Explorers Escape (9 Days) EXPESC09

Upon arrival at OR Tambo Airport, make your way on foot from baggage claim to check into the City Lodge Hotel for your overnight accommodation. 

Note About Airport Porters (JNB specifically). Please be aware that some travelers arriving in South Africa JNB airport and checking into the City Lodge hotel have recently reported uncomfortable experiences with airport porters. While these individuals may offer to assist with luggage, they often demand excessive tips or persistently pressure guests after providing help. To avoid any inconvenience, we strongly recommend that you do not use porter services at the airport. (It’s a short walk to City Lodge)

We’re sharing this as a courtesy to help you have a more comfortable arrival experience.

Overnight: City Lodge OR Tambo

This morning, check out and meet your guide in the hotel lobby at 10am. Three hours from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo Airport, deep within a magnificent forest, is a place commonly referred to as ‘Scotland’s Only Outpost in Africa’ or ‘the Place of Eternal Mist’. On the map, it’s called Dullstroom, a mecca for fly-fishermen, hikers, mountain bikers, plant lovers, horse riders and those who simply want to curl up in front of a log fire and enjoy the scenery. Take advantage of all the leisure activities on offer at the Dunkeld Country and Equestrian Estate.
Overnight:  Dunkeld Country Estate

After breakfast, you will explore Dullstroom and its own calm, distinctive, and singular atmosphere. Explore the original architecture, quaint stores, artisan shops and art galleries which line Dullstroom’s main street. Thereafter, you will be whisked off to Pilgrim’s Rest which is a small town with a very colorful and exciting history. In 1873 the town and surrounding area was densely populated with prospectors all hoping to make their fortunes in the second of the Transvaal gold fields. Today the town is a tourist location that takes visitors back in time to the days of the gold rush in the 1870’s. When it first became a tourist attraction in 1970 it was changed very little from its heyday and is now a protected historical site. In 1986 the town was declared a National Monument and since then a concerted effort has been made by curators, historians, architects and other interested parties to ensure the integrity of its history is preserved at all times. . After lunch you enjoy the day following the Panorama Route and will find yourself staring out of God’s Window at the canyons that seemingly stretch forever and the waterfalls, and indigenous forest nearly 3000 feet below. The Lisbon Waterfalls, named after the Portuguese who, in the late 1800s, panned for gold in the area, plunges over 300 feet into the ravine. View the intricate network of large, otherworldly potholes, tunnels and whirling pools at Bourke’s Luck Potholes. These bizarre shapes in the sandstone were formed over millennia at the mouth of the canyon by the raging Blyde and Treur Rivers swirling and crashing together. Visible on the other side of the northern edges of the Drakensberg mountains and shaped like traditional African huts are the iconic Three Rondavels, once known as the Chief and His Wives. From there, the Blyde River Canyon, the third largest canyon in the world and largest green covered canyon in the world opens out before us before you arrive at your lodge
Overnight:  Dunkeld Country Estate

After breakfast, check out and transfer to the to the malaria-free, Big 5, Kaingo Game Reserve. It is situated in the Waterberg Region which is one of the few UNESCO-recognised biosphere reserves on the planet and is the only savanna biosphere reserve in the world.  Built from natural stone with thatch roofs, and with an olde world-Africa atmosphere. After settling in, enjoy a sunset game drive to experience first-hand the twilight beauty of the African bush and her wild creatures. Then it’s back to the lodge for dinner accompanied by the unparalleled orchestra and chorus of the wild African night, making your first night in the bush unforgettable.
Overnight: Royal Morubisi 5* or similar

Enjoy your morning at leisure. After brunch each day, you are free to laze around, go swimming, or take a nap. Or reserve one of the recommended activities. This evening enjoy the sunset game drive; once you’re back at the lodge, you will be treated to a delicious dinner.
Overnight: Royal Morubisi or similar

Your final morning at Kaingo Game Reseve savour the moment with coffee and muffins as the animals and birds welcome the new day. Enjoy a healthy and filling breakfast at the lodge before your transfer to Seasons Sport and Spa. Check and get settled before we venture to Lesedi Cultural Village for a night to remember.  Set amidst the rocky hills of the Magaliesberg, for your chance to encounter the people of South Africa – people of Zulu, Xhosa, Pedi, Ndebele and Basotho origin. After a video introduction to their rich history, members of each tribe will escort you through traditional homesteads and share their particular cultural hallmarks, for example, the architecture, traditional rituals, clothing and stories of daily life.

One highlight of your trip will be the impressive display of African dancing in the dance boma – the word boma is used in South Africa to describe an outdoor enclosure, normally around a large fire. Dancing is followed by an eclectic African dinner-feast at Nyama Choma Restaurant with many exciting choices: potjiekos – a traditional meat stew cooked in a black cast-iron pot with samp (maize porridge) and beans, chops, boerewors (beef sausage), steak or chicken from the braai (pronounced “bry”, rhyming with the word “cry”) is the Afrikaans word for barbecue/roast and is truly a social custom in Southern Africa. Test your taste buds on crocodile, kudu or warthog. After dinner, return back to Seasons to retire for the evening.
Overnight: Seasons Sport and Spa

Grab your breakfast to go and begin your full day safari excursion! Your destination today is the Pilanesberg National Park for a Big 5 game drive. The 50 000 hectares of this Park are ancient, even by geological time scales, filled with hills, valleys, and broken rock country. Formed by a massive volcanic eruption nearly 1300 million years ago, it is the site of one of the largest volcanic complexes of its type in the world. The remnants of the explosion can still be seen today. The creation of the Park is considered one of the most ambitious programmes of its kind to be undertaken anywhere in the world. Many long-vanished species were re-introduced and you can expect frequent sightings of the Big 5 on your game drive.  Afterwards, drive back to your hotel to rest and relax after a busy day.
Overnight; Seasons Sport and Spa

After breakfast, begin your day by visiting Harties Village to ascend up the mountain with Harties Cable Way. The cableway will take you straight up to the top of the Magaliesberg Mountains, one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world, a journey of almost one mile (1.5 kilometers). Enjoy some leisure time in the village before returning to Seasons. There, enjoy the day at leisure, as tonight will be a Boma feast for dinner. 
Overnight: Seasons Sport and Spa

This morning, check out of Seasons Sport and Spa. Today, you will visit the Safari Lion Park, where you will experience an interaction with the mighty King of the Jungle. The Lion and Safari Park is a 600 hectare wilderness reserve situated in the Hartbeespoort, Magaliesburg and Cradle of Humankind area. The park offers guests an incredible opportunity to get up close to many of South Africa’s most iconic animals. After the tour, it's time to say goodbye to South Africa and transfer back to the OR Tambo International Airport for your onwards flight homebound.