South Africa: From Sea to Savanna

Cape Town, Wine Country, Garden Route and a Big Five Safari with Frank Dwyer

Trip Level

The trip is rated Level 2+, Easy to Moderate. This is a luxury hotel and lodge-based adventure tour with two nights at a rustic but comfortable safari camp. There are moderate walks and hikes, one afternoon of sea kayaking in sheltered waters, plus game drives and game walks. Although this is not a particularly rigorous trip, we still recommend that each participant undertake a program of physical conditioning. Daily walking or regular hiking, jogging, and stair-climbing are excellent preparation for the trip.

During game drives, we can at times get quite close to wild animals. Being very quiet improves everybody’s chances of observation. In the interest of safety, your Trip Leader explains limitations on movement while on game drives, in the safari vehicles, and around camp. Incidents with wild animals are extremely rare on safaris, but no camping safari can guarantee immunity from such incidents. Wilderness Travel is not to be held responsible for incidents involving the behavior of wildlife.

Weather

Generally, South Africa has a mild climate due to its southerly latitude and the high altitude of its interior regions (above 3,000 feet in altitude on average). There are starkly different climatic zones: the Cape region has a Mediterranean climate with mild summer temperatures averaging in the 70s (“summer” in the Southern Hemisphere is our winter), while the lowveld has a subtropical climate with warm to hot temperatures in summer and cooler evenings

The safari camps and lodges in our program offer excellent game viewing year round. Most rainfall occurs usually between December and February in the form of afternoon or evening thunderstorms. In general, the climate is warm with cool nights in “winter” (March-August in the Southern Hemisphere).

Cape Town’s peak season is September to March, with highs of 65°F in September up to 80°F in February. September to February, there is little rain. Southeasterly winds occur in November and early December. In the cooler months, the daily highs are in the mid-60s. The highest rainfall is in July and August.

Choosing the Right Trip

We work hard to help you choose the right trip for you, paying attention to your individual interests, abilities, and needs. If you have questions about the level of comfort or any of the activities described in this itinerary, please contact us.

References

We are proud to have an exceptionally high rate of repeat travelers. For more information, we would be happy to put you in touch with a client who has traveled with us.

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