Please note: A visa is required for U.S. and Canadian passport holders to enter Zambia, on this tour's extension.
Take the journey of a lifetime on this South Africa tour. Explore the region’s rich culture and its vast nature and game preserves, taste the Rainbow Nation’s wine during an included vineyard visit, and stand at the edge of the world where two oceans meet.
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1 - Overnight Flight
Begin your adventure with an overnight flight to Johannesburg.
Included meals: breakfast (in flight)
Day 2 - Johannesburg
Welcome to South Africa! A Go Ahead representative greets you after you clear customs and assists you with check-in at your hotel. If you took the pre-tour extension, join the rest of your tour today. Become acquainted with your fellow travelers at this evening’s included dinner.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 3 - Kruger Region
This morning, travel across the open savannah of Gauteng Highveld. This afternoon, arrive in the region of Kruger National Park, which, at two million hectares, is the largest game reserve in South Africa. Settle into your hotel and enjoy dinner with your group.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 4 - Kruger Region
Today, set out for a full day of game drives where you’ll have a chance to see the Big Five game animals: buffalo, elephants, leopards, lions and rhinos. Kruger National Park has more species of mammals than any other African Game Reserve. Here, you’ll also spot the mighty baobab tree, the “tree of life” that may just be the oldest life form on the African continent.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 5 - Swaziland
Today you’ll enter the Kingdom of Swaziland, one of Africa’s smallest countries. Thanks to its rigorous attitude towards wildlife and environmental conservation, Swaziland is also one of Africa’s most lush and beautiful. En route, drive through Mbabane, its capital city to visit a local market. Arrive in time for an included dinner.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 6 - Hluhluwe
Begin your day with a journey to the Hluhluwe/Imfolozi Game Reserve. Situated in the heart of Zululand, Umfolozi is Africa’s oldest game reserve and was where Zulu kings hunted and enacted the first conservation laws. In the 1950s and 60s, Imfolozi was the home of Operation Rhino and became world renowned for its white rhino conservation. Today, it is one of the best reserves thanks to its many watering holes which attract a plethora of game. This afternoon, you’ll enjoy an included game drive on which you might spot the white rhinos for which the game reserve is famous. Arrive at your hotel this evening.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 7 - Hluhluwe
Today, depart for the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park for an ECO cruise tour exploring the St. Lucia Estuary for hippos, bush bucks, crocodiles, fish-eagles, mangroves, monkeys, kingfishers and mudskippers. Return to your hotel in Hulhluwe (Tonight may instead be spent in Durban, depending on flight schedules.)
Included meals: breakfast
Included entrances: St. Lucia Estuary
Day 8 - Port Elizabeth
Today, travel to Durban and board your flight to the sun-drenched shores of Port Elizabeth, where your guide introduces you to this major seaport and vacation destination set on the shores of the beautiful Algoa Bay. With 40 km of unspoiled coastline, it is the ideal spot for a bit of relaxation. Later, enjoy an included dinner with your group.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 9 - Port Elizabeth
On today’s excursion, visit the Pumba Private Game Reserve, where you’ll enjoy a game drive and included lunch. This evening, opt for our Township Tour & Dinner excursion.
Included meals: breakfast, lunch
Included entrances: Pumba Private Game Reserve
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$69 USD |
Township Tour & Dinner
Discover the real South Africa on an unforgettable tour that will introduce you to not only the legacies of historical strife, but also the inspirational stories of the present. See the city through new eyes and meet ordinary people face-to-face. The tour ends with a festive evening and dinner at a local shabeen (tavern).
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Day 10 - Knysna
Continue on to Knysna, heading through the Garden Route to Tsitsikamma National Park, where forests, rivers and fynbos roll down verdant slopes and rocky shores to the sea. Enjoy an included lunch then ready yourself for spectacular scenery on a guided, tractor-drawn wagon tour through the Garden Route forests (weather permitting).
Included meals: breakfast, lunch
Included entrances: Tsitsikamma National Park
Day 11 - Knysna
Embark on a ferry ride to Featherbed Nature Reserve, a pristine piece of paradise only accessible by boat. Enjoy an included lunch beneath the milkwood trees. Take 4-by-4’s up to an impressive viewpoint and enjoy a guided nature walk along the coast. Tonight, opt to visit an Elephant Sanctuary, where you’ll interact with these gentle giants and enjoy dinner.
Included meals: breakfast, lunch
Included entrances: Featherbed Nature Reserve
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$119 USD |
Elephant Sanctuary
Come face-to-face with these gentle giants on a visit to the Knysna Elephant Sanctuary. With the help of professional elephant handlers, you’ll have the opportunity to pet the largest living land animals on Earth and even feed them from the palm of your hand. After visiting with the elephants, you'll enjoy a three-course dinner beneath the African stars.
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Day 12 - Cape Town
Leave Knysna as for Cape Town this morning, stopping along the way to visit a local wine estate for lunch. Celebrate your arrival in Cape Town with an included dinner this evening.
Included meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 13 - Cape Town
Enjoy a tour of the beautiful city of Cape Town, the “Mother City”, with a cable car ride up Table Mountain (weather permitting) and a visit to the South Africa Museum. Catch glimpses of the National Gallery and the Houses of Parliament as you drive through the city and stop in the Malay District. This afternoon, take a tour of Robben Island (weather permitting), the historic symbol of apartheid and South Africa’s struggle for freedom. Included meals: breakfast
Included entrances: Table Mountain, South African Museum
Day 14 - Cape Town
Travel to Hout Bay and enjoy lunch with your group at Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, where the Atlantic and Southern Oceans meet. This evening, opt for our Wine Tour & Dinner excursion.
Included meals: breakfast, lunch
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$75 USD |
Wine Tour & Dinner
Step into the 17th-century Groot Constantia vineyards, the oldest in South Africa. Sample five different wines produced on the property and enjoy an included dinner.
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Day 15 - Cape Town
Enjoy a free day to explore Cape Town on your own before an included Farewell Dinner with your group this evening.
Included meals: breakfast, dinner
Day 16 - Cape Town
Transfer to the airport to board your flight home.
Included meals: breakfast
Day 17 - Cape Town
Arrive home.
Extend Your Stay
Add 3 nights in Victoria Falls & Johannesburg for only $729 USD (Single room: add $150 USD)
The 'Vic Falls' are the most beautiful waterfalls in Africa, if not the world. Located about 1000km from the source of the Zambezi River in western Zambia, the falls' towering column of spray when the river is high can be seen from over 20 km away, and the thunder of the falling water will take your breath away. Politically speaking, Victoria Falls is on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. You can visit the falls on both sides, but the Zimbabwean side is considered by many to be the more beautiful, with a direct sightline to the "Devil's Cataract" and "Rainbow Falls."
Please note: A visa is required for U.S. and Canadian passport holders to enter South Africa (and Zambia, on extension).
