Experience the World Class Wines and Wildlife of South Africa
May 14-23, 2010 and October 8-17, 2010
10 days and 9 nights
$5200 per person in double occupancy

A very special medley of scenic and cultural experiences from the Cape of Good Hope to the sprawling savannas of the African bush and the ‘Big Five’

Jump to the day to day itinerary

Details for making your reservation

Links to the wineries visited

 

An Overview of the Tour

Our tour of the scenic winelands and semi-arid savanna of the vast hinterland starts in the Mother City of Cape Town, situated directly below the towering heights of Table Mountain – one of the natural wonders of the world and an historic icon in its own right.

Over the centuries travelers following the rugged coastline of Africa southwards have arrived at the Cape and gazed in awe and wonder at this enormous block of sandstone rising to over three thousand feet above the surrounding plain with Devil’s Peak and Lion’s Head flanking its north and southern slopes.  This was the gateway to the interior for some, and a way station for others en route to the Far East.

Yet it is not only the majestic grandeur of the setting itself that holds scenic appeal for the visitor but the tapestry of floral beauty expressed in colorful form as proteas, restios, ericas and a host of flowering geophytes clamor for visual attention within the fynbos floral kingdom.

The Western Cape has much to offer, not least of which is the cross section of different vineyards that today straddle the coastal plain around Table Mountain and beyond to the northwest of the rugged Hottentots Mountains following the establishment of the first vineyard in the Constantia valley in the mid 17th Century.

Today over 500 privately owned and co-operative wine producing estates exist within a matrix of clearly marked appellations that reflect the individual terroir and micro-climate that determine the varietals best suited to each area.

Add to this the full spectrum of the latest viticultural techniques and state of the art wine producing techniques spanning the full selection of red and white wines and you have a wide selection of options from which to choose as you meander through the network of wine routes in scenic surroundings.

Our route will not be an aimless ramble through the vineyards, but rather a carefully crafted tour intended to embrace a cross section of wineries ranging from historical to modern day, from commercial operations to boutique wineries, each of which has achieved acclaim for a noteworthy varietal and wine-making style unique to the region.

You will have not only the opportunity to taste some of the finest wines on offer but also time to explore the wineries themselves and enjoy the surrounding settings which are invariably spectacular, with expansive views overlooking the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the rugged Cedarberg Mountains to the east.

All of the most important wine producing regions will be visited including Durbanville, Constantia Valley, Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franschhoek. Pace will be ‘relaxed’ to allow time for tastings at leisure and the opportunity to enjoy the surrounding beauty and architectural appeal of the wineries themselves as well as the opportunity to meet some of the winemakers.

The second part of the adventure takes us north of the capital, Pretoria, to two game reserves situated in the heart of the sprawling savannaThis  mammal- and bird-rich biome is associated with the Africa of old, with tales aplenty relating to exploration and adventure, as early traders and hunters penetrated the central interior in search of ivory and mineral wealth.

Today elephants continue to roam along the old game trails within this sprawling complex of igneous rock and rich alluvial soil that is home to a wide variety of indigenous trees and a mind boggling diversity of wildlife.  It is truly a habitat of  great natural beauty, exceptional for the sheer variety of wildlife experiences on offer for the dedicated naturalist to enjoy as every day reveals something new and exciting as only Africa knows how…

As we explore the area we will be on the lookout for African Elephant, White Rhino, Cape Buffalo, Lion and Leopard.  If we are lucky we’ll have a chance of seeing African Wild Dog , Spotted Hyena and Cheetah.  An optional night drive could produce sightings of the more secretive nocturnal residents of the African bush including Civet, Spotted Genet, Polecat, Black-backed Jackal, Scrub Hare and Lesser Galago along with owls and nightjars.

The day’s end around an open fire in the ‘boma’ is the quintessential African experience: the time to savor the aromatic campfire and gaze up into the clear night sky, to marvel at the magnificent splendor of the Milky Way and to observe the southern hemisphere’s constellations. All around the cacophony of night sounds add emphasis to the primordial atmosphere, while an indelible impression is formed in one’s mind of how privileged and how special it is to be in this unspoiled wilderness, close to the ‘cradle of mankind’, where the evolution of man began millions of years ago.  

 

 

 

 

 

The Detailed Itinerary
Tastings at Carefully Selected South African Wineries and
a Wildlife Safari on the African Savanna

Day 1  Friday 14 May (8 October) Cape Town International Airport

You will be met on arrival in the international terminal and transferred to a comfortable guesthouse situated in the historical Gardens area of upper Cape Town. After lunch we will visit the internationally acclaimed Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens for a walking tour followed by a cable car ride to the top of Table Mountain to take in the spectacular view of the City far below and Robben Island in the distance. In the evening we will be transferred to the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront for dinner at a restaurant within the dockyard complex.
Overnight at Welgelegen Guest House.  www.welgelegen.co.za/ 

Day 2   Saturday 15 May (9 October) Cape Town to Cape Point Tour

We depart southwards along the scenic coastal route below the towering buttresses of the Twelve Apostles for the sister wine estates of Groot and Klein Constantia situated in the lush Constantia valley.  Groot Constantia is the oldest winery in South Africa and the well preserved historical homestead is today a national monument that comes complete with all the trappings and furnishings of the day dating back to the mid 17th century. After a tour of the homestead and a walk around the grounds we will visit the cellar area for a conducted tasting focusing on a select number of full bodied red wines that convey the character and essence of this lush and fertile valley.

From here we will call in at Klein Constantia, a family owned modern day wine estate producing outstanding dry as well as late harvest white wines of great complexity. Heading further south we will arrive at Cape Point for lunch having first visited the south western tip of the African continent at Cape Maclear. Our return to Cape Town via the Old Cape Road over the Constantiaberg Mountains takes us to the recently established Steenberg Wine Estate for a sparkling wine tasting followed by a white and red wine tasting at the Buitenverwagting Wine Estate before heading back to the City. Dinner will be at the award winning Constantia Uitsig Wine Estate where we will enjoy a selection of their estate wines and a variety of traditional Cape dishes in a country house setting overlooking the vineyards.
Overnight at Welgelegen Guest House.

Day 3  Sunday 16 May (10 October) West Coast to Paarl via Durbanville Hills

After a leisurely Sunday breakfast and a bus tour through the old part of the City we will follow the Atlantic coastline north to the line of low hills overlooking Table Bay, with Robben Island visible in the distance. These hills enjoy the cool onshore winds off the cold and plankton-rich Benguela current that sweeps northwards along the coast. This creates growing conditions ideal for white wine varietals such as Sauvignon Blanc and to a lesser extent Chardonnay. Being a Sunday we will be treated to a private tour of Durbanville Hills Winery, noted for its consistently high quality table wines. Aside from the tour of this modern day wine estate and the prescribed tasting itself,  the view from the lookout deck towards Table Mountain is quite spectacular as it mirror images the classic post card image featuring the City Bowl and flanking peaks around it.

From here we head inland to visit a wine and cheese estate offering a broad variety of red and white wines across the price spectrum including a number of unique blends made from a combination of grape varieties from Italy and Spain. Add to this an amazing selection of  cheeses, with goat cheese the house specialty, and you have the perfect run up to lunch in the Goat Shed Restaurant on the Fairview estate.  
After lunch we will call in for a private tasting at the Black Pearl boutique winery run by Mary Lou Nash, an outstanding winemaker and character in her own right, with a passion for producing full bodied red wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz grapes grown in their environmentally friendly vineyards. For many this interlude has proved to be the highlight of their wineland tour.  If time allows we will take a drive up Paarl Mountain to enjoy the view overlooking the Berg River valley before briefly visiting the botanical gardens below the huge granite shield that gives the town its name of Paarl – Dutch for ‘pearl’.
Overnight at Belair Guest House outside Paarl.   www.belair.co.za 

Day 4 Monday 17 May (11 October) Paarl to Somerset West via Stellenbosch

Our route for the day follows the classic meander across the foothills of Simonsberg to the picturesque Helderberg Valley overlooking False Bay in the distance. First in a series of wineries noted for outstanding consistency is Warwick Estate, a family owned and managed estate that specializes in Bordeaux-style red wines and a unique combination of varietal blends of outstanding quality. From here we will visit Kanonkop Wine Estate famed for grafting Pinot Noir on to Hermitage root stock to create a fresh and fruity easy to drink red wine unique to South Africa, known as Pinotage. Here too we will taste Kanonkop’s outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon, a complex full-bodied red wine of exceptional quality and consistency. A short tour of the university town of Stellenbosch takes us through to another family run estate all set about by oak trees for an informal cellar lunch followed by a red wine tasting. Rust en Vrede Estate is known for its outstanding selection of red wines. Here we can look forward to tasting Merlot and Shiraz as distinctive cultivars followed by their flagship blend comprising of three red varietals. A short distance away in the heart of Stellenbosch’s ‘Golden Wine’ triangle lies Waterford Estate – a hacienda styled winery complete with olive and citrus groves. Our wine tasting will consist of a conducted dark chocolate and red wine pairing intended to bring out the complementary taste sensation each has to offer in the way of organoleptic delights! Such fun and a truly memorable tasting with a difference… From here we round the shoulder of the Helderberg mountain to end the day at the historical Vergelegen Wine Estate set in a fertile valley below the heights of the Hottentot Valley mountains. Aside from the scenic setting, the original farmhouse, with its two enormous camphor trees, is a national monument with a world renowned reputation for red and white wines of outstanding quality. A private tour has been arranged to take us to the state of the art winery set high up on the slopes with the most amazing views of the valley below before returning to the tasting room for a formal tasting. After a guided walk through the attractively laid out grounds and a visit to the historical homestead we will check into our accommodation in a nearby country hotel.
Overnight at Willowbrook Lodge.  www.willowbrook.co.za

Day 5 Tuesday 18 May (12 October) Sir Lowry’s Pass to Cape Town via the Franschhoek Valley

A scenic loop through the fruit growing Elgin valley takes us up and over the Franschhoek Pass into the scenically delightful town of Franschhoek itself. It was here that the French Huguenots settled in the early 19th century bringing with them the refined art of wine making and brandy distillation that today constitutes the principal economic activity of the valley. Today Franschhoek is more French than France with its many guesthouses and restaurants with French names and blue, white and red color combinations. This aside, the underlying authenticity and faithful adherence to the highest standards of wine making are passionately adhered to in the pursuit of excellence. Our first winery is Haute Cabriere where we will enjoy a Cap Classique sparkling wine tasting in a classic underground cellar environment before moving through the village to L’Omarins followed by Thelema, Tokara and Neethlingshof where we will taste specific wines of a consistently high standard unique to each of these exceptional wineries. Lunch will be on a wine estate in the Stellenbosch area. The end of the day sees us following a scenic route back into Cape Town with great views over the vineyards, many of which will still be resplendent in the last of their autumn colors. If visibility is good, Cape Point will appear in the far distance as we crest the last of the rolling hills for our final night in the Cape.
Overnight at the Courtyard Hotel.   www.citylodge.co.za/cy3.htm

The route for our tour of the winelands embraces a medley of very different estates and wine tasting experiences across the South African appellation and grape varietal spectrum. Scenically the vineyards will be taking on their autumn colors and the days should be warm and pleasant with minimal risk of rain. Harvesting will be over but there will still be lots to see as the various estates prepare the vineyards for the austral winter. Pace would be relaxed throughout with a light lunch along the way each day at either a local restaurant or wine estate. Most estates have a US connection should you wish to place an order for any of the wines tasted and enjoyed during the course of the tour.

All in all close to 20 wineries will be visited that collectively add up to the Cape Wine Experience with selected scenic and cultural excursions included along the way to make for a memorable visit to what Sir Francis Drake on his epic voyage described as the ‘Fairest Cape in all the World’.

…  and then the Wildlife of South Africa     

Day 6 Wednesday 19 May (13 October) Cape Town to Pilanesburg National Park via Johannesburg

Our morning flight to the City of Gold, as Johannesburg has been affectionately known for the past 100 years and more, takes approximately two hours. Founded as a diggers’ camp in 1885, the tent town of ever hopeful prospectors from all over the world staked claims in a Klondike-like gold rush with hopes of making a fortune. Some did but most didn’t, and the city of many parts lives on as the vibrant hub of economic activity within the heartland of South Africa. Our stay in this sprawling metropolis will be brief as we head north on the highway that bypasses Pretoria and cuts through the Magaliesberg Mountains to the sprawling acacia plains of the bushveld beyond. Here in the vicinity of an extinct volcano dating back 1300 million years lies the Pilanesberg National Park, our destination for two nights and home to the Africa’s ‘Big Five’ mammals.

After lunch we will set off along a network of roads and trails that cut through the rugged and spectacular landscape in search of lion, leopard, black and white rhino, elephant and buffalo along with an impressive selection of other mammals including cheetah, sable antelope, giraffe, zebra, kudu, impala, hippo and crocodile at Mankwe Dam. So much to look forward to in the way of wildlife along with an impressive suite of bushveld birds in excess of 300 species. After our game drive we will return to our comfortable lodge in the southern part of the Park. The evening meal will take the form of a bush BBQ under the stars if the weather is conducive.
Overnight at Bakubang Bush Lodge.   www.bakubang.co.za 

Day 7 Thursday May 20 (14 October) Pilanesburg National Park

After an early morning game drive we will return for breakfast before heading out again into this 125,000 acre reserve in search of new bird and animal sightings. We will return for a light lunch and set out again in the late afternoon for  anouther game drive in the park. A night drive for those so inclined exists as an optional extra that may well produce sightings of the highly secretive brown hyena, leopard and a suite of smaller nocturnal animals going about their nightly routines.
Overnight at Bakubang Bush Lodge with dinner in their restaurant.

Day 8 Friday May 21 (15 October) Pilanesburg National Park to Madikwe Game Reserve

After breakfast we set off further west for the Madikwe Game Reserve which comprises a mosaic of different habitats - grasslands, mixed woodland and rocky hills dissected by dry drainage lines that wend their way across the open plains to the Dwarsberg Mountains in the south. The reserve operates as a three way partnership with the private sector and Parks board committed to involving local community members as part of the conservation effort. Since its inception nearly 20 years ago the program of restocking the area has been highly successful with over 8,000 animals of 28 species now sharing the environment as part of a sustainable wildlife program. Aside from the chance of sighting the ‘Big Five,’ the reserve is home to a total of 66 mammal species and over 300 of South Africa’s most colorful birds. With some luck we may have sightings of the African Wild Dog that has successfully established itself following the introduction of strict protective measures a few years ago. 

We will arrive at Thakadu River Camp in time for a late afternoon game drive in open safari vehicles. Thakadu  is a tented bush lodge in riverine surroundings with an authentic safari feel and view overlooking the Marico River. Our accommodation will be in luxury tents. If the weather is right, we will dine under the African sky.
Overnight at Thakadu River Camp.  www.madikwecollection.co.za/accommodation_thakadu.html

Day 9 Saturday May 22 (16 October) Madikwe Game Reserve

An early morning game drive followed by breakfast will set the tone for the day as we explore the reserve. Game reports relating to wild dog sightings in particular will be used to fine tune our plans for the day. For the rest we will search diligently for some of the more secretive mammals and unusual birds resident in the area. We return for lunch and a break before heading off for our last sunset game drive before close of play at the end of the day. Photo opportunities throughout Pilanesberg and Madikwe should prove plentiful and provision for plenty of memory card capacity should be made well in advance. Our last evening meal around an open fire in the ‘boma’ will be under the stars soaking up the sights and sounds of the African bush before turning in for our last night.
Overnight at Thakadu River Camp.

Day 10 Sunday May 23 (October 17) Madikwe Game Reserve to Oliver Tambo International Airport

The final day commences with an early morning game drive for more sightings before we say goodbye to the African bush. After breakfast we head back to Johannesburg via Pretoria in good time to connect with the outbound international flight home.

All in all a medley of wine and bush experiences unique to the southern tip of Africa, to savor and enjoy as an indelible memory for many years…

 

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Booking Conditions

Click here for our Trip Reservation Form

Tour Price:

The price for this fully guided 10 day tour is $5200 per person in double occupancy.  A single supplement of $950 will be added if you are not sharing accommodations.

Tour Price Includes:

1. Accommodation as shown above in comfortable double (or twin-bedded) room with private bathroom facilities.
2. Meals: Three meals a day included from lunch on DAY1 to lunch on DAY 10. We will carry 1 litre of water per person per day in the vehicle with us and will include one soft drink each at meals.
3. Transport costs: A comfortable, air-conditioned vehicle with good clearance plus a trailer for the luggage if required. Fuel, toll fees and all other transport related costs.
4. Fee and costs of fully qualified and registered driver/ guide for the full period:
5. Entrance fees: included as per the above itinerary
6. Activities: Table Mountain cableway trip . all wine tasting fees, 2 game drives per day at Madikwe, Bush BBQ at Pilanesberg.
7. Transfers from Cape Town Airport on 14th May provided all guests arrive at the same time. 
8. VAT where applicable

Tour Price Excludes:

1. Laundry, snacks & refreshments outside of above-mentioned meals, drinks at meals, tips and porterage, telephone calls, and other items of a personal nature.
2. Gratuities
3. Cancellation, baggage, emergency evacuation or medical insurance
4. International flights and airport departure taxes, visas if required
5. Bank and credit card charges

Weather & Clothing:

MAY:
Weather should be fine, with warm days and cool nights.  There is always the chance of cooler weather and rain in the Cape. Upcountry it should be warm and sunny during the day and cool at night making for pleasant game viewing, but expect cooler conditions in the early mornings and evenings on game drives.

OCTOBER:
Weather will be warm and nights cool in Cape Town and the Winelands, and in the north, days will be hot and nights warm.  There is a possibility of early summer rains in the north.

We recommend casual, comfortable clothing that can be layered as well as a good fleece and a wind & rain proof jacket. Comfortable walking shoes, hat and sunglasses as well as sunscreen are essentials, as the sun is extremely strong here, even in winter. Most places where you stay offer a laundry service.

Our Standard Terms & Conditions

 Reservations and payments :

1. A deposit of 30% is required to make and secure bookings, with the balance to follow 10 weeks prior to departure. If booking is made within the 10 week period, then the full amount is due to confirm the booking.

Cancellations :
The following is our standard cancellation policy:

1. More than 60 days before departure : admin fees of 15% of the full fee
2. 30 - 60 days before departure : 50% of the full fee
3. Less than 30 days before departure : 100% of the full fee

Travel Insurance: We will not be held responsible for guests traveling without insurance. It is a requirement of booking with us that you have comprehensive cancellation, default, baggage, emergency evacuation and medical insurance for the duration of your trip so that you are covered for emergencies and other unforeseen circumstances. The policy should be valid from the date that you confirm your  itinerary with us.

Amendments to Tour Itinerary and cost:
We reserve the right to on occasion change the itinerary detail in response to prevailing conditions (e.g. weather, state of habitat, latest field reports) in the interests of optimizing sighting opportunities. This will be done is such a way as not to affect the cost of the tour.

However should an increase or other change be forced upon us by airlines, lodges, governments (taxes, fuel prices), or other suppliers, we reserve the right to change the cost accordingly.   In the event that exchange rates between the US dollar and the South African  Rand change substantially, we reserve the right to change the pricing accordingly.