#21 Days Cape Town to Port Alfred Family Self-Drive Adventure#

Arrive in beautiful Cape Town!

Your South African adventure starts when arriving at the Cape Town International Airport. You will be met by our representative who will accompany you to the car rental depot and present you with your self-drive Cape Town to Addo tour itinerary, a map book of South Africa and a GPS. After collection you drive to your lovely hotel situated in Camps Bay where you will be staying for 4 nights. 

Spend some time today to hike or take the cable car up Table Mountain (weather permitting), visit the charming Malay quarter and the wonderful Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Take a boat trip from the harbour, or enjoy a trip to Robben Island.

Today we recommend that you visit Cape Point Nature Reserve & Cape of Good Hope, spending time at Boulders Beach at the penguin colony and explore the quaint shops in Kalk Bay.

Today you have the day at leisure to relax at the beach or enjoy some extra activities.

Continue to the beautiful Winelands!

Today you say goodbye to Cape Town and make your way out to the majestic University town of Stellenbosch in the heart of the Cape Winelands.

Stellenbosch is a place of great beauty and culture that's steeped in South African tradition. The Stellenbosch Wine Route is arguably the country's most famous, and the Stellenbosch Wine of Origin area includes 106 cellars - most of which are open to the public. Enjoy a long day's wine tasting, and wine buying and you'll sip more than our great South African wines - you'll taste our South African way of life.

Afterwards you continue to Franschhoek, the wine and gourmet capital of South Africa, where you will be staying for 2 nights.

Today you have the day at leisure to enjoy all that Franschhoek has to offer.

Continue to the ostrich capital, Oudtshoorn

After enjoying your stay in Franschhoek, where you have been amazed at the stunning scenery, winelands, history and local hospitality, you may think you have seen the best of South Africa. Luckily, this is not the case – you still have one of the world’s top tourist experiences – the Garden Route, to explore.

Today you continue along the R62, the longest wine route in the world. Enjoy stunning mountain scenery along the whole route; quaint towns like Barrydale, Montagu, Calitzdorp (port wine capital of South Africa) until you reach Oudthoorn (Ostrich capital of South Africa), After a 3.5 hour drive you arrive in Oudtshoorn the Centre of the Klein Karoo and 'ostrich-feather capital' of the world. In addition to these large birds Oudtshoorn is famous for being the closest town to the natural wonder of the Cango Caves. Oudtshoorn is a lush oasis catering for adventure, cultural and geological tourists and is one of the most-visited towns in the country.

After you check into your lovely lodge you have the afternoon at leisure to enjoy all Oudthoorn has to offer. Dinner will be enjoyed at the lodge.

Buffelsdrift Game Lodge offers a unique Luxury tented accommodation, a true South African bushveld experience just off the famous Route 62, within the Garden Route, in the heart of the Klein Karoo with Oudtshoorn being just 6,5 km away. Experience an array of 22 different wildlife species including Elephants, Rhino, Cape Buffalo, Giraffe, Lions, over 200 bird species, and hippos right by the watering hole.

Enjoy an early morning true African Bush Safaris at 07:00. They are also known as game drives. View Buffalo, Giraffe, Hippo and various other species. The duration of our bush safaris is ± 2 hours.

After breakfast the day is at leisure to visit an Ostrich Farm and the Cango Caves, a spectacular series of limestone caverns, some of the most extensive in the world. Experience animal encounters with cheetah, lemurs and so much more at the Cango Wildlife Ranch.

Dinner will be enjoyed at the lodge.

Continue to Knysna, the gem of the Garden Route

After breakfast enjoy a close encounter with our elephants (Jabari, Malaika and Bulelo) from 08:00 - 09:00. You will find they may be huge, but are gentle as can be. You may feed them, touch them and take photos with them while our skilled elephant guides share their knowledge of these gentle giants with you.

Leaving Oudtshoorn you will head for the town of Knysna (2 hours drive), en route passing through the beautiful Outeniqua Pass, Kaaimans River Pass and Wilderness. Wilderness a small village, with lakes, rivers, fens, estuaries and beaches, lies against a backdrop of lush forest and lofty mountains and heralds the beginning of the Garden Route.

A short drive up the coast you will reach Knysna, the heart of South Africa's famous Garden Route. Knysna is the unofficial capital of the Garden Route, surrounded by forests, lakes, mountains and sea; this ever-popular tourist destination is a charming town of legend, history, arts and crafts catering to visitors every need or fancy. Knysna is situated on South Africa's only National Lake, which is also the country's largest permanent estuary. Knysna is a nature lovers dream.

“Fall asleep with the sound of the waves crashing gently onto the beach, wake-up and step onto your private deck and enjoy the fresh air and ocean views. Escape to South Africa’s haven of nature, Brenton Haven accommodation in Knysna. Here you will experience the best of the world-renowned Garden Route. It is a breath taking holiday location best known for its tranquility and long sandy beaches. Many have fallen in love with this little sleepy hollow suburb of Knysna and some even describe it has having “Champagne air”. Immediately surrounding you at Brenton Haven is a spectacular beach directly below the resort, dramatic rolling dunes, clifftop walks, beautiful green forests, and the lush fynbos for which this part of the world is so famous. It is a perfect location to enjoy the best of the garden route with Knysna town (15 mins), Plettenberg Bay (40 mins), Wilderness (35 mins), and George (45 mins) all close by.

Today you have the day at leisure to enjoy the beach or visit the quaint little town of Knysna.

Enjoy all that the Garden Route has to offer.

Highlights of the area:

WILDERNESS HEIGHTS VIEWPOINT

Make sure to drive to the viewpoint at Wilderness Heights to see the ‘Map of Africa’. Take the short but very steep Heights (Hoogte) Road from the town of Wilderness to get to the viewpoint.

SEDGEFIELD

It’s difficult not to love Sedgefield. Myoli beach alone is worth driving here for. And it’s one of five beaches set behind the lagoon and sand dunes. From Swartvlei to Platbank is a stretch of six kilometres that one can stroll as long as it is low tide. The lagoons are wonderful for kayaking, and the town is a quiet and gentle retreat from it all.

GOUKAMMA NATURE RESERVE

Just around the corner from Sedgefield, make time to stop and hike in Goukamma. This scenically rich reserve is not well known, but is well worth a stop.

KNYSNA

Other than Storms River Mouth, Knysna is the Garden Route’s darling. Life revolves around the lagoon, connected to the Indian Ocean through the channel on either side of which is a famous sandstone cliff. They’re known as The Heads (a boat ride will take you to see them).

PLETTENBERG BAY

Plettenberg Bay is one of the highlights of the Garden Route. The beaches are incredible, Robberg Nature Reserve provides wonderful hikes, you can cruise the Keurbooms River Nature Reserve, visit The Crags and Monkeyland & Birds of Eden.

Make your way to Jeffreys Bay!

After breakfast and check out you make your way to Jeffreys Bay where you will be staying for 2 nights (2 hours drive). En route you will pass the Bloukrans Bungee Bridge (the highest bungee jumping bridge in the world). Visit Tsitiskamma National Park for a short hike to the suspension bridge at Storm's River mouth.

Jeffreys Bay, or "J-Bay" as it is known to the locals, brings to mind surfing, sunshine and beautiful beaches - and you’d be right. Rated among the ten best surfing spots in the world, surfers from across the globe come to enjoy the rolling surf. Jeffreys Bay is a beach paradise.

Jeffreys Bay is one of endless summer where people predominantly come to escape the city life and enjoy a relaxed lifestyle - swimming costumes are the requisite attire. The beaches are safe and the water is warm, so swimming and water sports are the main pastime. As if this weren’t enough of an invitation, this stretch of the coast is also home to dolphins that grace the waves and there are often whale sightings. There are also a variety of shells that visitors collect by the handful - and they’re welcome to do so. You can see local shells displayed in the Shell Museum alongside shells from other countries.

This part of the Eastern Cape has a unique climate - the landscape is mainly flat and dry between the sea and the distant mountains and the vegetation is typically aloes, fynbos, sour figs and shrub land. Temperatures are moderate with rainfall all year. Summers are warm and winters mild, which is why water sports are so popular.

Water sports include: surfing, scuba diving, swimming, snorkeling, boat trips, fishing, sailing, canoeing and body surfing. There are a number of other activities to do whilst staying in Jeffreys Bay. These include: mountain bike rides, beach horse rides, a 9-hole golf course, river cruises, quad biking and hiking trails.

The area has a number of nature reserves, which also draw visitors. Kabeljous Estuary and Nature Reserve is a walk-about reserve that has a safe swimming beach and is an excellent fishing and bird-watching area. The Noorsekloof Nature Reserve has a 3km trail running alongside a stream from which you can see many species of bird and some small buck. If it is bird-watching you are after, then the Seekoei River Estuary is the place to go. There is an abundance of water fowl and a hide overlooking the river.

Your ultimate safari experience awaits you!

Just 221 km's from Jeffreys Bay, within the cavernous bushveld of the Sunday River region of the Eastern Cape, lies the Addo Elephant National Park. This 5* safari lodge offers you the opportunity to encounter South Africa’s Big 5 – Lion, Buffalo, Leopard, Rhino and Elephant.

Kuzuko Lodge is gloriously situated high upon a hill overlooking the vast expanse of the big five reserve below.

If privacy, peace and quiet, fresh air, no traffic or light and sound pollution is what you were looking for then you have just found the perfect place.

Lunch is normally served around 14h00, and you can relax until afternoon tea during mid-afternoon, when it is time to get ready for an evening game drive on an open land rover.

In search for the Big 5!

Early in the morning, you will be awoken before sunrise by a gentle knock on your door or a discreet wake up phone call. Early morning is the best time for game viewing, so make the most of it! Coffee and tea with rusks (biscuits) will be served on the deck or in the lounge before departing.

After the morning game drive (which lasts about 3 hours), you will return to the lodge where a delicious spread will be laid on for breakfast (usually full English or Continental breakfast). After breakfast, you can join an armed ranger on a short guided bush walk if you wish, to explore the smaller wonders of the wild on foot.

Enjoy the rest of the afternoon at leisure, watching animals from the deck, reading a book next to the pool, or perhaps taking an afternoon siesta before lunch. Lunch is normally served around 14h00, and you can relax until afternoon tea during mid-afternoon, when it is time to get ready for another game drive on an Early in the morning, you will be awoken before sunrise by a gentle knock on your door or a discreet wake up phone call.

Enjoy another thrilling morning & evening game drive.

Children of all ages are welcome at our place of glory. We cater for their every need from child friendly decks, special kiddies menu’s, camping cots and sleeper coaches for under 12’s to a special activities program under the watchful eyes of a dedicated game ranger.

Do it like the Khoisan Kids did it

Experience the Karoo the Bushmen way. Explore nature and the remnants of caves and Khoisan painting gallery. Memorise the paintings to be redrawn using your paint brush made from a local plant on return to the lodge. – Ages 8 to 14

Make your way to Oceana Beach!

After a final morning game drive and breakfast you check out of the lodge and make your way to Oceana Beach & Wildlife Reserve where you will be staying for 3 nights. (203 km).

Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve could be described as the place at which paradise and earthly perfection meet, where almost endless pristine beaches and undulating vegetation blend seamlessly against a backdrop of eternal skies. A place where every day unfolds as a gift, designed with you in mind. It is a heavenly place in the Eastern Cape, just outside of a tiny jewel of a village called Port Alfred.

Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve is individually and sumptuously appointed; suites are spread along the wave of the Indian Ocean and the reserve facing vistas overlooking sweeping plains. Oceana Beach and Wildlife Reserve is a sanctuary for weary souls, a place of breathtaking beauty, where animals roam free and guests are free to explore. All the suites at Oceana offer privacy, serenity and opulence in equal measure. From the moment they enter our peaceful reserve until they leave, our guests are the richer for the experience.

Make your way to Port Elizabeth.

After a final morning game drive and breakfast and check out you make your way to Port Elizabeth where you will be staying for the last night.

The Beach Hotel is one Port Elizabeth’s finest family Hotel, situated on Port Elizabeth’s magnificent beachfront, directly opposite Hobie Beach and next to the Boardwalk Casino and Entertainment Complex.

Guests are spoilt with choice, offering 3 onsite restaurants to suit everyone’s palate. Enjoy a relaxing environment, sipping a cocktail white overlooking the ocean at The Verandah restaurant, or indulge in our famous buffets at The Crest. Resident foodies will love the fine dining cuisine at Ginger, voted one of the best restaurants in Port Elizabeth, it is definitely a must.

Restaurant specials - Our Festive Summer menu has a variety of fun, fresh meals to be enjoyed in our Crest Restaurant, the Verandah Restaurant and Ginger.

Say your last goodbyes!

Your journey comes to a close when you make your way to the Port Elizabeth Airport where you will return the car rental and board your flight home. 

We wish you a safe trip with beautiful memories.