Reply With QuoteI am doing the same next year for my wife! I have a good contact (I know them personally) who arrange safari tours in the Kruger, Drakensberg etc.Probably not the cheapest, but I trust them.
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This is a big birthday year for Mrs RV, so we've decided to book a big holiday to celebrate - and South Africa has been chosen as she's always wanted to there.
So, flights are booked for me, her and the 4 kids (21-12 yeas old).
14-30 December - so we'll be there for Christmas which will be nice.
Flying into Jo'burg (where I have some family), and back from Capetown.
Current thoughts on itinerary are:
- A couple of days in Jo'burg and surrounds with the family
- A safari in Kruger for a few days - we've found some organised trips online where everything is included and also a tour of the Panorama Route
- Down to Capetown where it looks like there is loads to do, so plenty of excursions.
- Maybe a couple of days further into the garden route - then back to Cape Town
.
Nothing other than the flights are booked so far, so we need to get stuff booked in soon.
With all the kids I'm not sure about hiring a car for an extended period as we'd need a 7 seater and they always seem to cost so much more, so was thinking more in the way of organised excursions etc.
With that in mind I thought I'd seek out the collective TZ wisdom:
- Does rough itinerary look ok? Anything else to consider?
- Are there some things not to miss / hidden gems etc?
- A nice place to be for Christmas in or near Capetown?
Thanks in advance for taking the time to read and any thoughts.
I am doing the same next year for my wife! I have a good contact (I know them personally) who arrange safari tours in the Kruger, Drakensberg etc.Probably not the cheapest, but I trust them.
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Nice! Do you have a link / email for them?Originally Posted by gerard
We've had a quote for a trip:
All travel between Johannesburg and Kruger. 2 full days safari in Kruger. Panorama tour. All meals, staying at Kruger Park Lodge - £5k for the 6 of us. No idea if any good but the accommodation seems to get good reviews.
We did Cape Town and the Garden Route with the kids twice.
Once along to Knysna and then to Port Elizabeth for the second time.
Cape Town, Franschoek, Knysna, Plett etc. all fantastic.
Some of the best holidays we ever had. We did Addo game park for a day when we were in PE. For us it was perfect.
After you have seen all the wildlife on one day, I imagine the other four become a bit repetitive.
You eat and drink like a king on Nando’s money.
South Africa is an amazing vast country. The wildlife is incredible but just be warned it is also brutal.Everything is trying to kill and eat everything else.
http://www.bushmarinetours.co.za/
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It should be a lot of fun. The food and wine are great and a reasonable cost.
The Garden Route is definitely worth doing. We went to Franschhoek for wine which was a really nice place. A couple of other recommendations are seeing penguins at Boulder’s Beach and seeing the Cape of Good Hope. We also did a great white shark cage experience at Gansbaai.
For a ‘safari’ we went to Gondwana Game Reserve which was amazing and highly recommended: https://gondwanagr.co.za/
We did our safari at Mala Mala in the Kruger
Superb
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Have a great time but listen to local advice. If they tell you to get a taxi back to your hotel/compound from a restaurant in Cape Town at night, if you consider it walkable, don’t do it, take that taxi! Sorry to sound negative but just be safe!
Thanks for the advice and tips so far, I've been doing lots of research over the weekend. I'm sure we'll have a great time and will certainly be taking a safety first approach.
I'll just add to consider, if it appeals to you, a cage dive to see great white sharks close up. I guarantee you won't have appreciated just how huge they are. One of the most beautiful countries I've ever visited, just a shame it's so f*^$£d up and dangerous.
The Robben Island trip is very good so I could recommend that.
The food as others have said is sensational.
Maybe not much point in the vineyards if you have the kids in tow but if you do do one I can thoroughly recommend the Ken Forrester one at Stellenbosch was fantastic.
i did the Garden route. Stayed in CapeTown (those townships - couldnt believe the size) then to Hermanus (whales) and across to Gorah Elephant Camp. Also stayed in the Stellenbosch. Some hotel groups sell multiple hotels as a package (or they did when I was there) eg https://www.hunterhotels.com/ I stayed at Tsala and Gorah. Stunning country. The game drives at Gorah were brilliant. The tents were like a hotel room (note you cant go for a night time ramble or you may end up on the lions menu). Food in the towns was cheap as others have said.
As a tourist, don't let this worry you. Millions of tourists visit each year without any bother. Just use common sense and do as the saffers do.
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A number of the wine farms cater for kids. I had a leisurely wine tasting at Spier while the wife and kids (pre-teens) watched a raptor show. Lourensford has (or had) a children's "wine" tasting. Four grape juices, two red and two white in wine glasses and some snacks. It kept them occupied. I'm sure other wine estates do similar.
We haven’t been to SA with our children at any stage (and they’re now well old enough to go on their own) but thinking of things to do that teenagers might enjoy, I’d suggest these:
https://worldofbirds.co.za/
http://capepointostrichfarm.com/ As part of a visit to the Cape itself.
Table Mountain cable car & hiking around the top.
I suspect your younger ones might not be too keen, but if they were interested in history the battlefield tours run by these lodges are amazing, and semi-performed if your guide is one of those related to Zulu warriors who fought at Isandlwana:
https://www.fugitivesdrift.com/ (Also Rorke’s Drift, both from the Zulu wars)
https://www.threetreehill.co.za/ (For Spioenkop, from the Boer War).
I agree that some research on the larger wineries in Constantia, Stellenbosch and Franschoek for ones with some activities for teenagers would be good for all the family.
The Cape Town waterfront area is often recommended as a place to stay, but I find it pretty tawdry these days and it doesn’t feel very safe. Personally I’d stay in Constantia or somewhere down the Cape on the coast (some nice luxury B&Bs near Simonstown and the penguins on Boulders Beach, for example)
Again maybe too much for the younger ones, but the Cradle of Humankind on the west side of Jo’burg is amazing for anyone interested in human origins and archaeology - a major Australopithecus site.
We found Jo’burg otherwise pretty edgy and the fortified enclaves, razor wire and armed guards just got us down. If you want to visit a township I’d suggest doing it in Cape Town.
I’ll see if I can think of any other suggestions plus ask my wife.
Last edited by drmarkf; 5th July 2022 at 00:43.
Whatever you do just enjoy it, I’ve found most of the Kruger camps to sterile so only go to Balule when I go to the Kruger now. Remember there’s more than just the big 5, so look out for the birds there’s lots of interesting ones and you’ll never get tired of the place.
If you pass it drop into Hopps Hollow, it’s the highest brewery in Africa on the road from lydenberg to sabie it’s a small one and the foods good.
Image1657006304.690256.jpgF8E4B434-0A28-4C3F-8DFC-F5DFBEC11928.JPG
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Looks good (both noted for possible future personal use!).
I’d certainly recommend a few days safari in one of the private game reserves to the west of the Kruger itself, like the one mentioned above. Sabi Sabi, Mala Mala and the like are extremely expensive but you are assured an unparalleled wildlife experience, with Africas very best guides and trackers.
They’ve been progressively removing the game fences so you get loads of animals flowing through, the vehicles can drive off road under certain circumstances so you often get close encounters and most of the lodges are nicer than those in the main park (or so I hear). We had our first safari at Serondella in the Thornybush reserve, which was great, although that was 12 years ago…
If you wanted an alternative that was malaria-free, we had a great trip around 6 years ago to the Madikwe reserve, in the north-west near the Botswana border. Big 5, and some great lodges: less crowded than parts of the Kruger and it’s a very different environment - Kalahari landscape, with darker soil, for example. It’s about 4-5h drive from Jo’burg or there are flights.
By the way, if you’re self driving at any stage, do not under any circumstances do any significant drive at night. It’s OK to do a few miles to and from restaurants, especially in tourist areas, but the twin hazards of unlit large wildlife and drunk/drugged drivers are very significant indeed.
if you do not have one a "Wise" debit card/Visa with a Rand and £ account is useful to control the exchange rate you get
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