water in the world – the sight, the sound, the smell, the humbling feeling that here indeed is Nature’s supreme masterpiece. For those that wish, there is time for a helicopter flight over the falls at the conclusion of our guided tour (additional cost). In the afternoon, we enjoy a sundowner cruise on the great Zambezi River.

This morning we travel by road (100kms) to Kasane, Botswana – gateway to the Chobe National Park. We are met on arrival and transferred to our hotel situated on the banks of the mighty Chobe River. Here we will enjoy a three-night stay with daily game viewing activities.

We enjoy a full day in Chobe National Park with two game viewing activities today. This might include an early morning wake up call to head into the Chobe National Park in search of the Big 5! Or out on the river for a cruise as we enjoy viewing the animals on the banks of the river. Your game viewing schedule will be confirmed on check-in.

We enjoy another full day in Chobe National Park with two game viewing activities.

After breakfast we travel to Kasane Airport in time for our flight to Johannesburg.  On arrival, we overnight at Johannesburg Airport.

This morning, we depart Johannesburg and travel by coach to the Mpumalanga Province. This is approximately a 6-hour drive through both interesting and scenic countryside.

Highlights include a short visit to the Blyde River Canyon, Three Rondavels, Bourke’s Luck Potholes and God’s Window. We arrive at our accommodation located just 100m from the Paul Kruger Gate of the National Park. This is our base for the next three nights.

Today we depart our hotel early to enjoy a full day game drive within Kruger National Park. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the South African Lowveld, the park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies. Kruger is home to an impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals.

Later this evening, return to our accommodation.

We enjoy another full day in Kruger National Park with a full day game drive.

Enjoy a morning at leisure before we check out of our hotel and transfer to Kruger Airport in time to catch our flight to Port Elizabeth, via Johannesburg. We arrive mid-afternoon and are transferred to our hotel for an overnight stay. Dinner tonight is at a local restaurant.

After breakfast, we board our coach and journey along the Garden Route, passing through the Tsitsikama Forest—an area of dense indigenous woodland famous for its towering yellowwood and stinkwood trees, lush ferns, clear streams, abundant birdlife, and scenic walking trails. We visit Tsitsikama National Park, which stretches along 10km of dramatic, rugged coastline, featuring towering cliffs, secluded beaches, and verdant forest lining the river valleys. Our journey continues via Plettenberg Bay, an upmarket coastal resort known for its three beautiful beaches, before arriving in the popular seaside town of Knysna. Founded by George Rex, reputed to be the illegitimate son of King George III, Knysna is set on a tranquil lagoon, with its entrance framed by two striking headlands known as The Heads. We stay for two nights on the Knysna Quays Waterfront, within easy reach of shops, restaurants, and nightlife. This evening, we enjoy dinner at a local restaurant

Knysna is one of the southern Cape’s most popular holiday destinations, located between lush forests and the sheltered waters of the lagoon. This morning, after a leisurely breakfast, we are taken on a tour of the Featherbed Nature Reserve, including lunch. We start with a 25-minute ferry ride during which a local guide shares fascinating tales about the lagoon, the shipping industry and oyster cultivation. On arrival at the reserve, we join a unimog-drawn trailer and drive up to the top of the reserve. While stopping at a scenic lookout point, our specialist guides share with us some fascinating tales about Knysna and the surrounding area while we enjoy the panoramic views.  The remainder of the day is at leisure.

This morning, we depart Knysna and travel to Oudtshoorn via Mossel Bay. Mossel Bay is historically significant as the site where Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Dias first landed in 1488, and today it is a popular holiday destination. We then continue to the Cango Caves for a guided tour. Widely regarded as one of South Africa’s most impressive natural attractions, these remarkable calcite caves feature a spectacular underground world of stalactites and stalagmites. On arrival in Oudtshoorn, we check in to our lodge for a two night stay.

Wake early this morning for a fascinating Meerkat Safari, offering a wonderful opportunity to observe these charming creatures in their natural habitat. Accompanied by an experienced ranger, travel by safari vehicle to the meerkat burrows, keeping an eye out for some of the reserve’s other wildlife along the way. As dawn breaks, watch as the meerkats emerge from their burrows to begin their day, while your ranger shares interesting insights into their behaviour and social habits.

Return to the lodge for breakfast, with the remainder of the day at leisure to relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of the lodge. Perhaps unwind by the pool, take in the views across the waterhole, or choose to join one of the other optional activities available.

Our tour today sees us first at the Table Mountain lower cable station.  Weather permitting, we board the cable car for a ride to the top of the mountain.  Table Mountain is probably the most famous landmark in Cape Town, and offers spectacular views that stretch from Table Bay to False Bay and around the mountain to Hout Bay.  On a clear day, one can see right across the Cape Flats to the Hottentots Holland Mountain range.  It also offers a restaurant, from where you can enjoy the view.  Return to central Cape Town for a tour of the mother city.  Further highlights include the South African Museum – a window on the world of natural history and the Castle of Good Hope, built by the Dutch in 1666 and the oldest surviving building in South Africa. We also visit the Malay Quarter, which is a living cultural museum and home to the oldest mosque in the Southern Hemisphere. The remainder of the afternoon is at leisure.

Our tour today sees us first at the Table Mountain lower cable station. Weather permitting, we board the cable car for a ride to the top of the mountain. Table Mountain is probably the most famous landmark in Cape Town, and offers spectacular views that stretch from Table Bay to False Bay and around the mountain to Hout Bay. On a clear day, one can see right across the Cape Flats to the Hottentots Holland Mountain range.  It also offers a restaurant, from where you can enjoy the view.  Return to central Cape Town for a tour of the mother city.  Further highlights include the South African Museum – a window on the world of natural history and the Castle of Good Hope, built by the Dutch in 1666 and the oldest surviving building in South Africa. We also visit the Malay Quarter, which is a living cultural museum and home to the oldest mosque in the Southern Hemisphere. The remainder of the afternoon is at leisure.

This morning, our full day tour commences as we make our way down to Cape Point via rugged coastlines, beautiful gardens and quaint villages. The Atlantic Seaboard stretches along Sea Point, Bantry Bay, Clifton and Camps Bay where some of Cape Town’s best beaches are found. The road follows the coastline between the mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. Continuing along the coast, we enter the Cape of Good Hope section of the Table Mountain National Park and visit the Nature Reserve with its natural beauty and abundance of indigenous flora and fauna. We then go to Cape Point, the extreme tip of the Cape Peninsula where you may take a funicular trip to the lighthouse look-out point at the top of the cliffs. Lunch is enjoyed in Simon’s town, at a local restaurant. On the journey back to the hotel we visit Boulders Beach, famous for its African penguins and also the world renowned Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain.

Following breakfast, we will set out by ferry to Robben Island. The island has a long and fascinating history and is best known as the site of a maximum security prison where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were incarcerated during apartheid. What survives on the island from its episodic history are 17th century quarries, the tomb of Hadije Kramat who died in 1755, 19th century ‘village’ administrative buildings including a chapel and parsonage, small lighthouse, the lepers’ church, the only remains of a leper colony, derelict World War II military structures around the harbour and the stark and functional maximum-security prison of the Apartheid period began in the 1960s. There is time to wander the museum, before returning by ferry this afternoon. Remainder of the day at leisure.

We have a full day tour of Cape Winelands today. Visit the city of Paarl, the largest town in the district with many well-maintained mansions and pretty Cape Dutch cottages. Stellenbosch, the second oldest town in South Africa, is famous for its university, tree lined streets and historical architecture, and is at the centre of the wealthy wine-growing area. Franschoek is the gourmet capital, surrounded by majestic mountains culminating in an awe-inspiring pass. Here, we visit the Huguenot Monument and Museum documenting their history. We finish the tour with a final dinner at a local wine estate.

Sadly, it is time to farewell Cape Town this morning as we are transferred by coach to the airport, in time to join our flight to Johannesburg where we will connect with our international flight home via Sydney.

Our flight arrives in Sydney early afternoon, with time to connect with a late afternoon flight to Auckland.