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You can’t come to South Africa and not visit Cape Town. How many other cities in the world have a mountain ten minutes from downtown? Or beaches where you can walk with penguins and see whales?

But South Africa is a big country and Cape Town lies at the very bottom, far from the Kruger National Park and other safari destinations like Victoria Falls and Botswana. And you might be thinking about including the Cape Winelands or exploring the Garden Route – one of Africa’s best family destinations.

Make it easy with our best Cape Town tours combined with an African safari – tried and tested itineraries with something for everyone: couples and honeymooners, families on holiday, and travellers who simply want to experience the natural wonders of Africa.

Luxury Cape Town Tours

Luxury Cape Town Tours

Cape Winelands and Kruger

Duration: 9 Days | Locations: 3

LionSandsRiverLodge-Exterior-DeckPatio
Lion Sands River Lodge, Sabi Sand

Pick up your rental car from the airport and drive yourself to one of Cape Town’s smartest boutique hotels, tucked away in one of the city’s trendiest neighbourhoods. Table Mountain lies a few minutes away, and you have plenty of time for the peninsula highlights: penguins, Cape Point, Robben Island and Kirstenbosch Gardens. Then it’s a scenic drive to Franschhoek in the Cape Winelands, the centre of South Africa’s food renaissance and two nights of indulgence and pampering at a private country house. The pace changes with a flight to the Kruger where you’ll be whisked off to the Sabi Sands Private Reserve for matchless Big 5 game viewing, returning to a luxury suite complete with private viewing decks and room service.

Highlights:

  • Discover Cape Town and the Winelands at your own pace
  • Luxurious, private accommodation throughout; superior service
  • Spa, beauty treatments and massages available
  • Fine food and wine – a gourmet’s delight
  • Excellent Big 5 game viewing in private reserve
  • Game drives, bush walks, star-gazing and community visits

Best for:

Couples and honeymooners; special occasions

Cape Town, Winelands and Garden Route

Duration: 12 Days | Locations: 3

Kwandwe Great Fish River Lodge

Get it all on this tour: you’ll start in Cape Town at an intimate boutique hotel and with the advantage of your own car, enabling you to explore at your own speed. Cape Point and the penguins of Boulders Beach lie an hour away, and Table Mountain is just up the road. Then the rest of the Cape opens up: an elegant suite in the Cape Winelands, a luxurious guesthouse along the Garden Route, and the grand finale is a Big 5 safari in the malaria-free Eastern Cape – game drives, walks and river safaris in a wildly beautiful landscape…

Highlights:

  • A unique showcase of the Cape’s extraordinary natural diversity
  • Big 5 game viewing and prime whale-watching (in season)
  • Romantic, luxurious accommodation with spas and fine food
  • Self-drive independence – you set the pace
  • Great inclusive tours – shark-cage diving, city cycling and forest canopy
  • Malaria-free safari in the Eastern Cape

Best for:

Adventurous couples and honeymooners

Kruger & Cape Town Tours

Kruger & Cape Town Tours

Cape Town and Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve

Duration: 8 Days | Locations: 2

Lion Sands River Lodge

Looking to sit back on holiday and not have to make too many decisions? With this tour, you’ll be met when you arrive at Cape Town airport and transfer straight to one of the city’s finest boutique hotels. There’s both a full-day Cape Point and Cape Winelands tour already booked for you, leaving you with another full day to perhaps tour Robben Island, go hiking or just hit the beach. Then it’s a direct flight to the Kruger Park and one of its best private reserves for Big 5 game viewing – your chance to see elephant, lion, rhino, leopard and buffalo with unprecedented ease. Back at camp, you’ll enjoy the comfort of an air-conditioned suite, excellent food and a hand-picked wine list.

Highlights:

  • Intimate and luxurious accommodation
  • Easy logistics: door to door travel; fly straight to the Kruger
  • Full-day Cape Point and Cape Winelands tours included
  • Day and night game drives, guided walks and bush breakfasts
  • Fine food and wine, spa treatments and massages

Best for:

Couples, honeymooners and special occasions

Cape Town, Sabi Sand and a Tropical Island

Duration: 12 Days | Locations: 3

Lion Sands Narina Lodge

From the crisp waters of Cape Point to the tropical temperatures of Mozambique’s Indian Ocean, this tour spans Southern Africa and gives you peerless Big 5 game viewing in between. You begin at a chic apartment in Cape Town’s Kloof Street district and a moment’s walking distance to fashionable bars and restaurants. Then it’s a direct flight to the Kruger Park and one of its private reserves, giving you exclusive access to a game-rich area that you’ll explore on game drives and bush walks. Your suite is air-conditioned and comes with its own plunge pool set on your viewing deck. The finale is the warm welcome of the Bazaruto Archipelago and a beachfront resort where you have the choice of doing as much as you like – scuba diving, sailing, kayaking – or as little as you please – sunset cruises, spa treatments and private dining.

Highlights:

  • Great beach and bush combination
  • Excellent Big 5 game viewing in a private Kruger reserve
  • Direct flights and all transfers included – easy travel
  • Central location in Cape Town – ideal for city-lovers
  • Day and night game drives, guided walks and bush dining
  • Relaxing spa treatments and massages available
  • Superior comfort and service throughout
  • Scuba diving, snorkelling and great water sports

Best for:

Couples, honeymooners and special occasions

Cape Town Wine Tours

Cape Town Wine Tours

Wine and Whales

Duration: 13 Days | Locations: 6

Babylonstoren, Cape Winelands

Half of South Africa’s abundant biodiversity lies in the Western Cape and this self-drive adventure gives you a rewarding insight into it. There’s plenty of indulgence – fine food, gorgeous suites and spa treatments – but you also travel in the knowledge that this tour has a strong eco-emphasis, weaving conservation and community experiences into the itinerary. You begin in Cape Town at the ever-welcoming Cape Grace, set in the heart of the V&A Waterfront, before embarking on a lazy loop through the Cape countryside. Accommodation is at restored farmhouses, grand manors and private nature reserves and you’ll take in several of the country’s top wine regions. Too many calories? You can also include mountain biking, hiking and canoeing on the tour as well.

Highlights:

  • Self-drive independence – explore at your pace
  • Fantastic, luxurious accommodation throughout
  • Whale watching in season (July to November)
  • Combine nature and wildlife with local community experiences
  • Diverse landscapes and stunning scenery
  • Tsitsikamma forest canopy tour included
  • Fine food and wine – great for gourmets!

Best for:

Couples, honeymooners and foodies

Cape to Kalahari

Duration: 13 Days | Locations: 4

The Motse at Tswalu, Kalahari

Recommended for independent-minded travellers, this grand tour gives you your own car with which to explore the Cape. You’ll start at a gorgeous Cape Town boutique hotel, well-located to give you easy access to Table Mountain, the Camps Bay beaches, the V&A Waterfront and the Robben Island ferry. Then it’s a slow drive to Stellenbosch in the Winelands for a stay at a remarkable farmhouse where you’ll enjoy great food and wine. Check in at a private forest reserve close to the coast for whale watching in season plus shark-cage diving and fascinating nature tours. A flight whisks you from the teeming Cape waters to the rolling golden grasslands of the Kalahari. Stay in a private reserve where you’ll search for cheetah and black-maned lion by 4X4, and ride on horseback through herds of antelope and zebra.

Highlights:

  • Unique ‘Cape and Kalahari’ itinerary
  • Africa’s biggest creatures on show: whales, sharks and lions
  • Self-drive independence – explore the Cape at your own pace
  • Fine food and wine – great for foodies
  • Great activities – game drives, hiking, biking and horse riding
  • Plenty of downtime – spa treatments available
  • Luxurious and exclusive accommodation throughout

Best for:

Couples, honeymooners and gourmets

Garden Route Tours from Cape Town

Winelands, Garden Route and a Big 5 Safari

Duration: 16 Days | Locations: 4

Game drive with Kwandwe Fort House.

Make your base the heart of the V&A Waterfront as you explore Cape Town and the peninsula at your own pace. A rental car gives you the freedom to go where and when you choose, and it’s only an hour’s drive to Franschhoek in the Winelands, the well-loved centre of South Africa’s food and wine experience. Your journey then takes you to Plettenberg Bay on the Garden Route for a feast of activities on land and at sea, before finishing with a flourish at a private Big 5 reserve in the Eastern Cape. It’s malaria-free game viewing at its easiest and you can sit back on game drives and let expert guides take care of it all. Accommodation is a blend of family-friendly hotels, private villas and country homesteads.

Highlights:

  • Self-drive independence and flexibility
  • Great land-based whale watching in season
  • Stay at Franschhoek’s Le Quartier Français
  • Full-day family tour included in the Winelands
  • Malaria-free game viewing in a beautiful private reserve
  • Look for the Big 5 – lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard and rhino
  • Exclusive-use family villa on safari plus private guide and vehicle
  • Game drives, guided walks and community experiences

Best for:

Families and groups of friends

Vic Falls & Cape Town Tours

Vic Falls & Cape Town Tours

Kenya’s Masai Mara, Vic Falls and Cape Town

Duration: 14 Days | Locations: 4

Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp

Easy-paced, assisted all the way and packed with inclusive tours, this is an itinerary for travellers looking to span Africa in one trip. Opening with the rolling grasslands of the Masai Mara, you’ll settle into a tented suite with ‘Out of Africa’ views and the prospect of game drives and guided walks in one of Africa’s most rewarding big game destinations. Then you fly to Zambia and check in at a sleek, contemporary lodge on the Zambezi River where you have a private boat for sunset cruises. You’ll also have a day trip into Botswana to look forward to, plus bird’s eye views of Victoria Falls from a helicopter. The journey ends with four nights in Cape Town at a boutique hotel set in the city’s fashionable Kloof Street area – giving you plenty of time to discover the city and you’ll even tour the Winelands.

Highlights:

  • Africa in one go! The perfect bucket-lister
  • Excellent year-round game viewing in the Masai Mara
  • The Wildebeest Migration (July to November)
  • Game drives and a hot-air balloon safari in the Mara
  • Helicopter flights over Victoria Falls
  • Day trip to Botswana’s legendary Chobe River
  • Enjoy a full-day Cape Winelands tour
  • Intimate, romantic and luxurious accommodation throughout

Best for:

Couples and honeymooners (a once-in-a-lifetime experience)

Cape Town, Kruger and Victoria Falls

Duration: 11 Days | Locations: 4

Game drive in Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve.

Southern Africa’s three most iconic destinations on one itinerary ensures a wide diversity of experiences. Open with an apartment-style hotel in Cape Town, set just a minute’s walk from restaurants and fashionable boutiques. Then it’s a flight straight to the Kruger and one of its private reserves – the legendary Sabi Sand – where you enjoy 5-star views of the Big 5 (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino), as well as sumptuous accommodation with your own game viewing deck. The grand finale is ‘The Smoke that Thunders’ – Victoria Falls, and a boutique lodge located in a private wildlife reserve close to the Falls, where you can track rare white rhinos on foot.

Highlights:

  • Well-paced, highly diverse itinerary – a great overview of Africa
  • Plenty of time to explore Cape Town
  • Larger family suites and many activities available
  • Excellent wildlife viewing in private Kruger reserve
  • Game drives, guided walks and community experiences
  • Stay close to Victoria Falls in a wildlife reserve

Best for:

Families, first-timers to Africa and honeymooners

Written By

Dominic Chadbon

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