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Destination Options Africa

Guided journey

Iconic Beach and Bush.

The classic South African pairing, done properly. Four nights in Cape Town with a day kept free, a flight to the escarpment for the Panorama Route, three nights on safari in the Kruger, and a last evening in Johannesburg.

Ask about this journey or write to enquiries@vdoafrica.com

The Three Rondavels rising above a rocky stretch of the Blyde River in Mpumalanga
days
10
nights
9
stops
4

As set out in VDO’s own journey outline of 6 October 2026.

At a glance.

Style
Guided, with a private English speaking guide on touring days
Where
Cape Town, Mpumalanga, Kruger and Johannesburg
When to go
April, May, September and October balance both halves. The Kruger is at its best in the dry months from May to September. Cape Town is warmest from October to April.
Suits
First visits, honeymoons and company trips: the two things everyone comes to South Africa for, with room to breathe between them.

What it is remembered for

  • Sunset on the Atlantic seaboard with your feet in the sand at Clifton.
  • God’s Window and the Three Rondavels above the Blyde River Canyon.
  • Three nights of dawn and dusk game drives in the Kruger, in the lodge style you choose.

The route.

4 stops, in order.

  1. Cape TownCity. 4 nights.
  2. Mpumalanga escarpmentMountains. 1 night.
  3. KrugerSafari. 3 nights.
  4. JohannesburgCity. 1 night.

Day by day.

Breakfast is daily from the first morning. Other meals are included only where a day shows them. Travel times are approximate.

  1. Day1 Arrive Cape TownCape Town.

    Travel: private transfer from the airport, about 25 minutes.

    Morning. Met at arrivals and driven into the city, with Table Mountain filling the windscreen.

    Afternoon. Settle in. If the flight was long, do nothing. The pool is there for exactly this.

    Evening. Sunset on the Atlantic seaboard with your guide, then a welcome dinner.

    Included
    • Private airport transfer.
    • Welcome dinner.
    Stay
    A boutique hotel in Cape Town: a garden villa with a spa in the leafy southern suburbs, or a hotel on or beside the Sea Point promenade.
    Meals
    Dinner.
  2. Day2 Table Mountain and the cityCape Town.

    Travel: short drives with your private guide.

    Morning. The cableway up Table Mountain while it is clear. Weather decides the order of the day, never the plan.

    Afternoon. The Bo-Kaap, the Company’s Garden and the old city, then free time at the V&A Waterfront.

    Evening. At leisure.

    Included
    • Table Mountain cableway ticket.
    • Private guide and vehicle.
    Worth knowing
    • The cableway closes for about two weeks of maintenance each winter, usually from late July. On those dates the view comes from Signal Hill instead.
    Stay
    As day 1.
    Meals
    Breakfast.
  3. Day3 The Peninsula, and the beachCape Town.

    Travel: a full day loop of about 150 kilometres.

    Morning. Chapman’s Peak, the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point.

    Afternoon. The penguins at Boulders, then back up the coast to finish the day properly: feet in the sand at Clifton or Camps Bay as the sun drops into the Atlantic.

    Evening. At leisure in Camps Bay or back at the hotel.

    Included
    • Private guide and vehicle.
    • Entrance fees for the Cape of Good Hope reserve and the penguin colony.
    Worth knowing
    • The water is cold all year. The beach is for the view and the light.
    Stay
    As day 1.
    Meals
    Breakfast.
  4. Day4 A day of your ownCape Town.

    Morning. Free. Your guide sets up whichever of the options below you choose, or none.

    Afternoon. The promenade, the pool, or a table in the sun.

    Evening. At leisure.

    Stay
    As day 1.
    Meals
    Breakfast.
  5. Day5 Fly to MpumalangaCape Town to the Mpumalanga escarpment.

    Travel: a direct flight of about two and a half hours, then a private transfer of about one and a half hours.

    Morning. Transfer to the airport and fly north east, from two oceans to the bush.

    Afternoon. Up onto the escarpment, where the air is cooler and on a clear day the view runs across the lowveld towards Mozambique. Nothing is scheduled.

    Evening. Dinner at the hotel.

    Included
    • Private transfers on both sides.
    • Dinner.
    Not included
    • The flight.
    Stay
    A hotel on the escarpment near Graskop.
    Meals
    Breakfast, dinner.
  6. Day6 The Panorama Route, then into the KrugerThe escarpment to the Kruger.

    Travel: about four hours in the day, in short legs.

    Morning. The Panorama Route, early, before the mist can rise: God’s Window, the potholes at Bourke’s Luck, and the Three Rondavels above the Blyde River Canyon, one of the largest canyons on earth.

    Afternoon. Down off the escarpment into the lowveld. You reach the Kruger by mid afternoon, and your first game drive goes out in the last light, which is when the bush wakes up.

    Evening. Dinner at the lodge.

    Included
    • Private guide and vehicle.
    • Viewpoint fees.
    • Afternoon game drive.
    • Dinner.
    Worth knowing
    • This is a malaria area. Speak to your doctor before travel.
    Stay
    Your choice of safari style: a lodge on the river at a gate of the Kruger National Park, or a lodge in a private reserve beside the park.
    Meals
    Breakfast, dinner.
  7. Day7 SafariThe Kruger.

    Morning. Out before sunrise, coffee in hand. This is the drive that matters: the cats are still moving and the light is gold.

    Afternoon. Back for breakfast and the heat of the day. Pool, deck, sleep. The animals rest too. Out again at four.

    Evening. Home as the light goes, and dinner under the stars. In a private reserve the drive runs on after dark with a spotlight.

    Included
    • Dawn and dusk game drives.
    Stay
    As day 6.
    Meals
    Breakfast, dinner.
  8. Day8 SafariThe Kruger.

    Morning. A second dawn. By now you are reading the bush yourself.

    Afternoon. At leisure, then the last dusk drive.

    Evening. A boma dinner around the fire.

    Included
    • Dawn and dusk game drives.
    • Boma dinner.
    Stay
    As day 6.
    Meals
    Breakfast, dinner.
  9. Day9 To JohannesburgThe Kruger to Johannesburg.

    Travel: a flight of about one hour, or about four and a half hours by road.

    Morning. One last drive at first light, then breakfast and goodbye to your ranger.

    Afternoon. To Johannesburg, and the leafy calm of Houghton.

    Evening. A farewell dinner.

    Included
    • Dawn game drive.
    • Private transfers.
    • Farewell dinner.
    Not included
    • The flight, if you fly.
    Stay
    A boutique hotel in Houghton, Johannesburg.
    Meals
    Breakfast, dinner.
  10. Day10 DepartJohannesburg.

    Travel: private transfer to the airport, about 30 minutes.

    Morning. If your flight is late, Soweto first: Vilakazi Street and the Hector Pieterson Memorial.

    Included
    • Private transfer to the airport.
    Meals
    Breakfast.

Take it whole, or in parts.

This journey is built in parts that follow one another. Take the whole journey, or a run of parts that suits your client.

  • Four nights in Cape TownThe mountain, the peninsula, the beach at sunset and a day that is entirely yours. Days 1 to 4.
  • The Panorama RouteA flight north east and a night on the escarpment, ready for the viewpoints in the morning. Day 5.
  • Three nights in the KrugerGod’s Window and the Blyde River Canyon, then three nights of dawn and dusk game drives. Days 6 to 8.
  • A night in JohannesburgBack to the city for a farewell dinner, with Soweto before the flight if there is time. Days 9 to 10.

Take the whole journey, or any parts that follow one another, starting where you may join and ending where you may leave. If you start in the middle, be at the starting place by the hour we give you. A night before can be added.

What is included.

Included

  • Private airport transfers and a private vehicle throughout.
  • A private English speaking guide on touring days.
  • Hotels and lodges, with breakfast daily and the lunches and dinners named in the plan.
  • Entrance and park fees for everything marked included.

Not included

  • International and domestic flights, unless a day says otherwise.
  • Travel insurance, visas and tips.
  • Drinks, and meals not named in the plan.
  • Anything marked optional.
  • On self drive tours: fuel, tolls and entrance fees paid on the day.

Good to know.

  • All of the Big Five roam free in the Kruger, and three nights gives a fair chance of most of them but never a promise. Malaria area: speak to your doctor before travel.
  • Stays are described by style and place.
  • Travel times are approximate driving or flying times without stops, rounded up.
  • Flights are not included unless a day says so. Scheduled flights change by season: the days and times are checked for each journey.
  • The Kruger and northern Botswana are malaria areas, and Etosha carries a seasonal risk. Speak to your doctor before travel. The Cape, the Karoo and the Garden Route are free of malaria, and in Windhoek, the Namib and on the Namibian coast the risk is very low.
  • Wildlife is wild. Each tour says plainly what its reserve holds, and no sighting is ever promised.

What happens next.

  1. Send a request

    Dates, travellers and the feel you want.

  2. We reply with a plan

    A consultant replies within one working day with a plan and an estimate. Estimates are labelled as estimates.

  3. We confirm in writing

    We confirm with our partners, then with you in writing.