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South Africa Escorted Tour: Kruger + Durban + Cape Town (overland)

Grand SA Coach Tour: Joburg to Kruger + Cape Town (overland)

South Africa Escorted Tour Kruger Park Durban Garden Route Cape Town

15 NIGHTS FROM:

$2,394

Per person sharing

Scheduled flights quoted separately

SYS15J

• South Africa Escorted Tour

• Kruger Park

• Swaziland

• Hluhluwe & St Lucia

• Durban Beaches

• Drakensberg

• Wild Coast

• East London

• Garden Route

• Cape Town

This grand South Africa escorted tour starts in Johannesburg & visits the world famous Kruger Park, before travelling by coach to Swaziland, the Zulu Kingdom and the beaches of Durban. We continue overland to the mighty Drakensberg Mountains, dramatic Wild Coast and scenic Garden Route all the way to spectacular Cape Town. Monthly departures. Group size 2-40. No children < 8.

Detailed itinerary ▶

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Day 1

You will be met at Johannesburg Airport and transferred to your hotel.

Check in and relax under warm blue South African skies in 'Egoli' - the city of gold.

Later meet for your tour briefing and the opportunity to meet your fellow travellers.

Day 2

This morning we leave Johannesburg and travel 5-hours to Mpumalanga ('The Place Where The Sun Rises') driving eastwards through Witbank, before dropping several hundred feet into the subtropical Lowveld.

Your guide will introduce you to the scenic Drakensberg Panorama Route and the green Blyde River Canyon - the third largest in the world. Enjoy wonderful views from God's Window and the Three Rondavels lookout. We also visit the unusual Bourkes Luck Pot Holes - cylindrical holes formed from the swirling waters of the Blyde and Treur Rivers.

In the late afternoon we check in to our hotel in Hazyview, where dinner is for your own account.

Note: On escorted group tours please note that for operational reasons it is sometimes necessary to substitute one hotel with another of similar quality.

Day 3

Today we have an early start, as we enter the world famous Kruger National Park for a morning of game viewing in our closed vehicle in this vast 2-million hectare game sanctuary the size of Wales (with packed breakfast included).

The Kruger National Park offers magnificent game viewing opportunities and the highest concentration of lion in the whole of Africa. With nearly 150 different species of mammals and over 100 species of reptiles, you can hope to see cheetah, giraffe, hippo, kudu, crocodiles, sable antelope, waterbuck, warthogs, baboons, wild dogs and many other interesting animals as well as the Big Five - Lion, Elephant, Buffalo, Leopard and Rhino. With over 500 different bird species including eagles, kingfishers, vultures and storks, outstanding bird watching is also guaranteed.

We return to our hotel for lunch (own account) with afternoon at leisure. There is also the option of a full day open-top game drive (pay locally). Dinner is for your own account.

Note: You will need your passport to enter the Kruger National Park.

Day 4

This morning we travel to eSwatini (previously called Swaziland), a small mountain kingdom known for its lovely scenery, crafts and indigenous culture.

We visit a Chief's Village to learn more about their local customs, colourful beadwork, basket weaving and other handcrafts.

Afterwards we check in to our hotel surrounded by beautiful mountains. Dinner is for your own account.

Note: You will need your passport to enter eSwatini (and possibly a visa, if not British).

Day 5

This morning we visit Ngwenya Glassworks where a small group of craftmen and women create beautifully handmade items from recycled glass.

Our next stop is the Candle Centre and market on our route southwards, as we travel 4-hours through the beautiful mountains of eSwatini and across the South African border.

After completing border formalities, we drive to Hluhluwe in the kingdom of Zululand. We check in to our hotel situated near the famous Hluhluwe National Park, which saved the black rhino from extinction. Dinner is for your own account tonight.

Day 6

This morning is at leisure to relax at your hotel. There is also the option of an open-top game drive in Hluhluwe Game Reserve (pay locally).

In the afternoon we leave Hluhluwe and drive 3-hours southwards to Durban, driving past many traditional Zulu homesteads and sugar cane fields. Enjoy an orientation tour of this multi-cultural city, before checking in to your hotel in the late afternoon. Dinner is for your own account.

Day 7

After a leisurely breakfast, today we travel inland for 3-hours to the majestic Drakensberg Mountains, recognised as a World Heritage site due to its vast collection of San Bushmen rock art paintings.

Along the way we stop at Howick Falls, which at 365 ft (111 m) are the highest in the country. We also stop at some of the craft and farm stalls found along the 'Midlands Meander' route.

We continue to the southern Drakensberg Mountains. Known locally as the Barrier of Spears, these dramatic mountains form the backbone of Southern Africa, running all the way down from the Great Rift Valley. Check into your mountain resort in this area of great natural beauty. Dinner is included tonight.

Day 8

At leisure to relax in the southern Drakensberg Mountains.

You can take an optional day tour to ascend the mighty Sani Pass, the highest in Africa, and enter the mountain kingdom of Lesotho (passport required) to enjoy a drink in the highest pub in Africa. This the home of the Basuto people, who wear colourful blankets and distinctive traditional hats.

These mountains also offer wonderful walking and hiking opportunities, as well as outstanding bird watching – particularly raptors, but also sunbirds, waxbills and the numerous other species found in the grasslands, riverine scrub and natural forests. Dinner is included tonight.

Day 9

A full day on the road today, as we leave the Drakensberg Mountains and travel 6-hours through the Transkei to Chintsa on the unspoilt Wild Coast.

We stop at Umtata to visit the area where Nelson Mandela was born, where you can see the traditional way of life of the Xhosa people. We arrive in Chintsa in the late afternoon. Dinner is included tonight.

Day 10

After a leisurely breakfast, we depart mid morning from Chintsa and drive southwards for 5-hours to Tsitsikamma - the gateway to the beautiful Garden Route.

On arrival check in to your hotel, relax and enjoy the flora and birdlife of the Tsitsikamma Forest. Dinner is for your own account.

Day 11

This morning we drive through the Tsitsikamma Forest to the spectacularly beautiful Storms River Mouth, which offers wonderful walking opportunities.

After we drive 1.5-hours to the oyster capital of Knysna and check in to our hotel in this area of outstanding natural beauty. Dinner is included tonight.

Note: In season we recommend booking Knysna restaurants online in advance of your visit, to avoid disappointment.

Day 12

We leave Knysna today and enjoy a scenic drive past the lakes of Sedgefield and the beaches of Wilderness to George, stopping along the way at Dolphin Point. Then enjoy stunning views from the Outeniqua Pass, as we travel 2-hours to the ostrich capital of Oudtshoorn in the Little Karoo.

In Outdtshoorn we join an Ostrich Farm tractor tour to learn more about these huge flightless birds and their magnificent plumage, followed by an included light lunch with local specialities such as ostrich steak.

In the afternoon we visit the famous Cango Caves. This vast series of underground halls and caverns was formed over 20 million years ago in the foothills of the Swartberg Mountains. The caves, which extend for over 3 miles, contain spectacular stalagmites and stalactites and offer relatively easy access.

We then check in to our hotel. Dinner is for your own account tonight.

Day 13

This morning we leave the Little Karoo and travel 5-hours along the dramatic Route 62 to Cape Town, where the diversity of landscapes is highlighted through ever changing scenery.

We travel to the town of Calitzdorp where we can sample top quality port style wines.

Afterwards we drive via Worcester and the Huguenot Tunnel to Cape Town, spectacularly set at the foot of Table Mountain. Check in to our hotel, with dinner for your own account tonight.

Day 14

Today is the last day of your group tour and is free for independent sightseeing in Cape Town.

You can use your included day pass for the convenient Red Route Hop-Off Bus, which stops at all Cape Town’s key sights and attractions, including the Table Mountain cable car (a Fast Track ticket is included). Here you can ascend and enjoy one of the world's most famous views.

Continue to trendy Camps Bay beach and the many attractions of the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (pay all entrance fees locally).

After breakfast tomorrow your group tour ends.

Note: Don't let the colour of the bus confuse you. All buses are red, but they run two different routes - the Red City Route and the Blue Kirstenbosch Route.

The Table Mountain cable car is usually closed for annual maintenance from late July to early August.

Day 15

Today you will be collected from your hotel for a full day shared tour to the beautiful Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve.

We drive past the sparkling beaches of Camps Bay, Clifton and Llandudno to Hout Bay, the heart of the local crayfish industry.

We then cotinue via spectacular Chapman’s Peak Drive to Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve to enjoy the rugged beauty of this spectacular coastline, with its diverse fauna and flora. Established in 1936 to preserve the indigenous flora of the Cape Peninsula, this 7,750 hectare reserve showcases the diversity in the Cape Floral Kingdom, including the protea, erica and restio families. The fauna of the reserve include eland, Burchell’s zebra, bontebok, Chacma baboon and many smaller mammals and reptiles, as well as over 250 bird species. You may even see dolphins or whales in season (July to November).

On the return journey we travel through naval Simonstown, where there is the option of visiting the penguin colony at Boulders Beach (pay entrance fee locally).

Note: Lunch is for your own account today. Group size is minimum 2 / maximum 15.

Day 16

Transfer to Cape Town Airport for your flight home.

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