Southern Africa Tour | Fully Escorted Africa Tour for Seniors

Upon arrival in Cape Town we will transfer to our hotel. Our tour commences with our welcome dinner at the Greek Fisherman restaurant.

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After breakfast, we meet at the hotel where our local guide will escort us on a half-day tour of Cape Point, which will include visits to the Good Hope Nature Reserve, which has magnificent fynbos vegetation, birdlife, endemic antelope species and zebras, historic shipwrecks,

Afterwards, we enjoy lunch at the Seaforth Restaurant.

In the afternoon, we continue our tour with a half-day wine Route at Constantia. The Wine Valley here is the most spectacular wine experience in the world, offering a unique blend of centuries-old established wine homesteads and new stylish boutique wineries in a setting of unsurpassed beauty and heritage. Later on, we enjoy a group dinner at Meloncino Restaurant.

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Today, we enjoy a full-day tour of Cape Town City, including lunch.

The Mother City is steeped in history, culture and scenic wonders, and offers an abundance of things to see and do.

The drive to the city takes us past famous landmarks. We will pass the Dias statue, the Van Riebeek statue and Train station, before your visit to the Castle of Good Hope, built between 1666 and 1679 by the Dutch East India Company (VOC). The Castle was developed as a maritime replenishment station, and from 1678 it was the center of civilian, administrative and military life at the Cape until the area grew and operations expanded elsewhere. Today, the Castle is the seat of the military in the Cape, and is open for visitors to explore and learn more about its history.

The route then leads us to the magnificent Table Mountain (weather permitting), or in the event of inclement weather, Signal Hill. You will ascend to the top by the revolving cable car. Here, you will see wild flowers, daisies, silver tree, and marvel at a birds-eye view of the city and its beaches. On a clear day it is even possible to see Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned.

After that we descend back to the city and move on to a visit of the Company Gardens, a large public park and botanical garden set in the heart of Cape Town, home to a rose garden, Japanese garden, fish pond and aviary, and driving through Malay quarters, also known as the Bo-Kaap, which means “Above Cape” because of its location up against the slopes of Table Mountain. There after visit Greenmarket square for some souvenirs.

Next we visit the V&A Harbour, a shopping and entertainment complex with a final stop at the Cape Town Diamond Museum, situated in the bustling heart of the world-famous Clock Tower precinct at the V&A Waterfront. Discover a 3 billion year old story unfold from a diamond’s formation to the final polished stone. Explore the origins of South Africa’s famous diamond industry and get introduced to some of the great names in diamond history, including Cecil John Rhodes, Barney Barnato and the Oppenheimer family.

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Today we journey to Oudtshoorn, where we enjoy an ostrich farm tour including lunch.

Here, we learn about the world’s largest bird, the ostrich, which lays the largest egg, and has the most beautiful feathers and captivating eyes. Each tour has two parts – the main yard and the farmlands. In the main yard, we will be shown different ostrich feathers, the incubators and how they work, gizzard stones, and we will have the opportunity to feed the ostriches ourselves!

The farmlands are where we will be shown the anatomy of an ostrich, visit the breeding pairs nest and – for the brave- we may even get the chance to ride one!

In the afternoon,we experience the world famous Cango Caves tour.

29km from Oudtshoorn, at the head of the picturesque Cango Valley, lie the spectacular underground wonder of the Klein Karoo – the Cango Caves. Situated in a limestone ridge parallel to the well-known Swartberg Mountains, we will find the finest dripstone caverns, with their vast halls and towering formations.

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Today we experience a full day Featherbed Tour, including lunch

Featherbed is a privately-owned, registered Nature Reserve and a South African Heritage Site. It is a pristine piece of paradise situated on the Western Head of Knysna and is accessible only by ferry.

Many people make a day of it, catching the ferry across the lagoon, going on a drive or walk through the reserve followed by a picnic under milkwood trees, in the hopes of sighting the beautiful green, but rather elusive, Knysna Loerie.

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Today, we enjoy a full day Birds of Eden and Monkey land Tour, including lunch.

Monkeyland opened its doors to the public on the 6th of April 1998. The unique primate sanctuary is currently the top eco-tourism attraction on the Garden Route and for good reason. Monkeyland has captured the hearts of visitors in its efforts to rehabilitate and free previously caged primates. The sanctuary is exceptional as it caters for several species of primates who are not caged. They are free to move about the forest and live harmoniously with one another.

Monkeyland has as one of its aims to create awareness about the plight of primates and to show that with a greater understanding of our primate cousins, we can all live in harmony.

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After breakfast, we enjoy a half day Johannesburg City Tour

Whilst this tour takes in many activities, it is not a difficult day as there will be several stops and opportunities to relax.

The tour commences in the new financial heart of the African continent in the Sandton CBD with a drive past the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and moves onto the wealthiest suburbs on the African continent, Sandhurst and Hyde Park and then progresses to Houghton with a drive past President Mandela’s home in this beautiful suburb.

Thereafter we enter the bustling high rise cosmopolitan suburb of Hillbrow formerly the home to most of South Africa’s European immigrants and now home to South Africa’s African diaspora.

We then progress to Constitution Hill, the home of the Constitutional Court, down to the business district of Braamfontein which hosts the world famous University of the Witwatersrand. From there, we head across the Nelson Mandela Bridge into Newtown for our first stop at Main Street where we will walk around the old Mining House District, home to most of the World’s largest mining companies such as Anglo American and BHP Billiton.

We re-join our vehicle for a drive past Gandhi Square named after Mahatma Gandhi who lived in South Africa during his early years as a lawyer and then disembark on our second stop at the Carlton Centre, Africa’s tallest building.

From the 50th floor of this building we will enjoy panoramic views of downtown Johannesburg, its skyscrapers and the iconic yellow gold mine dumps surrounding the city.

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After breakfast, we head off on a full day city tour of Pretoria.

The morning leads to the east of Pretoria, and the village of Cullinan where the world’s largest Diamond was discovered in 1905.

The Cullinan Diamond Mine, also known as the Premier Diamond Mine, has uncovered some of the largest diamonds in the world today and the mine lies over one of the biggest Kimberlite pipes in the world (Kimberlite is named after Kimberley in South Africa and refers to a type of Potassic volcanic rock known to contain diamonds).

A visit to the mine will include a detailed above ground tour (surface tour) of the mine with lots of facts and technical information on the mine and the diamond industry in South Africa.

Move on to the majestic Voortrekker Monument, situated south of Pretoria in a nature reserve. It is a unique monument which commemorates the pioneer history of Southern Africa and the history of the Afrikaner. Today it is the most visited heritage site of its kind in Gauteng and one of the top ten cultural historical visitor attractions in the country. This Monument also manages the Heritage Foundation and various other monuments and cultural historical sites country-wide.

Kruger House is the historical Pretoria residence of the Boer leader and President of the first South African Republic, Paul Kruger. It was built in 1884 by architect Tom Claridge and builder Charles Clark. Milk was used, instead of water, for mixing the cement from which the house was constructed, as the cement available was of poor quality.

Lunch at La Madeleine restaurant

Enjoy a tour of the administrative capital of South Africa. Pretoria / Tshwane lies about 50 km north of Johannesburg. The population is just under a million and consists mainly of government officials and other related government personnel. In Pretoria, life goes at a much slower pace than in Johannesburg and it is quite easy for travellers to navigate their through the city, which is laid out like a chess board. Pretoria lies 1367m above sea level, which makes it about 400 m lower than Johannesburg. It is surrounded by mountains and is home to the magnificent Union Buildings

As the capital of the country for over 100 years it is strewn with many official buildings and memorials dating back to the early 1900’s.

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After breakfast, we depart JHB Airport for our flight to Nelspruit. In the afternoon, we meet up with our game lodge ranger and then depart on our evening game drive, before heading back to the lodge for dinner. These game drives provide the opportunity to see some of the most magnificent wildlife

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Today, we enjoy an early morning game drive with the ranger, before returning to the Lodge for breakfast and a morning at leisure. In the afternoon, we head out on another evening game drive, before returning for dinner.

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This morning, after breakfast at the hotel, we head off for Nelspruit. We then head to Dullstroom via the beautiful Panorama route. Along the way, we visit the Three Rondavels, the Blyde River Canyon, and the God’s Window and the Bourke’s Luck Potholes, before reaching the hotel in time for dinner.

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After breakfast, we depart for Zimbabwe, where we take a tour of Victoria Falls.

Described by the Kololo tribe living in the area in the 1800’s as ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya’ – ‘the Smoke that Thunders’ and in more modern terms as ‘the greatest known curtain of falling water’, Victoria Falls are a spectacular sight of awe-inspiring beauty and grandeur on the Zambezi River, bordering Zambia and Zimbabwe.

A path along the edge of the forest provides the visitor who is prepared to brave the tremendous spray with an unparalleled series of views of the Falls.

One special vantage point is across the Knife edge bridge, where visitors can have the finest view of the Eastern Cataract and the Main Falls as well as the Boiling Pot where the river turns and heads down the Batoka Gorge.

Other vantage points include the Falls bridge and the Lookout Tree which commands a panoramic view across the Main Falls.

Different times of the year will provide completely different experiences of the Falls region. Peak flood season is around March and April and the full power of the falls can be experienced in all its glory. As the floods abate the view of the falls gets better and better through the year, but at its lowest, around November and December the Falls become little rivulets running over the edge and in some places along the 1,7km width no water falls at all.

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After breakfast, we spend more time enjoying the Falls, with a comprehensive tour.

The Victoria Falls – Now in Its 150 Millionth Fantastic Year – Reaches Its Zenith In May each year. It’s a truly awe-inspiring experience – the sight, the sound, the smell; the humbling feeling that here indeed is Nature’s Supreme Masterpiece. No photograph can begin to depict the reality, and nothing prepares we for our first sight.
This tour is conducted in the morning and afternoon. En route, we may be taken past the ‘Big Tree’ where they may stop and take photos.

We will be accompanied through the Rainforest by one of our qualified Guides who will give a brief history of the Falls themselves as well as detailing the flora, fauna, bird & wildlife and other points of interest.

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After breakfast, we transfer to Chobe, where we meet our lodge range and go on another evening game drive. We enjoy a group dinner after returning to our lodge.

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Today we head out for an early morning game drive, before returning to the lodge for breakfast. After a day of relaxation, we depart on a boat cruise around the local area, spotting numerous kind of flora and fauna. We head back to the lodge for a group dinner.

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After breakfast we meet up with our ranger for a sightseeing morning boat cruise. Later on in the day, we enjoy a Namibia Village walk tour.

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After breakfast, we depart for the Kosane, from where we fly to Jo’burg. Upon arrival, we transfer to our new hotel.

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After breakfast, we enjoy a half-day tour of Soweto.

The history of African townships south west of Johannesburg that would later form Soweto was propelled by the increasing eviction of Africans by city and state authorities.

Africans had been drawn to work on the gold mines that were established after 1886. From the start they were accommodated in separate areas on the outskirts of Johannesburg, such as Newtown.

We will then proceed into the iconic suburb of Soweto, where we will visit the Kliptown Memorial, site of the famous Freedom Charter gathering on which South Africa’s constitution is based and then past the present home of Nobel prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu followed by a stop at Nelson Mandela’s first home in Johannesburg for some pictures.

On our departure from Soweto we will have one final stop at the Hector Pieterson memorial.

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The tour concludes today after breakfast.

Those connecting to Odyssey’s Namibia tour will head to the airport for an a morning flight to Windhoek.