Overview

Itinerary

1. Day 1 Cape Town → Oudtshoorn

   Cape Town to Oudtshoorn via Route 62 (± 420 Km)

   Your driver-guide will collect you at your hotel. You depart for Oudtshoorn via the National Road (N2) and the popular Route 62. The N2 takes you northward through the Cape Winelands and Paarl where you pass through the Huguenot Tunnel to enter the Du Toitskloof (gorge) and the Breede River Valley. At Worcester you turn onto Route 62 and head eastwards toward the Klein (“Little) Karoo, nestled between two mountain ranges. At the scenic fruit producing (artist) town of Barrydale a comfort stop is made. Back onto the R62 you travel through the spectacular Huis River Pass into Calitzdorp, the Port capital of South Africa. After lunch (own account) you continue through Oudtshoorn into the Cango Valley to visit the Cango Caves. A tour of these magnificent caves will allow you to marvel at the cavernous halls and passages decorated by age old stalactites and stalagmites. You travel to the overnight lodge and check in. Dinner will be enjoyed in town.

   Meals : breakfast and dinner

2. Day 2 Oudtshoorn → Knysna

   Oudtshoorn to Knysna via Wilderness (± 125 Km)

   After breakfast, you visit an ostrich farm where you have the opportunity to experience and learn more about these strange birds. Visit the hatchery and take the opportunity to browse through the shop with stylish ostrich leather products. Continue over the Outeniqua Pass onto the Garden Route, named after the lush, unique and diverse vegetation. You will stop at Dolphin Point and Map of Africa look out points for wonderful views and possible photo shoots (weather permitting). Enjoy lunch (own account) before travelling further along the Garden Route to the picturesque town of Knysna, situated at the Knysna Estuary. Check in at your hotel on the Waterfront before departing on a Sunset Oyster Cruise. You will be introduced to the wild Knysna oyster while enjoying the sun setting over the lake. Dinner will be enjoyed at one of the many restaurants in the small town.

   Meals : breakfast and dinner

3. Day 3 Knysna → Albertinia

   Knysna to Albertinia via Mossel Bay (± 160 Km)

   After breakfast you depart for Mossel Bay, a historic town where Europeans landed on the South African coast for the first time. Bartolomeu Dias, the Portuguese explorer landed here in 1488, in search of a trade route to India around Africa. You visit the Bartolomeu Dias Museum, a complex of different museums. In the centre of these you find an old Milkwood tree that has been declared a historical monument. The first postal service in South Africa took place here. A sailor left a message for Commander Joao de Nova under this tree in a boot, warning him against the impending dangers awaiting him in India. Miraculously it was later found by the intended recipient. You can use the opportunity to send a post card from here.

   Lunch is enjoyed en route (own account) and then you depart for your game lodge near the town of Albertinia. The lodge is situated on farm land that is being rehabilitated for game purposes. Due to limitations of space, this game reserve differs from most other game reserves in the sense that predators are kept separate from other animals. Yet, it offers the opportunity to see a variety of animals, including the big five.

   Two game drives are included in your tour price. Enjoy an outdoor dinner at the lodge (weather permitting).

   Meals : breakfast and dinner

4. Day 4 Albertinia → Arniston

   Albertinia to Arniston via Swellendam (± 220 Km)

   Enjoy an early morning game drive where you will hopefully enjoy very good sightings. Return for a sumptuous breakfast. After breakfast you visit the Cheetah Breeding and Conservation as well as the Reptile Centre.

   You travel to the historic town of Swellendam where you can enjoy the variety of architectural styles, especially the typical Cape Dutch style. Lunch will be taken en route (own account). Continue to the fishing and holiday town of Arniston. This town has a second official name: Waenhuiskrans (literally: “wagon house cliff”). This name derives from a huge cave like hollow in one of the cliffs, large enough to house a wagon with oxen. The quaint fishing village was declared a historic monument in its entirety. Fisherman and their families still live there and use boats similar to what was used in the early 19th century.

   Arniston is close to Cape Agulhas, which is the Southernmost point of the African continent. Dinner will be enjoyed at your hotel.

   Meals : dinner & breakfast

5. Day 5 Arniston → Cape Town

   Arniston to Cape Town via Hermanus (± 290 Km)

   After breakfast you take leave of Arniston and travel to Cape Agulhas, the Southernmost point of the African continent where many believe the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. This is a rugged, beautiful coast line. It is windswept and the resting place of many shipwrecks.

   You travel on to the popular, upmarket town of Hermanus. Hermanus is known as the best land based spot for whale watching. Southern Right Whales appear here during winter and spring to have their young and to suckle them before they return to the Antarctic. Due to the steep cliffs, the whales can approach the land remarkably close and offer a spectacle for the privileged to see.

   You travel along a beautifully scenic route around False Bay to Gordon’s Bay and on to Cape Town, one of the ten most popular tourist destinations worldwide.

   You will be dropped off at your hotel or the Cape Town International Airport.

   Should you decide to stay over in Cape Town for extra days, we will gladly assist you in arranging excursions in and around Cape Town.

Notes

Gallery