Itinerary

Day 1: The Whale Route, Hermanus, Birkenhead Brewery and Cape Agulhas
Departing Cape Town at 8:30 am and Stellenbosch at 9:30 am, our exciting journey begins today as we join the world famous whale route in Gordons Bay for a stunning drive along the picturesque R44 mountain pass overlooking False Bay to the vibrant coastal town of Hermanus. After an opportunity to take some photographs and a picnic lunch on the seafront, we continue to Birkenhead Brewery to sample some fine beers before moving on to the southernmost tip of Africa in Cape Agulhas National Park. After a visit to the lookout point we make our way to the harbour in Struisbaai where there is an option to embark on an exciting ski-boat cruise to search for dolphin and whales (June to December). After our cruise we take a walk back to our accommodation along “Die Plaat”, the longest beach in the Southern Hemisphere.

This day is designed to be a relaxing one for you to get to know your fellow travellers, to get used to travelling in our vehicle and to settle into the comfortable routine of life on tour. Overnight in Cape Agulhas.

Included Meals: Dinner
Included Activities: Beer tasting at Birkenhead Brewery
Optional Activities: Ski-boat cruise off Cape Agulhas R200

Day 2: The Little Karoo, Route 62, Mineral Hot Springs and Oudtshoorn
Driving inland this morning our journey takes us north through rolling wheat fields to the Langeberg Mountains and on to the pristine semi-desert environment of the Little Karoo. Shortly after Barrydale on Route 62, we stop for lunch at Warmwaterberg Spa for lunch and a relaxing swim in 43-degree natural hot springs.

In the afternoon we drive through Ladismith and Carlitzdorp to the capital of the Little Karoo, Oudtshoorn. Known as the ostrich capital of the world, Oudtshoorn is situated in a beautiful valley between the Outeniqua and Swartberg Mountains. Here there is an option to view and ride one of these prehistoric birds on a working farm or go on a guided tour of the Cango Endangered Wildlife Ranch for an opportunity to pet cheetah, cage dive with crocodiles and view many rare and endangered animal species. Overnight in Oudtshoorn.

Included Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Included Activities: Entrance to Warmwaterberg Hot Springs
Optional Activities: Cango Ostrich Farm, entrance, riding and guided tour - R50
Cango Endangered Wildlife Ranch, entrance and guided tour - R85
Pet hand raised Cheetah (including photos) - R140
Cage diving with crocodiles (including photos) – R200

Day 3: Cango Caves, Knysna Heads, Bloukrans Bungy Jump & Tsitsikamma
Today we begin the day with a short 20km drive to the magnificent Cango Caves. Here we’ll embark on a 1-hour guided tour of the cave system, to view its massive caverns and a wonderland of stalactite and stalagmite formations, millions of years old. Cango Caves is a world heritage site and one of the great wonders of the natural world.

After our visit to the caves, we leave the Karoo and travel 60km to the coast through the magnificent Outeniqua Pass. Entering the Garden Route for the first time in George, we take a leisurely drive up the coast to Knysna. Rated South Africa’s most beautiful town, here we’ll take a walk to the entrance of the lagoon to explore the captivating scenery surrounding the famous Knysna Heads.

In the afternoon we drive to the highest bridge in Africa at Bloukrans Bridge, with a freefall of over 216m it is also the site of the highest bungi jump in the world! For those wishing to take the leap, this is your opportunity!! Overnight in Storms River Adventure Village.

Included Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Included Activities: A guided tour of Cango Caves
Excluded Activities: Bloukrans bungy-jump - R620
Flying Fox Cable Slide - R180
Bridge walking tour - R70

Day 4: Tsitsikamma Zipline, Jeffreys Bay and the Sundays River Valley
After breakfast and a visit to the exciting 8 cable zipline at Tsitsikamma Falls Adventures, this morning we continue east up the coast into the Eastern Cape for the pristine beaches of Jeffreys Bay. Renowned the world over as one of the best surfing waves on the planet we’ll take time out to view the waves at "supertubes" before exploring the town and visiting the ever-popular surf wear factory shops ie: Billabong, Rip Curl, Roxy, Quicksilver etc.

After J.Bay we make our way inland to Addo and our accommodation for the night in the Sundays River Valley, set in a wild and beautiful location, here there is time to relax as well as explore the river by canoe. Around the campfire tonight, this is what you’ve come to experience... Wild Africa at her enigmatic best! Overnight in Sundays River Valley

Included Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Excluded Activities: Tsitsikamma waterfall & treetop zip-line - R300

Day 5: Addo Elephant National Park, Game Driving and Port Elizabeth
Up early this morning we head down the road into the great Addo Elephant National Park! Proclaimed in 1931 this malaria free 145 000 ha park extends all the way down to the Indian Ocean and is home to the densest African Elephant population on earth totalling over 500 elephant. Addo Park is also famous for being the only park in Africa playing host to the Big 7 ie: Elephant, rhino, lion, buffalo, leopard, the Southern Right Whale and the Great White Shark. At 8am we begin a 3-4hr game drive along a network of winding roads stopping regularly for photographs and information on the animals we encounter along the way. On our game drive we’ll also disembark from our vehicle at the main lookout point for a spectacular view over the evergreen wilderness that is Addo.

After our game drive we’ll take lunch at the park restaurant before a leisurely drive down to the coast and Port Elizabeth. A major sea port and tourist destination, Port Elizabeth is set along the beautiful shores of Algoa Bay and is fondly referred to as the Friendly City, in terms of area it is the second largest city in South Africa and the fifth largest in terms of population (1.1 million). In the early evening we take a walk along the Waterfront before enjoying a meal at the Boardwalk. Overnight in Port Elizabeth

Included Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Included Activities: A 3-4 hour game drive in Addo Elephant National Park

Day 6:The Crags Elephant Sanctuary and Wilderness
This morning we begin our relaxing journey back to Cape Town with our first stop for the day at the Crags Orphaned Elephant Sanctuary for a truly wonderful close encounter experience. Here you have an opportunity to walk, feed and ride an African elephant while receiving instruction from a knowledgeable African guide.

After the Sanctuary we continue down the Garden Route, stopping occasionally to take in anything we may have missed on our way up. In the early afternoon we arrive at our accommodation overlooking the sea in the stunning Wilderness Lakes Region. Here you will also have the opportunity to explore the beautiful lakes by canoe and any other exciting outdoor activities on offer. Our last evening together on tour, we drink a toast to our shared adventures around a roaring fire. Overnight in Wilderness

Included Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Excluded Activities: Elephant walking & feeding - R300
Elephant walking, feeding and riding - R375
Wilderness Lakes canoeing - R100

Day 7: Return to Cape Town via Sir Lowry’s Pass
This morning we visit an Aloe factory in Albertinia and after lunch on the road and a wonderful scenic drive via Swellendam and Sir Lowry’s Pass; we arrive back in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Included

Accommodation: Dormitory accommodation in South Africa's leading backpackers.

Upgrades are available as follow:
For a couple sharing a double room add: (Standard) R450pp (En-suite) R550pp
For a single person private room add: (Standard) R1350 (En-suite) R1450

Max Group Size: no more than 12 passenger

 

Comfortable air-conditioned transport
Spacious dorm accommodation in SA's top backpacker lodges
All bedding, duvets, pillows etc.
Breakfast and dinner.
Free beer tasting at Birkenhead Breweries.
Entrance to Warmwaterberg Mineral Hot Springs.
A guided tour of Cango Caves.
A 3hr game drive in Addo Elephant Park.

Excluded

Optional Activities
Ski-boat cruise off Cape Agulhas R200
Cango Ostrich Farm, entrance, riding and guided tour - R50
Cango Endangered Wildlife Ranch, entrance and guided tour - R85
Pet hand raised Cheetah (including photos) - R140
Cage diving with crocodiles (including photos) – R200
Bloukrans bungy-jump - R620
Flying Fox Cable Slide - R180
Bridge walking tour - R70
Tsitsikamma waterfall & treetop zip-line – R300
Elephant walking & feeding - R300
Elephant walking, feeding and riding - R375
Wilderness Lakes canoeing - R100

Departures

Starts: Cape Town - Finishes: Cape Town
Departs every Sunday

Feedback

Thank you for your email. All in all, we enjoyed both our tours very much and had a great time. Let us give some details below. '

Cape to Addo' tour.

Positive things: - Nice, knowledgeable guide with a good sense of humour. - Safe and comfortable way of transportation. - We liked our accommodations, but this may be due to the fact that we paid for an upgrade so that we had our own room. - Beautiful places, nice landscape. - We met friendly people. We had a mixed group: there were people from many different countries.

Negative things: - The optional activities played a central role in the tour. They were not really optional as we expected them to be since the other option was in most cases to sit in the car and wait. It would be good to have other alternatives. In any case, people should be prepared to spend a lot of extra money on optional activities.

Finally we would like to thank you for providing us with all the necessary information and patiently answering all our questions regarding these tours.

Best wishes, Nives and Andras - Amsterdam - 12 April 09

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