WILDLIFE SAFARIS

For those interested in birding safaris and tours, please scroll down the page to the Birding Safaris section.

PILANESBERG NATIONAL PARK 

Pilanesberg National Park lies just 2 hours’ drive north-west of Johannesburg.  Covering some 56 000 hectares and situated within an ancient volcanic crater, is is the second-largest National Park in South Africa.  The reserve forms a transition zone between the bushveld and arid western parts of South Africa and is home to the Big Five and a wide range of general game species.  It is also an Important Bird Area with some 400 species recorded.  The Park is well watered with some 35 rivers traversing its magnificent landscapes with a number of well-appointed game and bird viewing hides on dams and waterways.

Elephants are one of the creatures you may see at Pilanesberg

2 Day Pilanesberg Magnificent Wildlife Safari: This magical excursion takes in a variety of beautiful areas and enables you to experience the best of the Pilanesberg.  After an early departure from Johannesburg/Pretoria, travel to the Park and spend the day driving through the Park in our minibus seeing incredible game and birds and visiting beautifully-situated game viewing hides.  In the mid-afternoon, check into your accommodation at a four-star private game lodge within the Park before setting off on a game drive in an open safari vehicle to view nocturnal animals as they come out to play.  Dinner and overnight at the lodge.  Wake up early the following morning and transfer to the launch site before setting off on an incredible hot air ballooning trip (may be weather permitting).  Fly over the reserve and see game and the spectacular landscapes from the air.  The flight ends with a delicious champagne breakfast.  After your flight, return to the lodge to check out.  You may then spend the remainder of the day driving around the reserve with us to look for more game or return to Johannesburg/Pretoria – the choice is yours! 

Beautiful Views at Pilanesberg National Park

3 Day Pilanesberg Adventure Zone: Tailored for the younger and/or more active traveller, this Pilanesberg itinerary offers a host of fabulous active experiences in and around the Park.  Travel to the Park and enjoy an outride from the outskirts of Sun City on horseback through the Park for 1 – 2 hours.  Enjoy a delicious picnic lunch before heading into the Park and check into your accommodation at a private lodge within the Park in the early afternoon.  You will depart for a late afternoon/evening game drive on open safari vehicles that evening.  Dinner and overnight at the lodge (boma dinner in the bush option on Wednesdays and Saturdays).  The following day, go quad biking at a private reserve bordering the Park before enjoying an elephant experience, where you will walk with, touch and feed African elephants.  Elephant back riding is an optional extra.  Dinner and overnight in the Park at the private game lodge.  After breakfast the following morning, spend a full day driving around the Park in our minibus looking for game and birds before heading for Johannesburg/Pretoria in the afternoon. 

KRUGER NATIONAL PARK

Every visitor wants to experience this wildlife mecca situated in the eastern part of South Africa.  The Park covers some 2 million hectares; however, this enormous size is augmented by various private game reserves bordering the Park which have dropped their fences with the Park creating the biggest wildlife area in the country.  Besides the Big Five, you can expect to see numerous herds of antelope and other game besides enjoying the warmth and relaxed ambience of the bushveld. 

Lion in Timbavati/Klaserie Private Game Reserve

Private Game Lodge Experience – 3 Days: We drive from Johannesburg to an affordable private game lodge in the Timbavati/Klaserie Private Game Reserve where your amazing wildlife experience begins.  The lodge’s main feature is a large deck overlooking a waterhole where herds of elephant together with leopards and other game regularly come to drink.  Stay in beautifully-appointed accommodation overlooking the bushveld and waterhole.  Enjoy fabulous game drives (2 per day) in open safari vehicles, where you will have a very good chance of seeing the Big Five during your stay.  Take in very informative and interesting ranger-guided bush walks (1 per day).  Delicious meals are served in a dining area with a good view of the waterhole with dinners being around a fire in a large boma (weather permitting).  After breakfast on the last day, we depart to travel back to Johannesburg/Pretoria on the spectacular Panorama Route, where you can experience the magnificent scenery along the Blyde River Canyon.  This option may vary depending on what time you need to be back in the big city!

ZULULAND

Zululand - Pongola River

 This spectacular region lies within the north-eastern coastal plain of KwaZulu-Natal and boasts warm temperatures and excellent wildlife viewing and birding all year round.  Georgeous scenery dominated by flat-topped Acacia trees and rolling hills predominates.  Lush rivers wind their way to the sea, where the fabulous Isimangaliso (St Lucia) Wetland Park creates one of the largest estuaries in South Africa, a World Heritage Site.

Zululand Spectacular: 7 days – This incredible experience is specifically created to ensure that you enjoy the best that the region has to offer including scenic vistas, wildlife, birds and Zulu cultural experiences.  From Johannesburg/Pretoria, we take a scenic route to the town of Pongola, where we visit a superb small private reserve.  Enjoy game viewing from open safari vehicles or along the rivers on boat cruises.  Stay in two private lodges with georgeous river views; enjoy venison on a spit for dinner one evening and optional spa treatments (for own account) at the different accommodation establishments.  We then head to the Mkuze area to a private conservancy area best-known for rhino but also stocked with elephant, buffalo and a range of general game species.  Stay in a hilltop lodge affording superb views of the surrounding countryside and enjoy game drives in open safari vehicles and a boma dinner.  Our next stop is the fabulous Hluhluwe region, situated in the heart of pineapple and Big Game country.  We stay at a luxury tented safari camp at the edge of the St Lucia Estuary and explore the surrounding countryside from there.  We spend a day at the well-known Hluhluwe-Umfolozi National Park, which affords plenty of opportunity to see the Big Five along with general game and countless birds.  We spend another day visiting a private nature reserve affording opportunities to walk in the bush with non-dangerous game before enjoying a fabulous Zulu cultural experience nearby.  On the last day, we journey south to the town of St Lucia to take part in a boat cruise on the St Lucia Estuary at the Isimangaliso (St Lucia) Wetland Park.  After lunch, we take a short drive to the town of Richard’s Bay, where you will catch your connecting flight back to Johannesburg (you may also travel back in the vehicle with the guide and driver).

 BIRDING SAFARIS & TOURS

“BIRDING HOTSPOTS” TOUR: HIGHVELD GRASSLANDS & ZULULAND BUSHVELD – 11 DAYS

Grey Crowned Crane

Tour Highlights:

Highveld grasslands, including the Seekoeivlei Wetland Reserve – RAMSAR site (wetland of international importance), which forms part of the Vaal River flood plain, and Wakkerstroom, a mecca for both international and local South African birders. We travel through Zululand to a scenic private reserve outside the town of Pongola, near the 13 500-hectare Jozini Dam, where a wide range of habitats ensures excellent birding opportunities. An extensive game conservancy near the town of Mkuze is home to some 450 bird species and also affords opportunities to view big game such as rhino and elephant. The Hluhluwe-Umfolozi National Park is an area where you could conceivably see between 50 – 100 species in a day (during summer), not to mention big game such as rhino, elephant, buffalo and lion. A local game park has an impressive bird list, including several local endemics and rarities, affording ample opportunity to do birding walks. We also visit the Isimangaliso (formerly St. Lucia) Wetland Park – a World Heritage Site combining wetland, coastal and bushveld habitats. Special activities on this itinerary include game/birding opportunities in open safari vehicles, bush walks and boat cruises, as well as bush dinners, traditional South African barbecues and more.

Accommodation options include attractive bed-and-breakfasts, chalets and game lodges.

“BUSHVELD BIRDING” TOUR: NORTHERN & EASTERN BUSHVELD REGIONS INCLUDING PRIVATE SAFARI LODGE ADJOINING KRUGER NATIONAL PARK – 12 DAYS  

Violet-backed Starling

Tour Highlights:

 This tour visits the pristine Bushveld areas of northern South Africa. Visit Nyslvley Nature Reserve, a RAMSAR site where about a quarter of South Africa’s birds have been recorded. We then move on to the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve, staying at a Big Five game lodge with some five habitats ensuring a wide variety of birds, before moving on to the indigenous forests at Magoebaskloof. Besides searching for forest species, we visit a local Cycad Reserve – we may also see the famous “Rain Queen”, Modjadji, who apparently provided the inspiration for Ryder Haggard’s She. Then its down to the Lowveld regions, where we stay at a fabulous private game lodge bordering the Kruger National Park. Over 500 species have been recorded in the region, which is an Important Bird Area, and you may also see all of the Big Five while you are there too.

Accommodation is mainly in four-star private game lodges, many situated on Big Five reserves, and country hotels.

For pictures of areas and accommodation CLICK HERE