16 Day Highlights of South Africa Northbound Scheduled Tour

Day 1: Day of arrival - Cape Town

Destination: Cape Town
Accomodation: Inn on the Square Hotel
Meals included: none
Attractions include: Cape Town .

Welcome to South Africa! Transfer from Cape Town International Airport to your hotel, The Inn on the Square, right in the centre of Cape Town and located on the historic and bustling Greenmarket Square.

Cape Town is a truly remarkable city, it is regularly ranked amongst the top cities to visit in the world in publications such as Condé Nast Traveller and similar. One could stay for weeks and still not experience all that the city has to offer.

The arrival time of your inbound flight will determine the program for the day. You may decide to leave the day open in order to recuperate from your flight, or you may elect one of the tour options explained in ‘Day 2’ below.

You’ll get to meet your tour guide and the other tour group members in the hotel at 18:30. Thereafter you can either enjoy dinner at the hotel or head out into Cape Town. The location of your hotel brings you within easy reach of a variety of restaurants, nightlife and historic places in the city.

Note: The airport transfer is for your own account and should be arranged separately. Africa Deluxe Tours will gladly assist you with this.

Extending your Cape Town stay: Should you be scheduled to arrive a day or two earlier than the departure date of the tour, we’ll gladly assist you with all arrangements - including accommodation and touring.

Day 2: Full day at leisure - Cape Town

Destination: Cape Town
Accomodation: Inn on the Square Hotel
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Cape Town .

Today, you have the opportunity of exploring some of greater Cape Town's attractions (own account).

Consult our 'tour finder' (see left menu) or go to the 'Tours & Safaris' link at the top of this page and click on 'Day Tours' in order to view a range of possible half-day and full-day touring options in and around Cape Town.

If you choose not to extend your Cape Town stay we'd advise that you choose from one of the following options, the typical tours for a three-day Cape Town stay: Table Mountain & Cape Town City Half Day Tour, The Cape Peninsula Full Day Tour or the Cape Winelands Full Day Tour. You'll find many other options as well by following the links discussed above, or you may of course decide to spend a day on one of Cape Town's spectacular beaches, go shopping or whatever tickles your fancy.

If you do decide to fly into Cape Town early we'll gladly assist with accommodation and touring arrangements for the extra days gained.

Day 3: Cape Town to Stellenbosch via Cape Winelands (± 100Km)

Destination: Stellenbosch
Accomodation: Protea Hotel Stellenbosch
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Cape Winelands , Stellenbosch , Paarl , Paarl wine estates , Afrikaans Language Monument .

After breakfast, you take leave of Cape Town and travel north into the Cape Winelands. Your first destination will be the town of Paarl, situated at the foot of Paarl Mountain. This is the second largest granite outcrop in the world. The mountain is named after huge round boulders at the top that shimmers like pearls (Dutch “paarl”) after rain. You stop at the Afrikaans Language Monument. The monument commemorates the role different communities and languages played in the development of Afrikaans as a South African language.

Visit one of the many excellent wine estates in the Paarl area where you may enjoy a guided wine tasting and lunch (for your own account).

From Paarl you travel through vineyard country to historic Stellenbosch, the main town of the Winelands. Enroute you visit the house that Nelson Mandela lived in at the Drakenstein Correctional Centre (a.k.a. Victor Verster Prison) for the last 3 years of the 27 years total that he spent in prison. The Apartheid Government moved him into one of the houses meant for warders in preparation of his eventual release in 1990.

Stellenbosch is the second oldest town in South Africa and boasts a large number of historic Cape Dutch buildings alongside Oak-lined streets. You do a walking tour of Stellenbosch before you check in at your hotel. Dinner may be enjoyed at one of the hotel's restaurants (for own account).

Day 4: Stellenbosch to Oudtshoorn via Route 62 (± 410 Km)

Destination: Oudtshoorn
Accomodation: Protea Hotel Riempie Estate
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Oudtshoorn , Route 62 , Klipdrift Brandy Distillery , Barrydale , Robertson .

After breakfast you depart for Oudtshoorn in the Klein Karoo (“Little Karoo”). The route takes you through the Huguenot Tunnel and then on to the scenic Route 62. The first part of the route passes through the picturesque Breede River Valley (“Wide River Valley”), which is a wine, fruit and olive producing region.

On reaching the town of Robertson you make a stop at the Klipdrift Brandy Distillery (or similar) for an enjoyable tasting experience. From there your journey takes you to the Kochmanskloof (a kloof is a narrow gorge through the mountains) to enter the semi-arid Klein Karoo. You drive along ever changing landscapes through valleys and among majestic mountains. Along the route you will make a lunch stop (own account).

Route 62 continues through the Huisrivier Pass (House River Pass) and on to Oudtshoorn, also known as the ostrich capital of the world. Check in at your hotel and relax in the country style surroundings of the hotel. Dinner at the hotel (own account).

Day 5: Oudtshoorn to Keurboomstrand (± 160 Km)

Destination: Keurboomstrand
Accomodation: The Dunes Hotel & Resort
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Garden Route , Oudtshoorn ostrich farms , Cango Caves , Knysna , Knysna Estuary , Outeniqua Pass .

You enjoy breakfast and then travel along the Cango valley into the Swartberg Mountain Range to explore the Cango Caves. Enjoy the one hour standard tour of the caves. You will encounter huge naturally formed halls, narrow passageways and drip stone stalagmites and stalactites that were formed over millions of years. Travel back through the valley to make a stop at an ostrich farm for a tour of the farm and information on these wonderful birds, the largest avian species in the world. Lunch is at the ostrich farm restaurant (own account).

From Oudtshoorn you head to The Garden Route. The route takes you over the magnificent Outeniqua Mountains and through the towns of George and Wilderness to Knysna. You visit a number of viewpoints for wonderful photo opportunities. From Knysna you travel to the nearby Plettenberg Bay and on to its small coastal neighbour Keurboomstrand. Check into your hotel for a two night stay, with the option to explore the pristine 8km beach on its doorstep. Dinner in the restaurant of the resort (own account).

Day 6: Day at leisure (Keurboomstrand)

Destination: Keurboomstrand
Accomodation: The Dunes Hotel & Resort
Meals included: Breakfast
Attractions include: Knysna , Featherbed Nature Reserve , Knysna Elephant Park .

Full day at leisure. You may enjoy a day of leisure at the resort and on the beach, or you could join an optional tour (for your own account) to Knysna that includes the Featherbed Nature Reserve and the Knysna Elephant Park.

Optional tour: Travel about 30-minutes to Knysna, where you board a ferry for a cruise on the Knysna Estuary to the Featherbed Nature Reserve. The estuary mouth is framed by two prominent headlands, known as the Eastern and Western Heads. The Western Head is conserved within the private Featherbed Nature Reserve. On arrival at Featherbed, you board a trailer, pulled by a Unimog tractor that will take you to the top of the Western Head for breathtaking views over the Indian Ocean and the Knysna lagoon.

You have the option to return by foot along a scenic pathway of about 2 km. It provides elevated views across the estuary and ocean, access to two twin sea caves and then meanders along the western banks of the estuary back to the Featherbed jetty. Enjoy a buffet lunch (included) at their open air restaurant under the shade of Milkwood Trees, before boarding the return cruise to the town of Knysna. Thereafter you visit to the Knysna Elephant Park for an educational encounter with these giants of the African bush.

Dinner is at the hotel (own account).

Day 7: Plettenberg Bay to Port Alfred via Eastern Garden Route (± 380 Km)

Destination: Port Alfred
Accomodation: Halyards Hotel
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Storm’s River Mouth , Garden Route , Port Alfred , Tsitsikamma .

After breakfast you continue your travels of the Garden Route, named after the abundance and variety of indigenous plants. The Garden Route lies between the Tsitsikamma Mountain Range and the Indian Ocean. You visit Storms River Mouth, within the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park. At Storm's River you have the option to hike along specially constructed boardwalks to three pedestrian suspension bridges that spans a small bay and the actual river mouth. Lunch will be enjoyed en route (own account).

Continuing onwards you’ll head towards Port Elizabeth, with mountain ranges on your left, farmlands to the right and in the distance the Indian Ocean. You travel through the outskirts of Port Elizabeth and soon afterwards find yourself on the Sunshine Coast. Travel through rolling green hills and over tidal rivers till your reach the British Settler Town of Port Alfred. The small town lies on the banks and at the mouth of the tidal Kowie River and is blessed with beautiful coastline.

Your hotel is located on a marina and next to a small-boat harbour. Settle in and enjoy pre-dinner drinks and dinner at the hotel (own account).

Day 8: Port Alfred to Coffee Bay (± 420 Km)

Destination: Coffee Bay
Accomodation: Ocean View Hotel (Coffee Bay)
Meals included: dinner & breakfast
Attractions include: Coffee Bay , Wild Coast , Transkei , Xhosa people .

After an early breakfast you board a riverboat for a scenic cruise up the Kowie River (weather permitting). On your return you depart for Coffee Bay on the Wild Coast.

Today's journey will take you into deep rural traditional land. On departing Port Alfred you travel across a number of tidal rivers, through some rural communities and onwards through the small coastal city of East London. From there you continue into the region of the Transkei, home to South Africa’s Xhosa people and part of the province of the Eastern Cape.

This is rural country and much of the Xhosa people’s traditional lifestyle is still retained. The countryside is dotted by small compounds of traditional (circular and often thatched) rondavels. Many people travel on foot and you will probably encounter free roaming cattle and goats along the way.

A little ways before Mthatha, the main town of the Transkei, you turn towards Coffee Bay on the Wild Coast. A narrow meandering road criss-crosses over hills with valleys far below. The Bay was named after a ship that stranded there in 1893 and spilled its load of coffee beans. This long coastal belt of the Transkei is named ‘wild’ because of it’s underdeveloped, untamed and pristine state. In many places it features sheer cliff faces and large rock formations. Check in at the hotel and relax before enjoying dinner (local fare).

Day 9: Full day at leisure

Destination: Coffee Bay
Accomodation: Ocean View Hotel (Coffee Bay)
Meals included: dinner & breakfast
Attractions include: Wild Coast , Coffee Bay , Hole-in-the-Wall , Xhosa people , Transkei .

Today you have a full day at leisure after a week on the road. Get up early or sleep late, whatever you prefer. On stepping out of your room the sound of crashing waves will greet you.

How adventurous or calm you want your day to be is totally up to you. You may opt to simply relax at the hotel’s pool, or you may step through the hotel’s garden gate onto a beautiful sandy beach and spend your time there.

Alternatively you may head out further to Hole-in-the-Wall, about 11km (7mi) from the hotel. The hotel can shuttle you there (own account) or if you’re fit and up to it you may walk one or both ways. Other optional activities offered in the area, for your own account where applicable, include hikes, snorkeling, fishing, abseiling, quad biking and rock climbing.

Enjoy lunch (own account) at the hotel or a venue of your choosing in the area. Round off the day with pre-dinner drinks (own account) on the hotel’s deck while peering out over the ocean before savouring dinner at the hotel.

Day 10: Coffee Bay to San Lameer (±370km)

Destination: San Lameer
Accomodation: Peermont Mondazur Hotel & Spa at San Lameer
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Hibiscus Coast , San Lameer , Transkei , KwaZulu-Natal South Coast , Southbroom .

After a last breakfast in the remote surroundings of Coffee Bay you depart for San Lameer on the Hibiscus Coast in KwaZulu-Natal. The route takes you back to the N2 where you turn north to travel through traditional Xhosa country to Kokstad. Lunch will be enjoyed enroute, probably at Kokstad.

From Kokstad, which is a high-elevation town in the interior of the Transkei you turn eastwards to head back towards the coastal belt. This section of road is mountainous with commercial forest in places and steep mountain passes. You descend down to the coast over the next 130km until you reach Port Shepstone on the South Coast from where your overnight destination is about 30km southwards.

The South Coast is a very popular holiday destination for South Africans with dozens of small holiday towns and resorts all along the subtropical coastline with its year-round warm water. Your overnight destination is near the southernmost end of the South Coast, also known as the Hibiscus Coast. Your hotel is located within the exclusive and beautiful San Lameer Golf Estate. Enjoy dinner at your own leisure at a local restaurant and for your own account.

Day 11: San Lameer to Hluhluwe via St Lucia (±465km)

Destination: Hluhluwe
Accomodation: Dumazulu Lodge and Traditional Village
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve , St. Lucia , St. Lucia Estuary & Lake , iSimangaliso Wetland Park , St. Lucia boat cruises , KwaZulu-Natal North Coast .

After an early breakfast you travel up the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, passing dozens of small coastal holiday resorts and towns, until you reach the coastal port city of Durban. On the opposite side of Durban you venture onto the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast.

It is your second day in South Africa's beautiful sub-tropical province of KwaZulu-Natal. KwaZulu means ‘home of the Zulu’. Journey through lush green vegetation, interspersed by commercial wood and sugarcane plantations. Continue to St. Lucia in the Isimangaliso Wetland Park, a World Heritage Site, with the largest estuarine system in Africa. Enjoy some time at leisure or take an optional boat trip (own account) on the estuary, known for its large population of hippo’s, as well as crocodiles and a multitude of birds. Enjoy lunch in St Lucia (own account).

From St. Lucia you travel northwards along the main N2 coastal highway. Close to the town of Hluhluwe you arrive at your overnight stop, the DumaZulu Lodge & Cultural Village. After checking in depart on an open vehicle game drive to the nearby Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve, the only public Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal that features the ‘big five’ (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino). It is famous for successfully saving the endangered white rhino in the past - a species that is once again under threat. Hluhluwe-Umfolozi is different from the Kruger National Park in terms of climate (sub-tropical), as well as vegetation and is generally quite hilly.

Return to the lodge in the late afternoon, relax and get ready for dinner and drinks. Dinner may be taken at the DumaZulu Restaurant and is for your own account.

Day 12: Hluhluwe to Malelane via Swaziland (±420km)

Destination: Malelane
Accomodation: Pestana Kruger Lodge
Meals included: dinner & breakfast
Attractions include: Swaziland , KwaZulu-Natal North Coast , Malelane .

After an early breakfast you depart for Malelane in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa.

You head north to enter the kingdom of Swaziland at the Lavumisa Border Post, from where you travel to Swaziland’s beautiful Ezulwini Valley. The Valley has become a popular destination for national head offices, leisure developments and expats over the years. In addition to one or two western-style shopping malls and golf resort hotels, it features a number of very worthwhile African curio stops and informal markets. Lunch (for your own account) will be enjoyed enroute.

From Ezulwini you continue north, skirting the capital city, Mbabane, before continuing through rolling hills, past one or two nature reserves and onwards through landscapes dotted with rural traditional homesteads. Not too long after passing Piggs Peak you re-enter South Africa at the Jeppe’s Reef Border Post. Your overnight destination is about another 40-minutes away, located right on the southern border of the magnificent Kruger Park. Enjoy pre-dinner drinks (own account) on the deck overlooking the Crocodile River and Southern Kruger National Park before dinner at the hotel.

Please note: Passing through the independent Kingdom of Swaziland requires that you have a valid passport. Nationals of some countries also need multi-entry visas.

Day 13: Full day in the Kruger National Park (±200km)

Destination: Hazyview
Accomodation: Casa do Sol Hotel & Resort
Meals included: dinner & breakfast
Attractions include: Kruger National Park .

Enjoy an early breakfast before entering the Kruger National Park for a full day game drive in a closed tour vehicle. You will try and spot as many of the large variety of animals as possible. Lunch will be at one of the rest camps in the park (own account).

The Kruger National Park is huge. It covers 19,485 square kilometres and the distance from its southern to northern borders is 360km. It boasts a remarkable variety of fauna and flora. More than 500 bird and 147 mammal species have been identified. These include the ‘Big Five’ - lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino.

After an enjoyable day in the African bush and seeing many animals in their natural surroundings, you exit the Park in the east and travel to the nearby town of Hazyview. Your hotel is on the outskirts of Hazyview in a beautiful rural setting. You’ll be spending two nights at Casa do Sol, a unique and relaxing establishment. Dinner at the hotel’s restaurant is included.

Optional: Instead of the game drive in our closed tour vehicle, you could opt for a full day game viewing in an open safari vehicle. (own account and excluding lunch)

Day 14: Full Day in the Kruger National Park (±250km)

Destination: Hazyview
Accomodation: Casa do Sol Hotel & Resort
Meals included: breakfast and dinner
Attractions include: Kruger National Park , Mpumalanga Lowveld .

After an early breakfast you travel a short distance to- and spending another full day in the Kruger National Park. Once again you’ll travel with your air-conditioned tour vehicle in search of the Big Five and the myriad of other game that roam the Park. Lunch (own account) will again be at one of the rest camps in the Kruger National Park.

Late afternoon you exit the Park and head back to Casa do Sol. Enjoy pre-dinner drinks (own account) before dinner, if you prefer next to the hotel’s swimming pool located in a beautiful lush Lowveld garden. Dinner is in the hotel’s restaurant.

Optional: Instead of the game drive in the closed tour vehicle, you could opt for a full day game viewing in an open safari vehicle. (own account and excluding lunch)

Day 15: Hazyview to Johannesburg via Panorama Route (±500km)

Destination: Rosebank (Johannesburg)
Accomodation: Crowne Plaza Johannesburg - The Rosebank Hotel
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Panorama Route , Johannesburg , Blyde River Canyon , Three Rondavels Viewpoint , Wonder View , Bourke's Luck Potholes .

After breakfast you travel westwards towards the Panorama Route, gaining elevation all the time. The Panorama Route includes a number of scenic vantage points. You’ll travel along the Blyde River Canyon, the largest green canyon in the world.

The Three Rondavels Viewpoint is perched high above the Blyde River Dam and the Blyde River Canyon - providing spectacular views of both, as well as of the Canyon’s open end with views onto the Lowveld. The viewpoint gets its name from three round buttresses on the opposite side of the Canyon, which happens to be the site of a very interesting battle - which your guide will tell you about. A little further, at the origin of the Canyon you’ll visit Bourke’s Luck Potholes, where an early explorer discovered alluvial gold. The Potholes lie at the confluence of the Treur (‘Sorrow’) and Blyde (‘Joy’) Rivers. Your guide will explain how the two rivers got their names.

Moving beyond the Canyon you’ll make a stop at Wonder View, the highest point on the Panorama Route, with views over the Lowveld far below. The vantage point is located on the edge of a steep escarpment.. You will have lunch enroute (own account). You’ll arrive in Johannesburg, via the Mpumalanga Highveld, late-afternoon. You may enjoy dinner at your hotel or head for a night out at one of the nearby malls.

Day 16: Day of departure

Destination: O.R. Tambo International Airport (ORTIA)
Meals included: breakfast
Attractions include: Johannesburg .

The departure time of your flight back home will determine your program for the day. Should time allow you could consider one of a number of optional morning or full day tours (own account). We can assist you with advice and arrangements. To view day tours on offer go to the ‘tours & safaris’ menu at the top of this page, click on ‘day tours’, scroll down to a selection of Johannesburg Day Tours and follow the provided link if you want to view more.

Transfer to OR Tambo International Airport for your flight home. We trust that you leave South Africa with precious memories and a wish to return soon.

Note: On enquiring about or booking this tour you may request us to quote for extending your stay in Johannesburg, with or without pre-booked touring.

Airport transfer: The transfer to OR Tambo International Airport is not included in the package price and must be booked separately. We will gladly assist.