Spectacular South Africa including Rovos Rail

Depart from the UK airport most convenient for you with British Airways, at no extra cost. Your flight will depart from London Heathrow, with complimentary regional connections from Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen or Belfast.

We land in wonderful Cape Town, and our waiting coach will whisk us to our hotel, the President Hotel.  The rest of our day is at leisure to relax and settle in, and this evening we will gather for a welcome drink so we can get to know each other and look forward to the adventures that lie ahead.

We begin our day with a tour of Cape Town, South Africa’s Mother City, taking in its significant buildings and monuments, its lively yet laid-back culture and of course its wonderful scenery. We take a cable car ride to enjoy spectacular views from the top of Table Mountain, weather permitting, followed by a stroll through the colourful Malay Quarter of Bo Kaap, literally ‘Above the Cape’. Other sights included are Green Market Square and District Six. In the apartheid era, some 60,000 residents were forcibly removed from the area and District Six has a museum dedicated to all those people. We will also walk through Company Gardens and take a drive past the Houses of Parliament, City Hall, the Castle of Good Hope and Slave Lodge, which documents the long history of slavery in South Africa.

This afternoon, we visit the beautiful Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Founded in 1913 to preserve the country’s unique flora, Kirstenbosch features a fragrance garden, a medicinal garden and some 2,500 species of plants found on the Cape Peninsula, including the Protea, sometimes known as the sugarbush. The Protea is the national flower of South Africa and represents change and hope. The gardens are world-renowned not only for their beauty and diversity, but also for their magnificent setting against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain.

Today, we leave the city to explore the spectacular landscapes surrounding Cape Town. Our day begins with a scenic drive through the pretty seaside suburbs of Sea Point and Camps Bay, via Hout Bay, a pleasant fishing village with a spectacular mountainous backdrop. We then enjoy wonderful views as we travel along Chapman’s Peak Drive, a 9-kilometre coastal road and one of the world’s most breathtaking coastal drives.

We reach the Good Hope Nature Reserve and Cape Point, where the currents of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet and continue on to Boulders Beach. Its Penguin Colony was established in 1983 and is home to a unique and endangered land-based colony of African penguins. Raised boardwalks give you the best viewing opportunities. On our way back to Cape Town, we visit Simon’s Town which is renowned for its maritime history and is home to the South African Navy. Our day of stunning scenery ends back in Cape Town in the late afternoon.

This is our first Freedom Day, where we can explore as we please or just relax. Our Distant Journeys Tour Manager will be happy to help with advice and make any arrangements, book excursions or recommend places to eat. Wine-lovers won’t want to miss a tour to the winelands of the Western Cape. This full day excursion takes us through the valleys and vineyards of the Cape Winelands and includes a cellar tour and wine-tasting in one of the region’s fabulous wineries. Later in the tour, enjoy stunning scenery as we drive across the Helshoogte Pass to Stellenbosch. Known not just for the local vineyards, but for the oak tree-lined streets with their whitewashed traditional Dutch-style buildings, Stellenbosch is the second oldest settlement in South Africa. Enjoy a stroll as well as a spot of lunch whilst watching the world go by. Before heading back to Cape Town, we have some time in Franschhoek, meaning ‘French Corner’ in Afrikaans, another area known for its vineyards and old Cape Dutch architecture. Franschhoek is home to the Huguenot Memorial Museum, which honours the French settlers who arrived in the 17th & 18th century.

Another Freedom Day where we can choose to relax by the pool or possibly take an optional trip to Robben Island. Used between the 17th and 20th Centuries as a prison, a hospital for lepers and the socially unacceptable, Robben Island was also used as a military base during World War II. Latterly, the island housed high profile prisoners of the apartheid regime, such as the South African activist Walter Sisulu, but more famously Nelson Mandela. Today Robben Island is a World Heritage Site and a museum, as well as a reminder of the price Nelson Mandela and so many others paid for the freedom of democracy.

We say farewell to Cape Town today and travel eastward on the beautiful Garden Route. Our journey takes us to Swellendam, a one-time rebel republic’s capital and South Africa’s third oldest town. We continue eastward through undulating countryside and peaceful villages to Mossel Bay, where we visit the Post Office Tree. This 600-year-old milkwood tree is where the 16th and 17th century sailors left their letters for returning ships to carry to Europe. From Mossel Bay we continue to Knysna and our home for the next three nights, the Protea Knysna Quays. The hotel has a superb location directly on Knysna Quays with the lagoon right on your doorstep.

This morning, we enjoy a visit to the Featherbed Nature Reserve, a unique 150-hectare private nature reserve, which is one of South Africa’s Natural Heritage Sites and occupies the whole of the Western Head of Knysna. Firstly, we cruise across Knysna Lagoon before stretching our legs with a gentle stroll enjoying the spectacular coastal scenery. The reserve hosts a variety of native flora and fauna including the endangered Blue Duiker; the smallest known antelope species in Africa, Cape Mountain Tortoises, Blue Cranes; the national bird of South Africa, and the rare Black African Oyster Catcher.

Our afternoon is free to relax or have a wander around Knysna’s pretty waterfront.

On today’s Freedom Day, we will have the option to take an optional tour to the Cango Caves and Oudtshoorn, South Africa’s ostrich capital. The day begins with a drive over the spectacular Outeniqua Pass as we make our way to the stark beauty of the Klein Karoo. The Karoo is the vast semi-desert that comprises much of the interior of South Africa and on its southern edge is the Klein Karoo, a semi-arid area that still supports enough life to make farming possible.

We enjoy a tour of the Cango Caves, a vast series of magnificently colourful limestone caverns which to date have still only been partially explored. This is followed by a fun and informative guided tour of an ostrich farm, tracing the ostrich from egg to adulthood. Our tour ends with a drive via the peaceful country town of Oudtshoorn, with its quaint Victorian buildings, before returning to Knysna.

This morning, our journey continues along the Garden Route, via Plettenberg Bay, with some fantastic photographic opportunities along the way. After lunch, we continue to Port Elizabeth in time for our flight to the coastal city of Durban, located in eastern South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. Upon arrival we will be transferred to the upmarket resort of Umhlanga Rocks and the wonderful Beverly Hills Hotel, located on a prime spot of beachfront overlooking the Indian Ocean.

After breakfast, we travel to nearby Durban for a half-day sightseeing tour. Visits include City Hall, Victoria Embankment and Durban’s waterfront. Make sure to look out for the ornate Vasco da Gama Clock, which was bequeathed to the Port of Natal in 1897 by the Portuguese government. We also explore the impressive Durban Botanical Gardens, founded in 1849 which are Africa’s oldest surviving botanic gardens and home to an array of African, Asian and American trees and shrubs. Our afternoon is free to relax by the hotel’s poolside or take in the local area at your leisure.

We have a Freedom Day to spend as we please on South Africa’s stunning Dolphin Coast. History-lovers will have the opportunity to take a full-day excursion to explore the 19th-century Anglo-Zulu battlefields of Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift. Knowledgeable guides inform us all about the fascinating history of the battles that took place in January 1879 and we are privileged to witness the landscape on which the fighting occurred. Alternatively, join an adventurous day trip to the tiny, landlocked kingdom of Lesotho. We travel in a 4×4 vehicle in order to cross Africa’s highest pass: the 9,435-foot-high Sani Pass, to enter this intriguing country. Once inside, we visit a Sotho village to experience how the locals live, making this a truly authentic and immersive experience.

Tour Highlight
This morning, we transfer to Durban Rail Terminal in time for what promises to be a highlight of our holiday; a magnificent overland rail journey, the Durban Safari, on board Rovos Rail. Known as one of the world’s most opulent trains, step aboard the vintage wood-panelled carriages and sit back as some of the most varied and spectacular scenery imaginable unfolds beyond the windows.

We depart Durban and travel through the stunningly scenic Valley of a Thousand Hills. Following a delicious lunch, an afternoon excursion takes us to the fascinating Ardmore Ceramics Gallery. Ardmore Ceramics tells the story of the Zulu people, whose culture of colour, dance and song, as well as the spirit of the African imagination, can be seen in the artwork produced in the gallery. Returning to the train, we make our way to Ladysmith, while enjoying dinner paired with a selection of fine South African wines. Afterwards relax in the comfort of the Lounge Car with an after-dinner drink before retiring to your private cabin for the night.

Please note that your Tour Manager will not accompany you on the train. Instead you will be well looked after by the Train Manager and his excellent crew.

Following an early wake-up call and sumptuous breakfast on board Rovos Rail, we have a choice of excursions. The first is to take an open-jeep safari in Spioenkop Reserve, home to a rich selection of wildlife including white rhinoceros, giraffe and antelope. Alternatively, we may wish to join a tour of the Spioenkop battlefields. In the spring of 1899, Britain marched into the South African war, which lasted three years and was to become the costliest Britain had ever fought.

In the afternoon, having enjoyed lunch and some leisure time, we arrive at Elandslaagte, where we disembark for an afternoon safari experience in Nambiti Private Game Reserve. Nambiti’s 22,000 acres offer incredible biodiversity, with grasslands, riverine bush, savannah and thornveld, and is also home to over 40 other species of game including cheetah, giraffe, hippo, hyena, impala, eland and zebra. Enjoy your open-jeep 4WD safari in search of ‘The Big Five’! After returning to the train, enjoy a pre-dinner drink in the Lounge Car before dinner.

Take it easy today and enjoy the comfort of Rovos Rail as we continue our journey northwards. Fabulous panoramas can be seen as we travel through the gold mining areas of Gauteng, which literally translates as Place of Gold. Our arrival into the Rovos Rail Terminal in Capital Park, Pretoria is scheduled for late afternoon, and upon disembarkation our waiting coach will take us to the Irene Country Lodge, , a rustic retreat in Irene, just a 30-minute drive from Pretoria, where we stay for two nights.

This morning, we enjoy a tour around the city of Pretoria, including the Union Building and the Voortrekkers Monument, a massive granite structure which commemorates the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854, and also visit Smuts House Museum. Our afternoon is at leisure, with the option of a visit to the Ann Van Dyk Cheetah Breeding Centre. Established in 1971, the centre prides itself on its contribution to the conservation and survival of the cheetah species through meticulous breeding (ensuring genetic diversity) and the ability to release cheetahs born in captivity.

The day is ours to spend as we please before we leave for the airport later in the day. Perhaps use the opportunity to visit the region’s liveliest township, Soweto, (South Western Township), home to over 3.5 million people and steeped in apartheid history. Our Spectacular South Africa holiday comes to an end, as this evening we board our flight for our homebound journey to the UK.

Stay a little longer

We have the perfect opportunity for you to visit the UNESCO World Heritage site of Victoria Falls with our three-night Victoria Fallsholiday extension. Alternatively, why not experience our six-night Victoria Falls and Chobe National Park holiday extension.

Breakfast is served shortly before our arrival, bringing an end to our Spectacular South Africa with Rovos Rail tour.