You depart Cape Town heading north for the Cederberg Mountain region; one of the main rooibos tea growing areas in South Africa and also home to beautiful wildflowers in October. On this first afternoon you spend some time learning about tour-life, the vehicle and equipment. Later you can climb up and sit on the rocks for a sundowner or two.

You travel north through Namaqualand and head for the Gariep River. The Western Cape is soon left behind and you spend most of the afternoon travelling through the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. The night is spent on the banks of the Gariep River around the campfire, getting to know one another.

Choose between a relaxing morning on the riverbank or the half-day canoe adventure. After lunch, you travel north to the Fish River Canyon, the second largest in the world, 161km in length. The canyon is situated along the lower reaches of the seasonal Fish River, the longest river in Namibia.

From the canyon you continue on into the remote Namibian hinterland. You arrive at camp in the afternoon and have time to go for a walk in to the smaller Sesriem Canyon. This is an excellent night to sleep out under the stars, beside the fire.

Taking advantage of the cooler temperatures you depart at dawn and drive into the Namib-Naukluft National Park where you hike up Dune 45 to gain a different perspective of the desert. After this you have the option to take a guided hike with fellow group members into Sossusvlei.

A dramatic drive through the arid Namib-Naukluft, crossing the Tropic of Capricorn sees you arrive at Walvis Bay. You make a stop to view the flamingos before heading on towards the seaside resort town of Swakopmund.

Day 7 is left free for you to pursue your own interests, including many adventure activities.

You leave all the trappings of modern life behind and drive inland to the mysterious Spitzkoppe, a sacred site of the San people. You have the chance to climb the boulders and rock formations, and will be camping in the wild for the night.

An early rise takes you inland and north to a camp near the Himba area. The next day you spend an enjoyable and educational morning with the Himba people before driving further inland to Etosha National Park. Please have respect for the people that you are going to visit and keep in mind that they have a different culture, so behaviour you deem as normal might be offensive to them, and vice versa.

Once in Etosha you spend your time visiting the abundant waterholes for some excellent game photography. After your evening meals you relax at some of the finest floodlit waterholes in the world. Occasionally it is not possible to stay inside the park at night, in which case you overnight at a local guest farm.

During the rainy season, animals are scattered over a vast grazing area, congregating in large numbers on the plains west of the pan where the grazing is good. At this time birdlife in the pan is varied. The 400mm of rain that falls can also create muddy roads and short-term surface flooding. In summer the temperatures are high - around 38 degrees Celsius - and life is not very comfortable. In the winter temperatures sometimes drop to below 3 degrees Celsius.

After an early morning game drive you set off towards Rundu on the Kavango River. In the evening you can enjoy a sunset cruise. The next day you visit the local Ovambo villages. There are a number of different optional activities to take part in; alternatively, a relaxing day by the river is always popular.

Another early day! The journey continues from Rundu, through the Muhembo border, towards Shakawe. If time allows, you go to Mahango National Park for a game drive. Those who decide to join the Delta Excursion will leave the truck behind and head to the base camp. From here you will enter the delta the following day by local transport, including mokoros (dugout canoes). Your guides will provide you with a briefing about the next few day's activities, the environment and the community run tourism operation. If you remain behind then you spend the next few days relaxing at camp.

The delta is left behind as you pass through the Caprivi National Park in Namibia, camping under the stars on the banks of the Zambezi River. The Caprivi National Park is home to 450 animal species. Animals travel freely across the border with Botswana where the Chobe National Park lies. You spend the night relaxing next to this mighty river.

You cross the border into Botswana once again, and head towards Kasane, where you camp on the banks of the Chobe River. The afternoon can be spent game viewing on an optional boat cruise, in the renowned Chobe National Park. This is an excellent opportunity to view some of Africa's spectacular wildlife.

Arriving early at Victoria Falls, you have time to plan the next day's adventure activities and those who want to can visit the falls. A popular option is the sunset cruise, which includes dinner and drinks.

The following day many people will spend the day White Water Rafting, a not-to-be-missed experience of a lifetime! Vic Falls offers many exciting alternatives such as bungee jumping, elephant back safaris and helicopter flights over the falls.

Arrangements will be made for you to join your guides in Zambia today. You can spend the day enjoying the activities in Livingstone or finalising arrangements for your trip.

Leaving behind the excitement of Vic Falls you continue with the expedition. The journey towards the bustling Zambian capital of Lusaka takes you along an interesting route. The next day begins with some shopping in Lusaka before heading northeast towards the Luangwa River where you spend the night.

Early in the morning you drive from the Luangwa River to the South Luangwa National Park where you spend two nights on the banks of the river. The second day is set aside for activities. You can choose between a morning or night game drive and a guided game walk accompanied by a professional local guide. If the South Luangwa National Park is not for you, then you can simply relax by the pool. On occasion, in the rainy season it is impossible or inadvisable to attempt to reach South Luangwa National Park, if this is the case, then an alternative itinerary will be chosen.

Today you cross the Zambia-Malawi border after leaving South Luangwa National Park in the early morning. Heading north you enter the highlands of Malawi and spend the night at Luwawa Forest. There are some wonderful hikes in the area, as well as other activities.

Lake Malawi, formerly Lake Nyasa, is the southernmost of the Great Rift Valley lakes and has a tropical climate. Here, you will spend the next couple of carefree days relaxing on the white sandy beaches. For the more adventurous there are endless leisure and water sport activities. Alternatively, soak up the atmosphere and relax in one of the most scenic and memorable holiday destinations in Africa! The evenings are spent beside the tranquil waters.

Today you make the border crossing out of Malawi. Leaving the lake behind, you head for Tanzania, ascending from the Great Rift Valley through some spectacular mountain passes. You pass the vast tea plantations in the highlands to the camp outside Iringa. The next day you travel through Mikumi National Park to the historical port city of Dar es Salaam.

On this optional activity a transfer by ferry takes you to Zanzibar, where you will spend the next few days exploring this fascinating island, renowned for its architecture, beautiful beaches, colourful people and history. The excursion is at your own expense and costs can be adjusted depending on your preferred level of accommodation and activities.

Today you leave Zanzibar and catch a late ferry (or flight) back to Dar es Salaam and return to the campsite. The next day sees you take a long, scenic drive to Arusha, the safari capital of Tanzania. If the weather is favourable and skies are clear you may see Mt Kilimanjaro. After arriving in Arusha, those who are going to explore the Serengeti National Park, prepare for the excursion.

There are many options available, ranging from a one-day trip to the Ngorongoro crater, to a three-day trip into the Serengeti. As this is for your own expense, you are given every opportunity to match the activity to your budget. For those not going into the parks, there is the opportunity to absorb some of the fascinating local culture. One of the guides will remain with those that decide to stay in Arusha.

Back together again after the various game viewing activities in the game parks, the last night in this beautiful country is spent exchanging 'big game' stories around the campfire.

Nairobi is a cosmopolitan African-European city with many immigrants from former British colonies. The number of churches, mosques, temples and gurdwaras within the city bear testimony to its multiculturalism.

Although it is not a prime tourist destination, it does have several tourist attractions, the most well known being Nairobi National Park, home to a multitude of animals, including lion and giraffe. Nairobi also has more species of bird than any other capital city in the world.

The tour will leave the capital city of Kenya and travel north to Lake Naivasha where you spend the day at Hells Gate National Park, which lies next to this shallow lake. Hells Gate is named for the huge red-coloured cliffs that form the entrance to the geothermal interior. This is the only National Park in which you can hike, other activities include game and bird watching. The park entry fees are included in the tour and a popular optional activity is game viewing on bicycles. Another optional way to spend your afternoon is to take high-tea at Elsamere - the former home of Joy Adams, best known for her autobiographical novel Born Free.

The Masai Mara National Reserve is the Kenyan side of the Serengeti National Park (located in Tanzania). Today the tour will be entering this 2430sq.km area of spectacular game viewing to photograph some of Africa's most abundant wildlife. Best known for the annual migration of around 1.5 million wildebeest, the Masai Mara is also home to many other plains animals, including lions. In addition to what we hope will be a successful day's game viewing, cultural interaction with Kenya's native Masai people will round off your experience.

After some further game viewing in the Masai Mara, you will travel towards central Kenya and the home of the greater and lesser flamingo - Lake Nakuru. Originally created as a bird sanctuary, Lake Nakuru was upgraded to National Park status in 1968. Although the shallow alkaline lake is most famous for the large flocks of flamingos that congregate to feed on the blue-green algae, the National Park is also home to a further 450 species of birds and over 50 species of mammals. White rhino inhabit the transitional savannah area surrounding the lake and, with a bit of luck, you should get some great pictures.

On this final day you head back to Nairobi where a popular choice for the last meal together is the city's famous Carnivore Restaurant, vegetarians are catered for, but not encouraged...