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KwaZulu Natal Holidays Tours South Africa Zulu Battlefields Durban Safari

Zululand Battlefields & Safari: KwaZulu Natal, South Africa + St Lucia + game reserve near Hluhluwe

KwaZulu Natal: St Lucia + Safari + Zulu & Boer Battlefields
Zululand Battlefields Safari KwaZulu Natal South Africa St Lucia Hluhluwe
12 NIGHTS FROM:
$3,788
Per person sharing
Scheduled flights quoted separately
SRF12R
• KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
• Battlefields Safari
• St Lucia Wetlands
• Cape Vidal
• Big Five Game Drives
• Hluhluwe Region
• Zululand Battlefields
• Boer Battlefields
• Spion Kop
• Safari KwaZulu Natal

This fascinating Zululand Battlefields & Safari holiday is based in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. Explore the wildlife, birds, history & magnificent scenery of the Zulu Kingdom, including a boat ride in the St Lucia Wetlands, a visit to Cape Vidal & open top game drives in a private game reserve near Hluhuwe, renowned for its wildlife. Visit the Zululand Battlefields at Rorkes Drift, as well as the poignant Boer Battlefields at Spion Kop.

Day 1
You will be met at Durban Airport and transferred to your hotel on the warm North Coast, renowned for its wonderful beaches and warm holiday weather.
  
Check in and relax on the shores of the warm Indian Ocean.
Day 2
At leisure to relax on the warm golden beaches of the Durban North Coast.
 
Many optional activities are available such as a marine cruise to search for dolphins, turtles, sharks, whales (in season) and other fascinating sea life. Championship golf, horse riding and deep sea game fishing are also available.
Day 3
Today transfer 3-hours from the Durban North Coast to the small town of St Lucia on the KwaZulu Natal northern coast.
 
Situated inside the Isimangaliso Wetlands, this whole area has been declared a RAMSAR Wetland of international significance because of its great biodiversity and importance as a breeding site for waterbirds. Over 520 different species have been recorded in this vast wetland that is surrounded by mangrove swamps and dense reed beds, with birds ranging from permanent residents to tropical and altitudinal migrants, regional nomads and long-distance migrants. These include a variety of storks, pelicans, flamingos, kingfishers, spoonbills, fish eagles, gulls, herons, terns, ducks and geese.
 
On arrival enjoy a boat ride on the Lake St Lucia estuary, where you may see hippo, buffalo and crocodiles as well as abundant bird life.
Days 4 To 5
Today enjoy a full day tour exploring the St Lucia village market and the wild beaches of Cape Vidal.
 
Enjoy game viewing in Cape Vidal Game Reserve where you can hope to see rhino, waterbuck, kudu, zebra, reedbuck, porcupine and many other smaller animals. We also visit a crocodile sanctuary, which has a small museum about the Isimangaliso Wetlands.
 
We then continue to one of the wild beaches, where you should see thousands of ghost crabs scurrying around for food. With over a hundred miles of pristine coastline and the tallest forested dunes in Africa, these titanium-rich beaches are an important breeding ground for giant loggerhead and leatherback turtles, who nest and lay their eggs under cover of darkness from November to January, with the hatchlings emerging and running the gauntlet of ghost crabs from February to March.
 
Pods of dolphins are often seen in these waters and from June to November, you may be fortunate enough to see humpback whales, who migrate from Antarctica to mate and calve in these warm waters.
 
Birdlife too is prolific with habitats ranging from grassland to swamp, sand and coastal lowland forest. There are also a variety of aquatic habitats including rivers, marshes, lagoons, estuaries and the beach. Here you can hope to see Great white pelicans, Marabou storks, Yellow-billed storks, African spoonbills and African fish eagles, whose calls can be heard along the shoreline. Sometimes after a storm, seabirds such as the Yellow-nosed albatross, Giant petrel, Tropicbird, Frigatebird, Sooty tern and Noddy tern are blown closer to shore, allowing for some wonderful close-up sightings.
 
Note: It is not safe to swim at Cape Vidal, as there may be crocodiles and sharks in the water. There are also strong rip tides.
Days 6 To 8
Rise at dawn to take advantage of the best game viewing conditions of the day and enjoy a thrilling shared open-top game viewing safari with your lodge ranger in your Zululand Game Reserve which is home to all the Big Five - lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard and rhino. Hope to see many other interesting species too, before returning to your lodge for breakfast.
 
The rest of the morning is free to relax by the lodge swimming pool, before setting out again in the late afternoon for another game drive. Hope to see cheetah, giraffe, hippo, kudu, crocodiles, sable antelope, waterbuck, warthogs, baboons and many other interesting animals. With over 500 different bird species, bird watching is also outstanding.
 
After a beautiful African sunset, enjoy the balmy evening and pristine stars of the Milky Way as you have never seen them before – as well as the spectacular Southern Cross.
 
Note: children < 6 are not allowed on open top game drives
Day 9
This morning join a full day tour arranged by your lodge to the poignant Zulu Battlefields.
 
Your guide will recount the events leading up to the fateful battle of Isandlwana, where in 1879 the mighty British army suffered one of the most humiliating defeats in its history following the controversial invasion of Zululand. See for yourself the events portrayed so passionately in the film Zulu Dawn, as the regiment was wiped out almost to a man by 20,000 Zulu warriors.
 
After returning to your lodge for lunch, in the afternoon we visit the famous mission station at Rorkes Drift where later that day a handful of British soldiers (outnumbered 30-to-1) fought off over 4,000 Zulu warriors for almost 12 hours. This battle - unforgettably brought to life by Michael Caine in the film Zulu -  saw 11 Victoria Crosses awarded, which is more than in any other engagement in the history of the British Empire.
 
Recommended Reading:
The Day of the Dead Moon - David Rattray
Brave Men’s Blood – Ian Knight
Day 10
Today transfer 4-hours from Zululand to the South African War Battlefields in the beautiful Natal Midlands. The Anglo Boer War of 1899 started shortly after the conquest of Zululand, as the British Empire turned its attentions to the lucrative Transvaal goldfields.
 
Travel through Ladysmith, which was besieged for 118 days during that war, before checking into your lodge situated near Spion Kop, with distant views of the dramatic Drakensberg Mountains.
Day 11
This morning enjoy a shared tour to the Spion Kop Battlefield.
 
We drive to the place where one of the bloodiest battles of the South African War (Anglo Boer War) of 1900 took place in efforts to relieve Ladysmith, which was besieged for 118 days. Visit the mass graves atop Spion Kop hill and see for yourself how poor military decisions affected the outcome of this battle.
 
Incredibly three future world leaders were in the area at the time this battle took place - Winston Churchill as a young newspaper correspondent, the future Mahatma Gandhi as a stretcher bearer, and Louis Botha as the Boer general who would go on to become the first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa.
 
Your afternoon is at leisure to relax at your lodge.
 
Recommended Reading:
Boer War – Thomas Pakenham
Days 12 To 13
At leisure to relax at your lodge near Spioenkop.