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Safari in the Eastern CapeRoute: Knysna - Addo National Park - Private safari Lodge - Port ElizabethOur Eastern Cape safari is brimming with natural beauty and great opportunities for Big Five spotting. You'll try two completely different types of safari, giving you the best of both worlds. First, you'll go wildlife spotting for lions, hyenas and elephants in Addo Elephant National Park on a DIY self drive safari. Then, you'll continue to our private safari lodge, where the tracking professionals will handle the game drives. You'll stay at a lodge that can only be reached by river boat from the coast of the Cape. Accompanied by your bush ranger you'll drive across sloping hills, through dense forests and across wide African plains in search of the Big Five. Keep your camera handy - you never know what will pop up in front of you. Back at the lodge, your personal cook will serve you the most delicious meals, snacks and drinks (all included in the price of this trip). At the end of the day, hundreds of oil lanterns will help you find the way to your cosy, luxurious safari tent where you'll be lulled to sleep by the sounds of the bush. |
| Duration | 5 days - 4 nights |
Accommodation |
Spend the night like Livingstone once did in a luxurious safari tent and in a charming guest house (pictures). Accommodation category 3-4. |
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Price |
£575 per person - based on 2 people sharing |
Includes |
Accommodation for 2 nights in a double occupancy room - board and breakfast, 2 nights in a luxurious safari tent - full board including drinks, 4 game activities, boat transfers, trail information |
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Transport |
Rental car |
Excludes |
Rental car, park entrance fees |
Day 1: Arrival in AddoTravel time: approximately 3 hours, distance 290kmAfter breakfast in the friendly town of Knysna you'll climb into your rental car and head on to your next destination. Don't forget to pick up a few snacks for along the way! On route you can stop off in beach towns such as St. Francis Bay or visit South Africa's surfer's paradise, Jeffrey’s Bay. Hiking and nature enthusiasts can stop off at Tsitsikamma National Park where you can go on several different hikes through the woods and along the weathered coastline. Once you reach Addo it won't take long before you reach your accommodation. You'll spend the night in a lovely Cape Dutch-style mansion with a generous garden.If you're up to it, you can join an organised game drive this evening to for instance the nearby Schotia Game Reserve. Check with your accommodation for more details. |
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Day 2: AddoToday you'll have an entire day to spot elephants and the rest of the Big 5 from the comfort of your own rental car at Addo Elephant National Park. It'll take about 20 minutes to reach the entrance of this stunning reserve, located in a lush green valley. Try to head out as early as possible since the animals tend to be mostly active during the morning and the end of the day.The park has reasonably decent sandy roads, fine for driving through the park and spotting wild animals from within your own rental car. Keep your camera handy, because there'll undoubtedly be opportunity for some excellent pictures here. Did you know that the park was named after the 11 elephants that lived here in 1931? In an effort to save these gentle giants from extinction, the area was declared a national park. The preservation efforts have been a huge success! Today there are about 450 elephants in the park. Besides elephants, you'll also have a chance at spotting buffalos, lions, black rhinos and several types of antelopes. There are plans to expand the park significantly and to add the Marine Reserve which lies next to it to the park as well. This would make it possible to see not only the Big 5, but the Big 7 in Addo National Park. The two additional animals are the great white shark and the southern right whale. Once you return to the town of Addo, there are plenty of excellent small restaurants to dine at... such as the restaurant Ant & Elephant. |
Day 3: Addo - Safari LodgeTravel time: approximately 2.5 hours, distance approximately 190kmAfter breakfast you'll drive to a sleepy town at the Kariega River mouth: Kenton-on-Sea. Once you arrive, you'll leave your car behind at a guarded parking lot. Make sure that you arrive on time, because the boat that will take you to the reserve sets sail at noon. The 45-minute winding river voyage is a lovely introduction to all of the wonders that lay ahead waiting for you. Try to keep an eye on your surroundings though... there's plenty to see as you go along. You may see a cormorant swooping down to scoop up a tasty fish, a kudu grazing with a newborn or a friendly fisherman waving as you pass by. |
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After lunch, the rest of the afternoon is yours to spend as you wish. This is the perfect time to read a good book on the veranda of if you're looking for something a little more exciting, hop into a canoe and paddle down the river. At afternoon's end our ranger will escort you deeper into the massive reserve in an open 4WD. Crossing through the reserve, you'll see some of the diversity of this area's landscape. You'll see herds of zebras grazing on hillside and large groups of antelopes gathering on the open plain. A solitary rhino may stand around soaking up the last of the sunrays as a family of giraffes bows their long necks to quench their thirst at a water pool. Today's game drive ends in a typical Africa way; with a 'sundowner' in hand you'll watch the real thing slowly sink below the wide opens plains stretching out before you. Back at camp you'll sit down to a tasty dinner at the boma (dinner beneath the stars by the campfire). Being in the outdoors all day will make you sleepy and so beneath a starry African sky, you'll find your way across oil lamp-lit paths to your comfortable home-away-from-home safari tent where the sounds of nature will lull you to sleep. |
Day 5: Safari LodgeAs the dawn's first rays of sunlight spill into your safari tent, you'll be awakened by the sound of birds chirping. After a light breakfast you'll head off on a morning safari with the ranger. As the world slowly awakens all around you, you'll get to see Africa at its best! Experience the intense scents and colours of the African dawn. Watch buffalos stare sleepily into the distance as impalas jump and run away at the first sign of danger. You'll stop off for a cup of tea of coffee at the watering hole, where curious large brown eyes may try to size you up. A baby giraffe will likely be just as surprised to see you as you are to see him. All of these new impressions are bound to work up a healthy appetite, so luckily an elaborate breakfast will be waiting for you when you get back from safari. The rest of the day is yours to spend in leisure... relax, unwind and let the impressions of the day sink in. Enjoy the sensation of being in a stress-free environment without TV, cell phone or internet. There's one more safari planned for late afternoon, but otherwise you have the rest of the day to yourself. No need to be bored though. You can go on an extra game walk, make reservations for a massage on your veranda, cast out a fishing line from the pier or jump into the river for a swim (don't worry, crocs and hippos won't bother you here). |
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Day 6: Departure to Port Elizabeth - End of moduleTravel time: approximately 3 hours, distance approximately 190kmToday you'll say goodbye to the camp and its' friendly staff.. but not before going on one last 4WD morning safari. After breakfast set sail on a boat downstream towards the Indian Ocean. Port Elizabeth, South Africa's fifth largest city, is located on the Algoa Bay. PE is a breezy, hospitable city. While you're here, don't miss out on Bayworld; South Africa's largest museum. Bayworld is not only home to the Port Elizabeth Museum, it also has a colourful aquarium and an intriguing snake park. PE also has several tropical beaches nearby for you to choose from where you can either sit back and relax or get your adrenaline pumping with water sports. If you've run out of holiday time, then you'll catch a plane back to the UK from Port Elizabeth. If you'd like to spend a little more time in this region and then fly home from Cape Town, ask our travel specialists for more information using our South Africa travel quote request form. |
Addo tip:If you would like to really pamper yourself a bit, we also offer a luxurious safari tent with your own personal jacuzzi on your veranda, a fireplace and an enchanting view. You'll spend the night in the hills between Addo Elephant National Park and Port Elizabeth. Not only will you be treated to the hospitality of the staff, delicious meals and delightful South African wine (all meals and drinks are included), you'll also go on 2 game activities... one of which on the back of an African elephant! You'll not only ride an Elephant, you'll also get a chance to feed these friendly grey giants. At the end of the day you'll even 'tuck them in' and put them to bed, but not before you give them a nice bath to wash off all the dust they collected during the day. |
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Eastern Cape safari accommodation |
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