Preliminary Itinerary
DEPART USA
Depart the USA on overnight flights to Cape Town, South Africa.
OPTIONAL PRE-TRIP NIGHT FOR REST & RECOVERY
One Additional night Cape Town September 19, 2027
Includes Airport Arrival Meet & Greet, private transfer to the hotel, 1 night accommodation, breakfast. Check in available from 2:00 p.m.
WELCOME TO SOUTH AFRICA
Arrive in Cape Town, one of Africa’s most striking cities, set between Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean.
You’ll be met upon arrival at the airport and transferred to the Victoria & Alfred Hotel, ideally located in the heart of the V&A Waterfront.
Settle in and enjoy the remainder of the day at leisure. The V&A Waterfront offers an excellent introduction to Cape Town, with restaurants, shops, harbor views, at your doorstep, and views of Table Mountain rising above the city.
Dinner is excluded this evening, as many flights from the USA arrive late afternoon or early evening.
Meals
AFRICAN PENGUINS & THE CAPE PENINSULA
Set out for a full day exploring the Cape Peninsula, combining dramatic coastal landscapes with an inside look at efforts to protect one of southern Africa’s most threatened seabirds.
Begin at SANCCOB, the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds, for a conservation-focused visit examining the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of seabirds. African penguins are among SANCCOB’s priority species, and the visit provides an opportunity to learn about the pressures facing wild populations, including habitat change, food availability, pollution, and other human impacts.
Continue to Boulders Beach, home to one of South Africa’s best-known colonies of African penguins. Observe these endangered birds in their natural coastal habitat and see firsthand the species whose conservation challenges you explored earlier in the day.
Enjoy lunch at Harbour House Restaurant before continuing south to Cape Point Nature Reserve, part of the Cape Floral Region. Rugged cliffs, coastal fynbos, windswept beaches, and sweeping ocean views make this one of the most biologically distinctive landscapes in South Africa.
Return to Cape Town along the Peninsula’s scenic coastline.
This evening, gather for a Welcome Dinner.
Read more about our partnership with SANCCOB here: https://cincinnatizoo.org/new-african-penguin-chicks-spark-hope-for-species/
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Beverages at lunch.
ROBBEN ISLAND, BO-KAAP & TABLE MOUNTAIN
This morning, walk to the ferry and cross Table Bay to Robben Island, weather permitting. The crossing offers memorable views back toward Cape Town and Table Mountain.
Robben Island has served many purposes over its long history, but it is best known as the site where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were incarcerated during apartheid. The visit includes a guided tour of the island and the former maximum-security prison, often led by a former political prisoner who can provide firsthand context about daily life, resistance, and imprisonment. See the limestone quarry where Mandela and fellow prisoners worked and visit the cell where he spent much of his 27 years in captivity.
Please note that the Robben Island portion of today’s program is a shared public tour.
Return to Cape Town and continue to Bo-Kaap, the historic center of Cape Malay culture. Walk through its colorful streets while learning about the community’s history, traditions, architecture, and role in Cape Town’s cultural identity.
Enjoy lunch at Cape Malay Spyced Restaurant.
This afternoon, ascend Table Mountain by revolving cable car for panoramic views across Cape Town, Table Bay, Robben Island, and the Cape Peninsula. The summit also offers an introduction to the remarkable plant diversity of the Cape Floral Kingdom.
Please note that the ferry to Robben Island is weather dependent, and the visit is a shared public tour.
If the Table Mountain cableway is closed due to wind or weather, we will instead visit Signal Hill, for sunset views over Cape Town.
Breakfast, Lunch
Beverages with lunch; Dinner
THE CAPE WINELANDS
Today, we’ll enjoy a full day exploring the Cape Winelands.
Travel toward Paarl and Babylonstoren, a historic Cape Dutch farm set among vineyards, orchards, cultivated fields, and extensive gardens.
Explore the farm and gardens and learn more about the agricultural traditions of the region. Visit the wine museum and enjoy a wine tasting before lunch at one of Babylonstoren’s restaurants, accompanied by a glass of wine.
After lunch, continue to Stellenbosch, one of South Africa’s oldest towns and the heart of one of the country’s most important wine-growing regions. Enjoy free time to explore its historic center, characterized by Cape Dutch and Victorian architecture, tree-lined streets, galleries, shops, and cafés.
Return to Cape Town in the afternoon.
Dinner is at leisure.
FLY TO MALAMALA GAME RESERVE
Check out of the Cape Town hotel and transfer to Cape Town International Airport for the scheduled flight to Skukuza Airport, the gateway to the Greater Kruger ecosystem.
Transfer from the airport to MalaMala Game Reserve, sharing an unfenced boundary with Kruger National Park.
MalaMala protects approximately 33,000 acres of bushveld, savanna, riverine woodland, and the vital Sand River corridor. The absence of fences between MalaMala and Kruger allows wildlife to move naturally across an enormous protected landscape.
Settle into MalaMala Camp and meet the ranger who will serve as your guide, host, and educator during the safari.
Time permitting, head out on your first afternoon game drive. The reserve supports lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, rhino, and an exceptional variety of smaller mammals, birds, reptiles, and other wildlife.
Return to camp for dinner.
MalaMala Game Reserve is located in northeastern South Africa’s Mpumalanga province and shares an unfenced boundary with Kruger National Park. Its classic bushveld, open savannah, riverine woodland and dense thickets are shaped by the Sand River, a critical water source that attracts wildlife throughout the year.
The day is devoted to safari activities, typically including early morning and late afternoon or evening game drives in open 4-wheel-drive vehicles. Rangers remain in communication with one another to optimize wildlife sightings while preserving the sounds and atmosphere of the bush.
Between activities, enjoy time at camp, where the setting along the Sand River allows for wildlife viewing, birding and quiet time in the reserve.
Breakfast, Dinner
Inclusions at MalaMala
•All meals and snacks
•Drinks (excluding premium brands)
•Game drives in open 4-wheel drive safari vehicles conducted by an experienced ranger
•Nature walks
•Limited laundry service
Lunch
MALAMALA GAME RESERVE - TWO FULL DAYS ON SAFARI
Spend two full days exploring MalaMala Game Reserve with early morning and late afternoon/evening game drives in open 4-wheel-drive safari vehicles.
Renowned for exceptional sightings of leopard, lion and other Big Five species, MalaMala also offers the chance to look beyond individual sightings and better understand the Greater Kruger ecosystem. With your ranger, examine tracks, animal behavior, birdlife, habitat, predator-prey relationships, and the role of the Sand River in sustaining wildlife throughout the reserve.
Between drives, enjoy time at camp, watch for wildlife along the river, or join a guided nature walk when conditions allow. During the MalaMala stay, a representative from Cheetah Outreach Trust is planned to meet with the group for an introduction to cheetah and predator conservation in South Africa and efforts to reduce conflict between wildlife and people.
Evening drives continue after sunset, when nocturnal species become active, followed by dinner at camp, sometimes served beneath the stars in MalaMala’s traditional boma.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
FLY FROM MALAMALA TO JOHANNESBURG
Begin the morning with one final game drive through MalaMala.
After breakfast, say farewell to the reserve and transfer to the airport for your scheduled flight to Johannesburg.
On arrival at O.R. Tambo International Airport, transfer to 54 on Bath in the leafy Rosebank neighborhood.
Check in and enjoy some time to relax after your journey.
Dinner is included this evening at the hotel.
Breakfast, Dinner
Lunch
VULTURE CONSERVATION & BOTANICAL GARDEN
Today we travel north toward the Hartbeespoort and Magaliesberg region for a special conservation visit with VulPro, one of South Africa’s leading organizations dedicated to the protection of African vultures.
Vultures perform an essential ecological role as scavengers, yet many African species are experiencing severe population declines. As we meet with staff, gain insight into VulPro’s work in rescue, rehabilitation, research, breeding, monitoring, education, and the broader challenges affecting vultures across southern Africa.
Enjoy lunch in a local restaurant.
En route back to Johannesburg, visit Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden, part of the South African National Biodiversity Institute. Explore indigenous vegetation and protected habitat beneath the dramatic Roodekrans cliffs while looking for local birdlife and considering the role that urban green spaces can play in protecting biodiversity.
Return to the hotel in the late afternoon.
This evening, gather for a Farewell Dinner at a local restaurant.
APARTHEID MUSEUM & SOWETO / DEPARTURES
After breakfast, check out of the hotel.
We begin our final day with an in-depth guided visit to the Apartheid Museum.
Through photographs, artifacts, film, personal testimony, and historical interpretation, examine South Africa’s system of apartheid, the resistance movements that challenged it, and the long transition toward democracy. The experience provides essential context for understanding Johannesburg and the political, economic, and social questions that continue to shape the country.
Continue to Soweto for a more personal exploration led by Thabo Modise, who uses public art, murals, mosaics, memory, and neighborhood storytelling to introduce the township through the perspectives of the people who live there, by examining how artists and residents interpret their own communities and engage with questions of history, identity, inequality, resilience, and change.
Enjoy lunch at a local Soweto restaurant.
Transfer to Johannesburg O.R. Tambo International Airport for international departure flights back to the USA, or continue to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe if opting for the extension.
End of Main Program.
Breakfast, Lunch
Dinner
