13 Day Garden Route & Cape Town Family Holiday

On arrival at Johannesburg International Airport, guests are met by an African Sands representative who will present them with their self drive tour itinerary, all the vouchers for the tour and a map book of South Africa.

After looking through the documentation, guests will have the opportunity to ask the African Sands Representative any questions they may have. All of our team have years of experience in conducting tours throughout South and Southern Africa. They should be able to answer any questions guests might have regarding their self drive holiday.  

Guests will then be assisted with the check in formalities for their flight to Port Elizabeth.  

Arrive at Port Elizabeth Airport and collect the hire car from the kiosk 

It is a short drive into the city of Port Elizabeth and the hotel.  

Port Elizabeth known as the ‘friendly city’ gets its name from its relaxed atmosphere and its friendly people. This city has a range of fun activities to enjoy including the following:

• Beaches – enjoy some of the great beaches along the Algoa coastline
• Golf – have a round or two at one of the great clubs in the area, such as Humewood Golf Course
• Bayworld Museum Complex – visit the Oceanarium, the museum and the snake park
• St George’s Park – visit the city’s oldest park, which is a tribute to the past and present of the city
• Seaview Lion Park – see lions of all ages and sizes at this incredible lion park

Breakfast at the hotel  

After breakfast guests make their way to the Addo Elephant National Park (approx. 1 hour drive away). The Park supports about 200 elephants and it's fascinating to watch the world’s largest animal, silently emerging from a dense tangle of creepers and trees! They are notoriously difficult to see and so when they do appear it is often startlingly close to where you are. Addo Elephant National Park also has the Big Five (lion, leopard, black rhino and Cape buffalo) which are often sighted. The Great White Shark and the seasonal Southern Right Whale in the Park’s marine section, complete the Big Seven! This is a fantastic place to explore.  

After breakfast guests begin their trip along South Africa’s famous Garden Route and travel down the coast to the glorious indigenous Tsitsikamma Forest (approx. 3 hours drive). Deep gorges and lush vegetation hug the rugged coastline of cliffs and sandy beaches. It is awe inspiring scenery! The Garden Route (Tsitsikamma, Knysna, Wilderness) National Park covers some of the most spectacular coastline in South Africa. The Tsitsikamma section of the park is situated on the hilltop where the Storms River and the Indian Ocean meet in a turbulent crashing of surf.

This area is an outdoor enthusiast dream, with lots of activities available including:

• The Swinging Bridge, a Canopy Safari through the treetops
• White-water rafting on the Storms River
• Bungi Jumping the world’s highest jump
• Trailer & tractor rides
• Hiking
• Mountain Biking
• or you can just relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

There is something for everyone here! 

After breakfast, guests leave the Tsitsikamma National Park and head for Knysna (approx. 2 hours drive), a rather charming historic town set on a lagoon. The lagoon, which is a protected marine reserve, is guarded from the ocean by a pair of sentinels known as the ‘Heads’.

Highlights here include:

• Shop 'til you drop in the many unique shops in Knynsa - The Waterfront, Woodmill Lane and Main Street are just some shopping areas.
• Take a ferry across to Featherbed Nature Reserve or to the Knysna Heads - enjoy a romantic sunset, or leisurely lunchtime cruise.
• Watch the dolphins and whales play along the coastline.
• Paraglide in heaven - soar above the coast and have a birds-eye view of this beautiful environment.
• Abseil down the Knysna Heads and some other cliffs on the coastline
• Cycle on the many biking trails through the forests in the area.
• Hike or horse-back ride one of the excellent hiking and horse riding trails along the coast and in the forest.
• Enjoy the famous Knysna Oysters

After breakfast continue onto to Oudsthoorn (via the town of George). This town is known as the Feather Capital of the world on account of its local native, the ostrich. These extraordinary birds, which you will see running across the arid landscape, gave rise to two ostrich feather booms in the late 19th century as the fashionable demand for ostrich feathers in hats and boas rose. At one stage, amazingly, feathers were sold for more than their weight in gold. Nowadays these birds are raised for their low-cholesterol meat!

 Highlights of Oudtshoorn include:

• Visiting the prehistoric Cango Caves and the Cango Wildlife Ranch
• Explore a working Ostrich Farm – perhaps even get to ride one of these big birds
• Hot air ballooning over the Klein Karoo

After breakfast, guests can take Route 62, the wine route known for its dramatic scenery as it meanders through the Klein Karoo with majestic mountains, passes, rivers, vineyards and orchards. This wine route is off the beaten track but has so much to offer!  

• The elegant little town of Calitzdorp is renowned for its port.
• At Montagu the Breede River Valley merges with the Robertson and Worcester Wine Valleys, which produce some of South African’s finest wines and brandies.
• Stop at Kleinplasie Open Air Museum, a working museum depicting the lifestyle of early Cape pioneer farmers, with replica buildings and machinery dating back to the 17th Century. While the adults can taste Mampoer and Witblits (two famous South Africa homemade spirits) the children can join in the activities such as candle making, soap making, coffee roasting or enjoy donkey cart rides.

Continue the journey via the spectacular Boland Mountains and wine region en route to

Cape Town - The Mother City! As guests arrive in Cape Town, they will immediately be awed by the beauty of this city, dominated by Table Mountain with the Atlantic Ocean on one flank and the Indian Ocean bathing the coves on its eastern side. The distinctive Cape Dutch gabled colonial architecture in Constantia sits alongside Muslim minarets and English Victorian terraces. It shows off the true “Rainbow Nation” that South Africa is.

Breakfast at the guest house

Cape Town has many attractions, but the highlights of the city are:

•  Table Mountain – enjoy a cable way ascent to the summit of the mountain (weather permitting).
• Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens – set against the majestic Table Mountain, the gardens have a rich botanical diversity (over 5 000 species).
• Robben Island – infamous island where former president Nelson Mandela was incarcerated for 27 years.
• Cape Peninsula – highlights of this full day excursion along the Peninsula’s beautiful coastline include a drive along the spectacular Chapman’s Peak Drive, a boat trip from Hout Bay to view the Cape Fur Seal Colony, a visit to Cape Point in the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve (the Continent’s most south-western point), and the Penguin colony inhabiting Boulders Beach in Simons Town.
• The Cape Winelands – Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franschhoek – well worth a visit!
• The Victoria & Alfred Waterfront – a popular retail destination with both local and international visitors featuring a myriad of fine restaurants, pubs and retail outlets.
• The Two Oceans Aquarium – with more than 300 species of marine life, the aquarium demonstrates the rich bio-diversity in the oceans that surround the Cape.
• The famous Clifton beaches
• Take a drive out to Hermanus (approx. 1 ½ hour drive) and see the Whales in the bay (June – Nov)  

Spend the last day finishing off sight seeing, curio shopping and exploring! 

Guests make their way to Cape Town International Airport and drop off the hire car at the kiosk.

Complete formalities for return flight home