For meals not included, dinners cost on average 350-500 South African rand (US$20-US$30) per person and lunches 150-250 South African rand (US$8-US$13).

We need at least two weeks’ notice to deal with special dietary requirements (eg vegetarian or allergies.) For this reason, if you did not indicate these on your booking form please advise your sales representative as soon as possible.

Drinking water: While the tap water in South Africa is generally considered safe to drink, we recommend avoiding drinking directly from the taps during your stay. Standards and sensitivities can vary, and we want to make sure you stay well throughout your trip. For your comfort and peace of mind, we recommend using filtered or bottled water instead.

Rise with the bush and head out in an open-sided 4×4 game-viewer for prime dawn and dusk sightings. Watch elephants shuffle to waterholes, giraffes angle for acacia leaves, and listen as lions and leopards grow more vocal when the heat softens and light turns honey-gold.

Guided by expert rangers, tune into predator tracks and alarm calls while scanning for the celebrated Big Five and striking birdlife like the lilac-breasted roller. Soft light, long shadows and clear horizons make superb photo conditions across marula-dotted savanna and riverine thickets.

Dedicate a day to a far-reaching, full-day Big Five safari that spans mopane woodland, thornveld and open grassland. Pause at park rest camps for meals while keeping binoculars ready for passing hornbills, zebras and prowling cats. Distances are longer, rewards broader, and the sense of scale unmistakable.

With your ranger’s fieldcraft and storytelling, learn to read fresh spoor, browse marks and territorial scents. As midday heat builds, seek shade near rivers where hippos wallow and crocs bask, before exploring quieter loops again once the air cools and activity rises.

Lace up for a sunrise bush walk led by two expert, armed trackers. Move quietly along game paths, examine fresh spoor, and identify plants and birdlife while the cool air carries earthy scents and birdsong—an intimate perspective that vehicles can’t provide.

Your guides outline ecology and protocols for being on foot in Big Five country, interpreting wind, dung and alarm calls to keep encounters respectful and distant. Feel the texture of the bush underfoot and the thrum of cicadas as the landscape wakes.

Glide along the Blyde River on a serene boat cruise beneath the bronze cliffs of the Blyde River Canyon. Scan for hippos, crocodiles and African fish eagles as waterfalls lace sandstone buttresses, with the famed Three Rondavels rising like traditional thatched huts.

This subtropical gorge—counted among the world’s largest green canyons—reveals geology carved by ancient rivers. Gentle breezes, mirrored water and soaring cliffs create cinematic views while your guide points out cycads, aloes and nesting sites along the banks.

Explore Mpumalanga’s highlands along the Panorama Route, pausing at God’s Window for cloud-brushed vistas, the sculpted chasms of Bourke’s Luck Potholes, and the vast outlook to the Three Rondavels. Short drives link viewpoints across mist-belt forest and dramatic escarpments.

Brief walks lead to platforms where displays unveil gold-rush lore and the whirlpool erosion that shaped the potholes. On clear days, sweeping Lowveld vistas unfurl to the horizon—ideal for wide-angle photography and reflective pauses amid wind-ruffled grass.

Ride the Graskop Gorge Glass Lift, a panoramic elevator that glides beside a waterfall into lush Afromontane forest. Floor-to-ceiling windows frame the Drakensberg Escarpment, quartzite cliffs and dense canopy as layers of vegetation slip by.

Viewing platforms offer context on geology and endemic plants while you pause for photography and quiet exploration. Purpose-built engineering minimises impact on this fragile gorge, granting effortless access to cool, shaded greenery alive with birdsong and mist.

Add adrenaline at Graskop Gorge with a tandem zipline over the ravine or a cliff-edge walkway of cantilevered platforms. Harness up for a swift flight across the gorge or trace elevated paths that seem to float above the treetops and waterfall spray.

These activities are at additional cost and bookable on tour. Qualified staff handle briefings and gear before you step off the platform or venture onto the walkway. Expect sweeping views, a rush of wind and the soundtrack of water echoing through the canyon.

Begin your South African journey with a hosted hotel gathering in Johannesburg. Meet your group and meet your Tour Leader over a convivial welcome dinner, hear how the week will unfold, and get practical tips for the bush. Sample local flavours, raise a first toast, and settle into the rhythm of safari days ahead.

This relaxed introduction sets the tone for the trip, covering safari etiquette and safety, early-start expectations and what to pack on vehicles. Share stories and questions as Jozi’s creative energy hums outside, building camaraderie before the wild calls of Kruger take centre stage.