15 Days: South Africa + Safari + Blue Train + Victoria Falls

Your flight from Johannesburg to Hoedspruit will take approximately one hour. You will be met by a representative of Kapama Lodge for your transfer to the Lodge where you will spend three days and three nights with safari activities.

Game Drives

Enjoy early morning and late afternoon game drives in open safari vehicles. Accompanied by a skilled ranger and tracker, you can expect to encounter a diverse range of animal and bird species. Since this is a Big Five reserve, encountering lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo is possible over a two-day safari.

While seeing big game is always exhilarating, there are many other smaller species that are also captivating, and birding enthusiasts will be delighted at the approximately 350 species of bird recorded on the reserve. Throughout the day, it’s likely you will see wildlife such as nyala antelope, Vervet monkeys or even a few of the Big Five.

Bush Walks

Experience the African bush on foot under the guidance of a skilled ranger. Your guide will point out medicinal plants, insects and birdlife along the way, and share traditional tracking skills such as using animal footprints and scat to identify animals.

This truly memorable, authentic and intimate encounter with nature and wildlife.

Kapama Lodge will transfer you back to the Hoedspruit Airport for your scheduled 2 1/2 hour flight to Cape Town where you will be met for your transfer to your hotel.

You will be staying in V & A Waterfront at the Queen Victoria Hotel in a deluxe room with breakfast

This morning you will be collected for a half-day private guided Cape Town City & Table Mountain tour. 

To get a feel of the thriving centre of the Mother City, sheltered by Table Mountain, the Cape Town city tour is not to be missed. On this tour you will visit many of the Cape’s top attractions, including the Castle of Good Hope, the colourful cottages of the Bo-Kaap, the bustling Green Market Square, the South African Museum, the beautiful Company’s Gardens and plenty more. With an experienced and knowledgeable guide, and from the comfort of an air-conditioned vehicle, you will be able to learn more about Cape Town and its surrounds.

This morning you will be collected for a full-day private guided Cape Winelands Tour.

The Cape Winelands Tour is a great introduction to the South African Winelands. Stellenbosch and Paarl make up the two largest wine growing districts in South Africa and are pivotal to any Cape Winelands Tour. Franschhoek brings with it the feel of Europe with its beautiful mountain views and small producers. Not only does a Winelands tour take in the crisp white and classic French-style red wines, fantastic cheeses and olives that the area is famous for, but it also gives you a chance to savour a stunning wealth of natural beauty. Explore vast estates as we take you along the Cape Winelands’ principal route through Paarl, Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. Relax in the shade of giant oak trees and towering mountains overlooking lush valleys. 

This morning you will be collected for a full-day private guided Cape Point and Peninsula Tour.

The full day Peninsula Tour will take you around the entire Cape Peninsula to the Cape of Good Hope showing you the wonders along the scenic route.

Pristine beaches, spectacular sight of Cape Point,  land based penguin colony, Skywalk at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. - these are just some of the highlights along the way.

Enjoy a full day at leisure.

This morning your stay in Cape Town comes to an end. You will be transferred to the Cape Town Railway Station in time for your Blue Train departure.

This first class experience offers you around-the-clock butler service, 2 lounge cars (smoking and non-smoking), an observation car, carriages with brass-tinted picture windows and fully carpeted and soundproofed suites, all with en-suite bathrooms.

During day your suite serves as a lounge where you can relax and enjoy the passing vista, at night it transformed into an elegant bedroom.  Modern amenities include individually controlled air-conditioning, underfloor heating and electronic entertainment. 

10h00 Transfer from your hotel to the Railway Station
10h30 Register and check-in at The Blue Train Lounge, Pretoria Station. Guests enjoy pre-departure dry snacks and drinks.
11h15 Boarding commences. Butlers usher guests to their  suites. Suite orientation done by butlers.
12h00 The Blue Train departs from Cape Town Station. Canapés will be served.
16h00 High Tea is served in the Lounge Car
18h30 - 20h00 First sitting for Dinner
20h15 - 22h00 Second sitting for Dinner

Please Note: Dinners are an elegant affair and men are requested to wear a jacket or waistcoat and ladies elegant evening wear. Guests enjoy post-dinner drinks before retiring to bed.

06h00 - 09h00 Breakfast is served on a first-come-first-served basis.
11h30 - 13h00 First sitting for Lunch
13h15 - 14h30 Second sitting for Lunch
14h00 The Blue Train arrives at Kimberley Station. Guests disembark and gather at the railway museum for a short bus ride to the Kimberley Open Mine Museum where you will enjoy a guided tour of the mine and other interesting historical sites. An enclosed ramp will give you a spectacular view of the Big Hole.
17h00 Depart from the Open Mine Museum for Kimberley Station where the Blue Train staff will welcome you with a glass of sherry. The sherry glass is engraved with The Blue Train logo and is a memento for the guests to keep.
18h30 The Blue Train departs from Kimberley Station. Aperitifs are served in the various Blue Train lounge cars.
18h30 - 20h00 First sitting for Dinner
20h15 - 22h00 Second sitting for Dinner. Enjoy post-dinner drinks before retiring to bed.

06h00 - 09h00 Breakfast is served on a first-come-first-served basis
13h00 Lunch (lunch sitting times to be advied)
18h00 The Blue Train arrives at Pretoria Station.

Butlers usher guests to The Blue Train Lounge where you will be met for your transfer to the Castello Di Monte Boutique Hotel.

The Tuscan style estate portrays pure elegance and offers spectacular views of the hills in and around the capital city. The landscaped gardens with mature olive trees and lavender bushes give an Italian flavour to the African landscape.You will hardly notice that you are in the middle of a bustling city.

Overnight in a Terrace Room (or similar) on a bed & breakfast basis.

After breakfast your personal guide will take you on a full day guided private tour of Soweto and the Apartheid's Museum.

Discover Soweto and the surrounding area, driving past well known landmarks such as Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, Orlando Power Station, Nelson Mandela’s old house, Desmond Tutu’s House, the Hector Pieterson Memorial with a quick stop at a shebeen. Afterwards head to the Apartheid Museum and spend a couple of hours exploring the museum and discovering the history of the Apartheid era.

Private transfer to the OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in time for your flight to Victoria Falls. Upon arrival you will be met for your private transfer to the Victoria Falls Safari Club where you will be staying for the next two nights. Your stay will be in a Club Room.  Victoria Falls Safari Lodge is located on a plateau overlooking a waterhole which attracts a variety of wildlife including elephant, buffalo, kudu, waterbuck, impala as well as a large number of bird species. Game may be seen at the waterhole from the lodge’s viewing deck, pool deck or over drinks or a meal at the Buffalo Bar and MaKuwa-Kuwa Restaurant.

 Your stay at the Victoria Falls Safari Club includes the following services:

• Local brand drinks - beer, house wine, soft drinks and bottled water 
• An in-room beverage station including a mini bar re-stocked daily with beer, house wine, soft drinks, bottled water and a Nespresso machine
• Afternoon tea and pastries (15:30 - 16:30)
• Sundowner cocktails and canapés (17:30 - 18:30)
• Access to edutainment presentations on the resort which occur at least 3 times a week – Monday, Wednesday and Friday (e.g. The Life of David Livingstone talk and other topics) starting from 09:30 (duration approximately 45 minutes)
• Same day laundry service
• A 15-minute head and shoulder or foot massage on the Club viewing deck (15:30 – 16:30) (subject to availability of Spa staff)
• Hourly courtesy shuttle to Victoria Falls Rainforest and the town centre
• Complimentary Wi-fi

Later in the afternoon you will be taken to enjoy a Sundowner Cruise on the Signature Deck of the Zambezi Explorer or the Zambezi Royal boat. Transfers are arranged with a shuttle bus and are not private.

After the boat cruise and your return to the hotel an a la carte dinner is served at the MaKuwa-Kuwa Restaurant.

After breakfast you will join a guided sight-seeing tour (shared) of the Victoria Falls. It is advised to take a rain coat to protect against sporadic water spray (can also be hired on location). You will be back in time for lunch at the Makuwa-Kuwa Restaurant to view the spectacular arrival of hundreds of Vultures swooping down for their daily feed on leftover meat scraps and bones from the on-site restaurants in front of Victoria Falls Safari Lodge. Guests have the opportunity to spot white headed vultures, hooded vultures, lappet faced vultures and white backed vultures. The supplementary feeding program aids the survival of these remarkable, but endangered birds. 

Enjoy the afternoon at your leisure. There are many more adventures and tours that can be booked locally at the hotel's travel desk.

In the evening a short shuttle transfer will take you to the Boma for a cultural dinner with entertainment.

Breakfast at the hotel. Private transfer to the airport for your flight to Johannesburg.

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